AMED nabbed another new record high earlier today
Stocks are mixed on the final day of the week, but the Dow and S&P 500 are heading toward weekly wins. Looking at individual names, drug stock Acer Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:ACER), health care company Amedisys Inc (NASDAQ:AMED), and biotech name Evolus Inc (NASDAQ:EOLS) are all trading higher today. Here's a closer look at what's moving shares of ACER, AMED, and EOLS.
Upgrade Puts ACER Stock Near Two-Year High
Acer Therapeutics stock is up 10.7% to trade at $29.05 -- one of the better stocks on the Nasdaq today -- after Raymond James upgraded the pharma name to "strong buy" from "outperform," while raising its price target to $46 from $31. The new price target represents territory Acer stock has not traded in since September 2016.
ACER is just a chip-shot from its two-year high of $30.23, nabbed last Friday. The equity has more than tripled in the last 12 months, and handily doubled in 2018. Amidst this broader surge, the shares' 200-day moving average contained an early August sell-off.
Fresh Record Highs for AMED After Price-Target Hike
Amedisys stock is up 1.7% to trade at $119.50, and earlier hit a new record high of $120.30, after receiving a price-target hike to $125 from $103 at Oppenheimer. This bull note follows Oppenheimer's previous price-target boost to $103 from $85, issued as recently as July 31.
AMED has carved out a channel of higher highs and lows all year, with an Aug. 1 bull gap propelling the stock well north of support at its 30-day moving average. The shares boast a year-over-year lead of 137%, and are currently on pace for an eighth consecutive winning month.
EOLS Rallies on Canadian Regulator's Nod
Last but not least, Evolus stock is up 6.5% to trade at $19.98, after Health Canada granted early approval to the company's Botox rival, DWP-450. Evolus expects the drug to launch in the U.S. by the spring of 2019, and receive approval from the European Union (EU) by the first half of 2019.
Since a mid-July bear gap, the equity has been trading sideways between the $18 and $21 levels. Today's rally places EOLS in the middle of this range -- and just above that familiar ceiling at $21 is another potential hurdle at $22.67, which represents a 50% retracement of the equity's all-time closing low and high. Plus, $24 marks a double of the drug company's February initial public offering (IPO) price.