Analysts are weighing in on Healthways, Inc. (HWAY), Depomed Inc (DEPO), and Opko Health Inc. (OPK)
U.S. stocks are higher as traders await the outcome of today's presidential election. Among stocks in focus are health management concern Healthways, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWAY), and biotech stocks Depomed Inc (NASDAQ:DEPO) and Opko Health Inc. (NASDAQ:OPK). Here's a quick roundup of today's brokerage notes on HWAY, DEPO, and OPK.
- HWAY is trading up 10.4% at $21.98, after UBS upgraded the healthcare management stock to "buy" from "sell," and bumped its price target to $24 from $22.50. The analysts cited a "more attractive valuation" after the stock's recent sell-off, and said HWAY "could benefit from continued M&A growth." HWAY has dropped almost 20% since notching a nearly-eight-year high of $27.30 in late September, gapping notably lower last week after an earnings miss, but the security remains almost 70% higher year-to-date. However, part of today's bump could have been in the cards for Healthways, Inc. shares, as the stock's 14-day Relative Strength Index (RSI) of 22 sat in "oversold" territory before today.
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Similar to this fellow drugmaker, DEPO is taking it on the chin today, down 18.6% at $18.62, after delivering a disappointing earnings report and cutting its full-year forecast. Subsequently, Cantor Fitzgerald cut DEPO's rating to "hold" from "buy," while JMP slashed its price target to $33 from $35. This puts DEPO down over 31% since touching an annual high of $27.01 in late September, and on pace to close below its 200-day moving average for the first time since May. Although DEPO's short interest is down nearly 20% over the last reporting period, shorted shares still account for 21.8% of Depomed Inc's float, which would take six days of trading to cover, at DEPO's average daily rate. Today, however, DEPO has been relegated to the short-sale restricted list.
- OPK is also having a rough day after reporting earnings last night, with the shares down 7% at $9.05. In addition, OPK received a price-target cut to $15 from $16 by Barrington today. OPK is now down 9.9% for the year, although the shares' intraday losses were limited by the $8.80-$9 region, which has contained several pullbacks since June. A few option players could be kicking rocks after today's plunge, with Opko Health Inc.'s Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) of 0.57 sitting at an annual low, indicating near-term option traders haven't been more call-skewed in the past 12 months. However, some of this could be attributed to short sellers hedging their bets, with OPK's short interest up 7.5% in the last two reporting periods, now accounting for 21.2% of OPK's float, which would take over four weeks of trading to cover, at the stock's average daily rate.
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