IMPINJ's hot run is stalling today
Analysts are weighing in on tech stock IMPINJ Inc (NASDAQ:PI), agriculture issue Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON), and health foods maker Hain Celestial Group Inc (NASDAQ:HAIN). Here's a quick roundup of today's bearish brokerage notes on shares of PI, MON, and HAIN.
Red-Hot PI Stock Slapped With Downgrade
IMPINJ stock has nearly doubled in the past three months, touching a record high of $60.85 yesterday. However, Pacific Crest downgraded PI stock to "sector weight" from "overweight," with the brokerage firm citing valuation concerns. As such, the shares have given back 6.5% to trade at $55.51. Short sellers would like to see IMPINJ pressured even further. For instance, these bears control the equivalent of six days' worth of buying power, based on the stock's average trading volume.
Monsanto Stock Falls on Glyphosate Drama, Downgrade
Late yesterday, California's Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment said glyphosate -- the active ingredient in Monsanto's Roundup -- will be added to the state's list of chemicals known to cause cancer, effective July 7. Monsanto said it will continue to fight Proposition 65. Still, Susquehanna downgraded MON stock to "neutral" from "positive." The shares have dropped 0.5% to trade at $117.17, but they're still up 11.4% year-to-date. Interestingly, short-term options traders are more put-skewed than they've been at any other point over the past year. This is according to Monsanto's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) of 0.93, which is at an annual high.
HAIN Stock Continues to Struggle
RBC cut its price target on Hain Celestial Group shares to $39 from $44, dropping the stock 0.1% to $33.558. This is just more of the same from HAIN shares, which were trading near $48 this time last year, and touched a four-year low of $31.01 last week. During the last two reporting periods, short interest on Hain jumped 7.7%, so short sellers are certainly taking notice. This trend could add even more selling pressure to the struggling equity.