Salepta Therapeutics Stock Drops After Third Death in Clinical Trials
39 minutes ago
Sarepta Therapeutics (SRPT) saw a significant drop in its stock value on Friday when news broke of a third patient dying during clinical trials of a new drug.
A report revealed late Thursday that an individual involved in the trials for a gene therapy aimed at treating muscular dystrophy had succumbed to acute liver failure. The company confirmed that the patient passed away in March and June during the trials.
A spokesperson for the company indicated to Bloomberg that relevant regulators and investigators were notified in a timely manner. However, Sarepta has not yet responded to requests for comments from Investopedia. Earlier in the week, the company had acknowledged the need to include a warning about the risk of liver failure associated with their drug.
This announcement came just days after Sarepta revealed plans to halt the development of certain drugs as part of a restructuring initiative aimed at reducing costs by an estimated $400 million and laying off some employees. This news initially boosted the stock by nearly 20% on Thursday, but it plummeted by 26% by Friday afternoon as the troubling reports emerged.
UBS analysts weighed in, suggesting while the added warning labels and restructuring were fundamentally positive, they reduced their price target on the stock from $85 to $45 due to lowered revenue projections.
Lucid Group’s Stock Wavers Following Major Partnership Announcement
1 hour 23 minutes ago
Lucid Group (LCID) experienced a slight decline on Friday after its stock surged the previous day. The electric vehicle startup has partnered with Nuro, a self-driving software company, and Uber Technologies to create a new platform for autonomous vehicles.
This collaboration is expected to add around 20,000 self-driving vehicles, utilizing Nuro’s technology to Uber’s framework over the next six years, supported by an investment from Uber worth hundreds of millions.
However, analysts caution that scaling the operation as rapidly as Uber envisions may pose challenges, particularly given that companies like Waymo, which has backing from Tesla and Google, have a more advanced position in the market. Recently, Tesla introduced its own Robotaxi service in Austin, Texas, intensifying competition.
After a 36% leap in shares on Thursday, bringing Lucid back into positive territory for 2025, the stock has still faced a 12% decline over the past year, primarily due to significant losses, pay increases, and downgrades. Late Friday, shares fell about 1% to $3.09.
The past weeks have seen Lucid’s shares hover just below their 50-day moving average, but Thursday’s trading could suggest a potential breakout, especially with notable volume—perhaps the highest since their Nasdaq debut in July 2021.
Traders will need to monitor key resistance levels around $3.60, $4.35, and $5.30, while recognizing essential support around the $2.50 mark.
Do Netflix Stocks Need a Pause? Analysts Weigh In
2 hours 1 minute ago
Could investors be taking too big a bite out of Netflix’s stock?
This question arises from one analyst’s viewpoint, though it’s not a universal consensus. Following Netflix’s earnings report, its stock dipped 5% on Friday morning. Despite this, Netflix shares have seen an overall increase of nearly 40% this year until Thursday.
A JP Morgan analyst described the results as solid given the high expectations, but maintained a neutral rating, setting a price target of $1,300 through next year. Their take? The stock may need a breather.
In contrast, most analysts on Wall Street seem more positive, with many situating price targets closer to $1,400, indicating a more bullish outlook, as reported by Visible Alpha.
Some firms have upped their price targets significantly—for instance, UBS has marked it up from $45 to $1,495, albeit still below the higher estimates recently noted by various analysts. They regard Netflix as a long-term winner, asserting that the second-quarter results bolster that belief.
Yesterday, Netflix posted net profits bolstered by price increases, exceeding analyst expectations and boosting revenue forecasts for Q3 and the entire year, although they did note that operating margins in the latter half of the year might be lower than in the first half.
American Express Outperforms Expectations with Record Spending
2 hours 44 minutes ago
On Friday, American Express (AXP) announced second-quarter results fueled by unprecedented spending levels.
The company reported earnings per share of $4.08, and revenues climbed 9% year-over-year, reaching $17.86 billion—both figures surpassing average analyst estimates.
With net interest income up 12% on the previous year, totaling $419 billion, it beat analyst consensus expectations as well. Transactions billed to American Express cards surged to over $416 billion for the quarter, a 7% increase compared to last year.
“The record spending from cardholders in this quarter highlights strong demand for our premium offerings, and our credit performance remains the best in our sector,” stated CEO Stephen Squeri.
American Express has reiterated its full-year growth expectations, projecting revenue increases between 8% and 10% and earnings per share from $15 to $15.50.
This announcement didn’t faze investors much, as shares dipped nearly 3% in early trading, following a slight rise in pre-market activity. Still, the company has seen a roughly 6% increase in its stock value since the start of the year.
Major Index Futures Indicate Slight Increases
4 hours 10 minutes ago
Futures for three major U.S. stock indexes have risen by 0.1% in recent trading.
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