Opko Health Stock Volatile Again After SEC Settlement

OPK stock has made some massive moves recently

Karee Venema

Dec 28, 2018 at 10:08 AM

The shares of Opko Health Inc. (NASDAQ:OPK) are up 28.1% to trade at $3.31, after the biotech's Chairman and CEO Philip Frost agreed to a $5.52 million settlement with U.S. Securities and Exchange (SEC) over a civil suit alleging penny stock "pump-and-dump" schemes. Opko Health was also fined.

It's been a volatile stretch for the stock, per its 120-day historical volatility of 88%, which registers in the elevated 97th annual percentile. In fact, the shares had a one-day gain of 20.6% as recently as Nov. 12, but also dropped 11.5% back on Nov. 9. Plus, OPK slid to an eight-year low of $2.34 yesterday.

This negative price action has certainly rewarded short sellers, who have started closing out of their winning bets. Short interest fell 6.1% in the most recent reporting period, but the 62.29 million OPK shares still sold short accounts for one-fifth of the stock's available float, or 14.8 times the average daily pace of trading.

Elsewhere on Wall Street, just three analysts cover Opko Health and their opinions of the drug stock vary, with one maintaining a "strong buy," one a "hold," and one a "strong sell." The average 12-month price target, meanwhile is perched squarely at $10 -- a 250% premium to OPK stock's current perch.

Follow @Schaeffers

The $25K Day Trading Barrier is Gone

The long-standing Pattern Day Trader (PDT) rule that required many traders to maintain a $25,000 account balance is no longer standing in the way.

That means more traders can actively pursue short-term opportunities without the barrier that kept so many on the sidelines.

Now it's all about having the right strategy.

Dynamite Day Trading Signals helps you hit the ground running with up 2 options trade alerts per week, built to capture fast-moving opportunities.

👉 Sign up now to receive the next trade