BLUE, BB, and BNTX all received upbeat analyst attention today
The U.S. stock market is soaring once more, with all three benchmarks nabbing new record highs. Among specific stocks making notable moves higher are gene therapy specialist bluebird bio Inc (NASDAQ:BLUE), tech issue BlackBerry Ltd (NYSE:BB), and biotech BioNTech SE (NASDAQ:BNTX). Here's a quick look at what's moving the shares of BLUE, BB, and BNTX.
Wells Fargo Thinks Zynteglo Concerns Overblown on bluebird bio
Bluebird bio stock is up 0.4% at $83.29 at last check, after earlier trading as high as $86.54, after Wedbush upgraded it to "outperform" from "neutral." Although the brokerage firm also trimmed its price target to $124 from $131, the analyst believes concerns about the launch of Zynteglo -- a gene therapy for a blood disorder -- are overblown. Jefferies also lowered its BLUE price target, to $155 from $195.
Short sellers remain in control, despite short interest decreasing in the most recent reporting period. The 8.91 million shares sold short account for 16.3% of BLUE's total available float, and 13.4 times the average daily trading volume.
BlackBerry Breaks Out After Upgrade
Another stock up on analyst attention is BlackBerry, last seen trading 1.8% higher at $5.59. BofA Merrill-Lynch raised its rating on the tech stock to "neutral" from "underperform," and hiked its price target to $7 from $6, while waxing optimistic about the company's car cybersecurity software, Cyclane. Today's gains have BB breaking out of congestion in the $5.30 neighborhood, which coincides with its 32-day moving average.
In the options pits, calls hold a distinct advantage. In the last 10 days, 10,118 calls were bought to open at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), compared to just 624 puts. Plus, the resultant call/put volume ratio of 16.21 ranks in the 69th percentile of its annual range, indicating calls have been bought to open over puts at a quicker-than-usual clip in the last two weeks.
Analysts Line Up Buy Ratings On BNTX
BioNTech stock is up 16.2% to trade at $19.20, after the company's research quiet period ended, and analysts piled on with bull notes. J. P. Morgan Securities burst down the door with an "overweight" rating and $23 price target for December 2020, noting it "isn't your typical biotech IPO." Berenberg, UBS, and Canaccord Genuity also chipped in with "buy" ratings of their own, the highest price target of $25 coming from the former. BNTX priced its initial public offering (IPO) at $15 per American depositary share (ADS) back on Oct. 10, before opening at $16.50. The shares traded as high as $21.99 on Oct. 23.