PTI shares are on pace for their highest close in almost a year
Stocks have given back their early gains following the shake-up in President Trump's cabinet. Among individual names making notable moves are chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD), Dow component General Electric Company (NYSE:GE), and biotech Proteostasis Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:PTI). Here's a quick look at what's driving shares of AMD, GE, and PTI.
AMD Shares Ricochet Higher
AMD stock is in focus today after cybersecurity research firm CTS Labs published a report detailing multiple "severe security" flaws in the company's chips. However, as of last check the shares had pared earlier losses to trade up 1.5% at $11.70.
Advanced Micro Devices has been making big moves on the charts for months, and recently saw a boom in put trading. One indicator that stands out is AMD's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) of 1.40. Not only does this show put open interest outweighing call open interest among contracts expiring within three months, but it ranks just 2 percentage points from a 12-month high.
Bear Note Sinks GE Stock Again
General Electric shares are trading down 4.1% at $14.48 -- not far from their March 1 low of $13.95 -- after a price-target cut to $11 from $14 at J.P. Morgan Securities. The brokerage firm, which rates the stock at "underweight," said GE's dividend is "still high risk." The blue-chip stock has shed more than half its value over the past year.
Elsewhere, short interest has been tick-tocking higher since early 2017 -- yet less than 2% of the equity's float is sold short. This suggests there's plenty of room for short sellers to pile on.
Proteostasis Therapeutics Stock Jumps 53%
Proteostasis Therapeutics announced the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted a breakthrough therapy designation to its cystic fibrosis drug. Shares of PTI were last seen up 53.2% at $6.34, making it the second best stock on the Nasdaq today. This move has the stock on pace for its highest close in almost a year, as the $6.40 level kept a tight lid on the last breakout attempt in December and January. Analysts certainly have high expectations, given Proteostasis' average 12-month price target of $14.75.