5 Stocks To Watch: August 17, 2020

Aug 17, 2020
The stocks to watch at the New York Stock Exchange
Credit: BJMyers / Pixabay

August 17, 2020: Here’s a quick recap on our stocks to watch from Friday:

  • iQiyi, Inc. (IQ): From $21.68 to $19.26.
  • Baidu, Inc. (BIDU): From $124.57 to $116.74.
  • Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT): From $65.07 to $67.62.
  • Co-Diagnostics, Inc. (CODX): From $21 to $16.29.
  • DraftKings, Inc. (DKNG): From $36.05 to $33.91.

Our picks always focus on the stocks we expect to move, not biggest gainers. Here’s why we picked the above:

  • iQiyi, Inc. is a subsidiary of Baidu, Inc. It was reported late last week that the SEC had requested financial information from iQiyi, Inc. That spotlight would inevitably move the market.
  • Additionally, Co-Diagnostics, Inc. had seen fluctuations in value during the week. Ranging from gaining 7.3-percent to losing 16.2-percent.
  • Applied Materials, Inc. was a stock we picked on Thursday and Friday. We were waiting for a market reaction after a positive third-quarter report.
  • On the flip-side, DraftKings, Inc. looked destined for a weak second-quarter report before Friday’s opening bell. We picked DKNG purely for that reason.

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

Today’s #1 Stocks To Watch: Thermogenesis Holdings, Inc. (THMO) – $4.73

On Friday Thermogenesis Holdings, Inc. (THMO) reported downbeat second-quarter results. Q2 revenue was $2.2-million and earnings per share reported at a loss of $1.02 each.

The Q2 revenue missed the $5.8-million estimate by $3.6-million.

When compared to Q2 in 2019, the report was worse by double. With 2019 Q2 revenue at $4.3-million and earnings per share at a loss of $0.47 each.

With this double decrease in revenue and EPS the market reacted. During after-hours trading THMO fell from $4.73 to $4. A 15.4-percent slip.

This movement meant we had to put THMO on our stocks to watch list today.

Medley Management, Inc. (MDLY) – $0.70

Asset management company Medley Management, Inc. (MDLY) reported second-quarter results on Friday. It was a mixed bag.

Q2 revenue beat the estimate by $267-thousand. to earn $8.58-million. And Q2 earnings per share missed the estimate by $0.06, for a loss of $0.11 each.

The big news was that year-on-year second-quarter sales were down from $12.88-million.

During after-hours trading, MDLY fell from $0.70 to $0.63. A 11.3-percent slip is enough to make it one of stocks to watch today.

Baxter International, Inc. (BAX) – $83.48

Medical manufacturer Baxter International, Inc. (BAX) announced its second-quarter results on Thursday. It was weaker-than-expected.

Q2 revenue was reported at $2.72-billion, $142-million below the estimate. Earnings per share reported at $0.64 each, $0.08 below the estimate.

However, the big news last week for Baxter International, Inc, included that it had obtained two US FDA emergency use authorizations. One for a Regiocit replacement solution and another for HF20.

During after-hours trading BAX climbed from $83.48 to $84.80. A 1.6-percent gain.

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Fabrinet (FN) – $73.05

Reporting after the closing bell today is Fabrinet (FN). The provider of outsourced manufacturing is expected to report Q4 revenue of $386.86-million and earnings per share of $0.87 each.

In comparison, Q3 revenue was $344.58-million with earnings per share of $0.84 each.

During last weeks trading FN shares fell in value from $76.15 to $73.05.

What’s interesting is that FN was at $47.78 during the March lockdown dip. So in five months it has recovered and even surpassed its earlier peak value of $66.66 in January 2020.

Will the market continue to push up the value? This Q4 report might give us an answer and puts FN as one of our top five stocks to watch today.

JD.Com, Inc. (JD) – $62.06

The one company on our list reporting before the opening bell today is JD.Com, Inc. (JD).

Analysts expect Q2 revenue to report at $27.45-billion, with earnings per share at $0.38 each.

For comparison, Q1 revenue was $20.65-billion, with earnings per share of $0.28 each. Both beat-the-estimate, which were $19.29-billion and $0.11 respectively.

During after-hours trading on Friday, JD dropped by 0.1-percent, from $62.06 to $62.

With JD surpassing its peak value in 2017 ($49.23). Surging in value in March, from $43.10 to present value. It’ll be interesting to see which way the market takes JD, considering the price has fluctuated around the $60 mark since early June.

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