Moderna (MRNA) lit up the biotechnology sector at a pace not seen since the COVID pandemic. Shares soared by 176.97% on Wednesday to close at $174.38. The rally crushed short-sellers, who held a 13.6% short float against the stock.
Moderna and Merck (MRK) reported a late-stage trial for its mRNA-based cancer therapy. Intismeran autogene succeeded in treating patients with melanoma, a type of skin cancer.
Estee Lauder (EL) gained over 16% to close at $98.01 after shares traded in the $80 range since April. It posted revenue of $3.63 billion, up by 6.5% Y/Y. The firm increased its adjusted operating margin forecast from 12.7% to $13.55.
Strategy (MSTR) closed at $104.25 (+12.68%). Bitcoin prices rose to around $68.7K on Wednesday. The firm previously sold Bitcoin at lower prices to buy back its preferred shares.
Nebius (NBIS) led the stocks that slumped. The stock lost nearly 10% after launching a $4.5 billion private offering of convertible senior notes. It needs the funds to fund the construction of data centers, the AI cloud, and to procure components.
Seagate (STX) dropped by nearly 8%. The stock is having trouble breaking above the $1000 resistance zone, so it closed at $832.56.
Steel Dynamics (STLD) fell by 7.53%. Rumors that the U.S. would lower tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum by half, to 25%, hurt STLD stock.
