The Dow is down 137 points at midday
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) is down 137 points at midday, walking back this morning's modest gains as investors continue to fret over the Fed's decision to taper off economic stimulus by summer. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) and S&P 500 Index (SPX) clawed out of the red, despite tech stocks plummeting as the 10-year Treasury yield rises. Worse-than-expected weekly jobless claims data is weighing on investor sentiment as well, as Wall Street awaits nonfarm payrolls data for December tomorrow.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- Analyst says Coinbase stock could bounce.
- Blue-chip concern brushes off beat-and-raise.
- Plus, options traders blast BBBY after earnings; DOJ lets Eargo off the hook; and BLI sinks on dismal forecast.
Bed Bath & Beyond Inc.(NASDAQ: BBBY) is getting blasted in the options pits, after the retailer reported breakeven results for its fiscal third quarter amid thin inventories and supply chain issues. The heavily shorted stock is trending on StockTwits.com, though. So far, 56,000 calls and 36,000 puts have exchanged hands, which is 12 times the intraday average. Most popular is the 1/7 20-strike call, followed by the 16-strike call in the same series, with positions being opened at both. At last check, BBBY is up 8.2% at $14.46, while overhead pressure at the $16 level. The security has shed over 50% in the last nine months.
Hearing aid manufacturer Eargo Inc (NASDAQ:EAR) is one of the best stocks on the Nasdaq today, last seen up 50.3% to trade at $6.85. This bull gap comes after the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) confirmed a criminal investigation into insurance reimbursement claims is not active anymore. The equity is now trading at its highest level since November, breaking through overhead pressure from the 60-day moving average, which had been in place since August. Year-over-year, though, EAR is still down 85.1%.
Among the Nasdaq's worst performing stocks today is Berkeley Lights Inc (NASDAQ:BLI).The utility company is down 32.5% at $10.99, after receiving price-target cuts from BTIG and Stifel to $25 and $12, respectively. What's more, the latter went a step further and downgraded BLI to "hold" from "buy," after the company announced a CEO search and released dismal yearly forecasts. The equity earlier fell to a record low of $10.42, and is now down 88% year-over-year.