Stocks making the biggest moves midday: Marathon Petroleum, Tesla, Moderna and more

0
82

In an aerial view, the Valero Houston refinery is seen on August 28, 2023 in Houston, Texas.

Brandon Bell | Getty Images

Check out the companies making headlines in midday trading.

Oil stocks — Petroleum refiners Valero Energy and Marathon Petroleum gained 1.4% and 1.5%, respectively, as West Texas Intermediate and Brent crude prices reached their highest levels since November, 2022. Both the oil service ETF as well as the S&P 500 Energy Index rose by 1%. Bernstein began coverage of Arm Holdings with an underperform ranking on Monday. It said it was “too soon” to declare Arm as an AI winner. Needham initiated coverage of the chip designer with a hold rating on Friday, saying Arm’s valuation looks “full” in a post-smartphone era.

Moderna

— The pharmaceutical company lost more than 8% Monday, making it the biggest decliner in the S&P 500. According to a Securities and Exchange Commission report, co-founder and board chair Noubar Afeyan has sold 15,000 of his shares for $1.64million. Pharmaceutical peer Pfizer said in a press conference Monday that it expects a 24% vaccination rate for Covid-19 shots in the U.S. this year. Moderna’s updated Covid vaccines have been approved in both the U.S. and the U.K. Tesla

— Shares of the electric vehicle maker slipped 3% after Goldman Sachs lowered its earnings estimate. Analyst Mark Delaney cited the potential for further price cuts and lower margins as reasons for the reduction.PayPal

— The payment platform slipped 1.5% following a downgrade to market perform from outperform by MoffetNathanson. Guggenheim upgraded Ralph Lauren’s stock from neutral to buy. Shares of the luxury retailer rose 0.7%. The Wall Street firm said Ralph Lauren’s earnings are set to benefit from several cyclical tailwinds, including clean inventories, lower freight expenses and lower cotton cost, adding that the recent pullback has provided an attractive entry point.Enphase Energy

— Shares lost 2.6% after Citi lowered its price target on shares to $170 from $209 while keeping its buy rating. The new price target implies 41% upside from Friday’s close.Tenable Holdings

— Shares gained 2.6% after TD Cowen initiated coverage of the cybersecurity stock with an outperform rating. Cowen said Tenable appears well positioned to benefit from tailwinds in a total addressable market of $25 billion.Vertex

— Shares of the tax software stock climbed 2.4% Monday. Morgan Stanley re-started its coverage of Vertex with an overweight rating on Monday. Analyst Chris Quintero highlighted the growth opportunity for the company following a strong investment cycle.DoorDash

— Shares of the food delivery service ended flat Monday, after adding as much as 1.6% midday. Mizuho upgraded the company to buy from neutral in a Monday note, citing continued market share gains.The company also expanded its partnership with Aldi to allow alcohol orders, in addition to adding new grocery providers, including Lowe’s Markets and Eataly.Micron Technology

— The stock gained 0.9% after Deutsche Bank upgraded the memory and storage semiconductor maker to buy from hold on Sunday, and also raised its target price. The firm said Micron’s pricing power in direct random access memory is hitting an inflection point, and could push the company to beat expectations for its fiscal first-quarter revenue and earnings guidance in November.Paramount Global

— Shares of the entertainment company fell 3.2% Monday. Raymond James began research coverage with a market perform rating, while giving peers Disney and Warner Bros Discovery outperform ratings.Simply Good Foods

— Shares of the food and beverage company added 3.6% following a Morgan Stanley upgrade to overweight from equal-weight on Monday. The investment bank bumped up the stock’s price target to $40 from $37, citing Simply Good Foods’ diverse product offering and shifting consumer preferences to healthier choices as catalysts.Iridium Communications

– The satellite company’s stock jumped more than 5% following an upgrade from Deutsche Bank to buy from hold. The firm believes that Iridium’s shares are at an attractive price point, as they have fallen 19.4% in the last quarter. The shares of the digital innovation solutions company rose nearly 3% on Monday. Wells Fargo began research coverage on the company with an overweight rating, encouraging investors buy the dip. The stock will be little changed by 2023.— CNBC’s Alex Harring and Brian Evans contributed reporting.