Benzinga - by Chris Katje, Benzinga Staff Writer.
Each week, Benzinga's Stock Whisper Index uses a combination of proprietary data and pattern recognition to showcase five stocks just under the surface and warrant attention.
Investors are constantly on the hunt for undervalued, under-followed and emerging stocks. With countless methods available to retail traders, the challenge often lies in sifting through the abundance to uncover new information.
This index layers editorial commentary to help make sense of why these stocks should be of interest and whether investors or casual readers should watch them.
Here is a look at the Benzinga Stock Whisper Index for the week of Jan. 26:
American Airlines Group (NASDAQ:AAL): The airline company saw increased attention from investors after reporting fourth-quarter financial results.
The company beat analysts' estimates for revenue and earnings per share in the quarter. Guidance for the first quarter and full fiscal 2024 also came in ahead of estimates from analysts. The quarterly report resulted in several upgrades from analysts.
Increased attention could be centered on the airline industry after the recent safety concerns over planes made by Boeing Co (NYSE:BA). A rejected merger of JetBlue Airways Corporation (NASDAQ:JBLU) and Spirit Airlines Inc (NYSE:SAVE) by the Justice Department also has the airline sector on watch as it could impact M&A activity going forward.
Shares of American Airlines are up 13% in the last five days.
Digital World Acquisition Corporation (NASDAQ:DWAC): The SPAC has been highly volatile in recent weeks due to Donald Trump winning the Iowa caucus and New Hampshire primary.
A deal to take Trump Media & Technology Group public was first announced by Digital World Acquisition in October 2021. The SPAC merger has faced many setbacks and vote extensions, with the most recent pushing a deadline out to March 8, 2024.
Shares of the SPAC hit new two-year highs after Trump's recent wins and news that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis dropped out of the 2024 election and endorsed Trump.
With Trump holding a dominant lead in the race for the GOP nomination, stocks related to the former president could continue to be volatile and gain on new updates. Investors should note the current deadline and the potential for more extensions and delays in the merger.
Related Link: Trump Hits Record Lead In Republican 2024 Election Poll: How DeSantis Exit Could Help Former President
Vera Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VERA): The clinical-stage biotechnology company saw shares soar over the last week after announcing data from a Phase 2b ORIGIN clinical trial. The data showed strong results and an improvement over the placebo in the study. Safety data also showed strong tolerance by participants in the study.
Shares of Vera are up 179% in the past year, with a 95% gain over the last week. Shares hit a new 52-week high of $33.17 on Friday.
Several analysts upgraded shares and price targets after the trial results. Wedbush reiterated a Neutral rating while raising the price target from $16 to $21. Raymond James upgraded shares from Outperform to Strong Buy and raised the price target from $29 to $37.
American Semiconductor Corporation (NASDAQ:AMSC): The renewable energy company saw strong interest from investors after reporting third-quarter financial results and issuing fourth-quarter guidance.
The company's third quarter revenue of $39.35 million was up 60% year-over-year and beat a Street consensus estimate of $34 million. American Semiconductor said the third quarter results included increased shipments of new energy power systems.
"Our team achieved this thanks to strong customer demand, our pricing initiatives and a favorable product mix," American Semiconductor CEO Daniel P. McGahn said.
McGahn also highlighted the company booking more than $34 million in new orders in the third quarter. The company now has a backlog of over $137 million.
LAVA Therapeutics NV (NASDAQ:LVTX): The biotechnology company saw shares up 40% over the last week after announcing a clinical trial collaboration and supply agreement with Merck & Co Inc (NYSE:MRK). The deal will see LAVA evaluate a combination of its LAVA-1207 with Merck's Keytruda for the treatment of patients with therapy refractory metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer.
"We are excited to work with Merck as we continue to unlock the therapeutic potential of LAVA-1207 and explore its potential capabilities in combination with KEYTRUDA," LAVA CEO Stephen Hurly said.
Stay tuned for next week's report, and follow Benzinga Pro for all the latest headlines and top market-moving stories here.
Read the latest Stock Whisper Index reports here:
Dec. 29
Jan. 5
Jan. 12
Jan. 19
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