5 Stocks To Watch: August 12, 2020

August 12, 2020: Here’s a quick recap on our stocks to watch from Tuesday:

• Super Micro Computer, Inc. (SMCI): From $30.21 to $30.48.
• Ligand Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (LGND): From $118.66 to $111.90
• Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (INO): From $18.99 to $14.62.
• Nio, Inc. (NIO): From $14.21 to $12.99.
• SYSCO Corporation (SYY): From $60.10 to $60.84.

SMCI, LGND, NIO, and SYY were picked because the market looked promising for each. Clearly, we were mostly wrong.

Our first bad pick, Ligand Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (LGND) announced they were buying Pfenex, Inc. (PFNX) in cash on Monday. PFNX rocketed by 67.5-percent, up to $12.83, and was one of the biggest gainers during Tuesday’s trading. Unfortunately, LGND share prices didn’t match.

The biggest surprise to us during Tuesday’s trading was Nio, Inc. (NIO). A downbeat, yet better-than-expect second-quarter report, plus positive after-hours trading and positive news sentiment resulted in a fall of 8.6-percent, to $12.99.

Last and most definitely least is Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (INO). During yesterday’s stocks to watch we picked out INO because it looked like it was going to drop. Yesterday’s 23-percent fall made INO one of the days biggest losers after Monday’s Q2 report.

CHECK OUT: U.S. governors question cost of President Trump COVID-19 aid plan and stimulus order.

Here are our top-five stocks to watch during this Wednesday’s trading.

Today’s #1 Stocks To Watch: Moderna, Inc. (MRNA) – $68.97

On Tuesday, it was reported that Moderna, Inc. (MRNA) had signed an agreement with the U.S. government, securing the sale of 100-million doses of the company’s upcoming COVID-19 vaccine. The $1.525-billion agreement obviously caused a reaction in the market.

During after-hours trading, MRNA shares jumped 11.3-percent. From $68.97 to $76.75.

This could be a big day for MRNA, so we’ve put it at the top of our stocks to watch list.

Tesla, Inc. (TSLA) – $1,374.39

Tesla, Inc. (TSLA) announced on Tuesday a 5-for-1 stock split, which will be effective from August 31. In the announcement, Tesla, Inc. (TSLA) said that it would “make stock ownership more accessible to employees and investors.”

During after-hours trading, TSLA jumped 6.5-percent, from $1,374.39 to $1,463.23.

Tuesday’s announcement and after-hours trading buzz puts TSLA at #2 on our stocks to watch list.

CHECK OUT: President Trump signs coronavirus relief stimulus executive order after Congress talks broke down.

Red Robin Gourmet Burgers, Inc. (RRGS) – $10.90

Red Robin Gourmet Burgers, Inc. (RRGS) reported their second-quarter results on Tuesday, and they failed to meet estimates.

Q2 revenue reported at $161.12-million, $4.94-million below the estimate. Q2 earnings per share reported at a loss of $3.31 each, just $0.01 worse than the estimate.

The real horrifying numbers in the earnings report were:

• Revenue had decreased by 47.68-percent year-over-year.
• Earnings per share have decreased 421.36-percent over the last 52-weeks.

During after-hours trading, RRGB dropped 9.2-percent, from $10.90 to $9.90, making it one of the stocks we’ll be watching today.

Cisco Systems, Inc. (CSCO) – $47.19

Cisco Systems, Inc. (CSCO) is scheduled to report fourth-quarter results after the closing bell today.

Estimates put Q4 revenue at $12.08-billion, and Q4 earnings per share at $0.74 each. For comparison, Q3 results were above-the-estimate, with revenue of $11.98-billion and earnings per share of $0.79 each.

During after-hours trading, CSCO climbed 0.5-percent, from $47.19 to $47.40.

With share prices almost back to what they were before the lockdown slump ($47.97) in March and the 52-week high ($53.07) not far away, it’s hard to know which way CSCO will go during today’s trading. For this reason, it makes our stocks to watch list.

CHECK OUT: Kodak shares plunge after U.S. blocks $765-million loan deal.

Brinker International, Inc. (EAT) – $30.11

Brinker International, Inc. (EAT) is expected to report fourth-quarter results before the opening bell today.

Estimates put Q4 revenue at $573.63-million, and Q4 earnings per share at a loss of $1.37. For comparison, Q3 revenue was reported at $860-million, with earnings per share of $1.28 each. Revenue missed the estimate by $5.88-million, while the EPS beat its estimate by $0.58.

During after-hours trading, EAT increase by 0.1-percent, from $30.11 to $30.17.

EAT share value has been climbing since the March lockdown dip. Climbing from $9.31 on March 15, to present value. This trend and what could be a surprise Q4 report make EAT one of our stocks to watch.