Stocks making the biggest moves midday: Deckers Outdoor, Amgen, Western Digital, Ventyx Biosciences & more Published Wed, Jan 7 202612:20 PM ESTUpdated Wed, Jan 7 202612:58 PM EST thumbnail Darla Mercado, CFP® @darla_mercado thumbnail Liz Napolitano @LizK
U.S. equities saw notable sector rotations on Wednesday, with defense stocks climbing to record levels while data storage and solar names pulled back sharply.
Gainers:
Defense: The iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF (ITA) rose nearly 1% to a new all-time high amid rising geopolitical tensions. Component stocks AAR, L3Harris, and Karman Holdings advanced between 2% and 4%.
Biotech: Amgen gained over 3% after announcing the $840 million acquisition of U.K.-based biotech Dark Blue Therapeutics.
Pharma: Ventyx Biosciences skyrocketed 38% following a Wall Street Journal report that Eli Lilly is in talks to acquire the firm for approximately $1 billion.
Bitcoin: Strategy, a bitcoin treasury firm, rose more than 3% after index provider MSCI reversed its plan to remove digital asset companies from its indexes.
Lithium: Albemarle climbed over 3% after an upgrade from Baird, which cited surging lithium prices and strong demand from the stationary storage market.
Decliners:
Data Storage: Stocks in the sector retreated sharply following Tuesday's explosive rally. Western Digital fell more than 9%, Seagate tumbled about 8%, and Sandisk slipped over 1%.
Solar: First Solar plunged nearly 10% after Jefferies downgraded the stock to hold, citing questionable strategic decisions and limited booking visibility.
Apparel: Deckers Outdoor, the maker of UGG and Hoka, dropped more than 3% following downgrades from analysts at Robert W. Baird and Piper Sandler.
Special Situations: GameStop rose 4% after disclosing a new CEO compensation package tied to ambitious growth targets.
