Snap, Aurinia Pharmaceuticals, Abercrombie & Fitch Stocks Moving Today

The Dow seems to be cooling off after Wednesday's record rally, with hawkish Fed talk and a steep drop in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) shares weighing on stocks. Among specific equities in focus are market newcomer and Snapchat parent Snap Inc (NYSE:SNAP), biotech issue Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:AUPH), and retail stock Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF). Here's a quick look at what's moving shares of SNAP, AUPH, and ANF.

Snap Catches Fire as Trading Begins

In the year's most highly anticipated initial public offering (IPO) so far, shares of SNAP began trading publicly just before 11:30 a.m. ET this morning, with an opening price of $24 -- a roughly 40% premium over last night's IPO price of $17, which already beat out previous estimates. After half an hour, Snap Inc had already seen more than 100 million shares traded, making it the most active stock across all major U.S. exchanges. All this excitement hasn't convinced everyone on Wall Street, however. Within minutes of SNAP's first trade, analysts at Pivotal Research initiated coverage with a downbeat "sell" rating and $10 price target, calling the shares "significantly overvalued." Even so, a continued rally for the stock, which was last seen up 48% at $25.16, could bode well for other social media stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). 

Lupus Drug Data Sends Options Traders Rushing to Aurinia

AUPH has gapped 36.7% higher to trade at $5.07, after earlier tapping a four-year high of $6.00. Sending the shares higher is news the company's Lupus treatment showed no new safety concerns in a mid-stage study, after 13 patient deaths were reported last August. Today's pop may have short sellers on edge, as these bearish bets surged by 84% during the two most recent reporting periods. But Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc's typically quiet options pits are on fire today, with both calls and puts crossing the tape at more than 40 times the expected intraday pace. In fact, AUPH has already seen nearly 15,000 calls change hands -- more than three times its previous annual high.

High Expectations for Hollister Put Abercrombie & Fitch Bears on Notice

After reporting earnings that missed estimates, ANF is shocking recent options bear, rallying 15.7% to $13.52 -- the best percentage gain in over a year -- as traders cheer upbeat expectations for 2017. Specifically, Abercrombie & Fitch Co. said it would close some 60 stores this year, while remodeling 40 existing locations in its Hollister brand, where comparable sales actually increased for the quarter. ANF is set to end atop its 80-day moving average for the first time since September, but could still have a long recovery ahead, as the shares are sitting on a 56.6% year-over-year deficit. A round of bullish brokerage notes could help; at present, 17 out of 19 firms following the stock rate ANF a "hold" or worse.