Buzz Stocks: GoPro Inc, Herbalife Ltd., and Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc

Today's stocks to watch include GoPro Inc (GPRO), Herbalife Ltd. (HLF), Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc (VRX)

May 6, 2016 at 10:26 AM

U.S. stocks are down after a disappointing nonfarm payrolls report. Among equities in focus today are camera company GoPro Inc (NASDAQ:GPRO), nutrition stock Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE:HLF), and biotech Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc (NYSE:VRX).

GPRO shares are at $10.07, down 6.1%, after a disappointing earnings report and delayed drone launch. GoPro Inc currently sits about a point off its all-time low, tagged in early February, and the stock has underperformed the greater S&P 500 Index (SPX) by 13.2 percentage points over the last 20 sessions. GPRO's 10-day put/call volume ratio at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) is currently higher than 99% of the readings from the past year, suggesting an unusually heightened sense of pre-earnings pessimism among options traders.
HLF is up 12% at $65.27, following an announcement that the company was in the "advanced stages" of talks to settle a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) probe, and an earnings report that exceeded analyst expectations. The FTC investigation aims to determine whether or not the nutrition and weight loss company is an illegal pyramid scheme, as activist investor Bill Ackman insists. HLF has been on the rise since hitting its annual low of $42.26 in February, and earlier today notched a new annual peak of $66. Short interest is high, with 36.7% of the stock's float currently sold short. It would take over 18 sessions of trading, at Herbalife Ltd.'s average daily volume, to cover the 22.7 million shorted shares -- plenty of fuel for a short squeeze.
VRX is down 8.2% at $31.65, after the company announced that it would be forming a committee to oversee drug pricing, a week after the biotech was put in the limelight in Washington, D.C. Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc's new CEO, Joseph Papa, will head the team of Valeant employees. Meanwhile, ugly guidance from sector peer Endo International plc - Ordinary Shares (NASDAQ:ENDP) isn't helping the specialty pharmaceutical sector. VRX shares have plunged roughly 90% over the past year, although options traders seem optimistic, with the biotech's 10-day ISE/CBOE/PHLX call/put volume ratio of 2.29 sitting in the 82nd percentile of VRX's annual range.

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