Ten companies—predominantly in the healthcare sector—kicked off Monday’s trading with notable gains amid a series of business updates, earnings, and acquisition deals that have fueled investor confidence.
Their gains outperformed mixed trading on Wall Street, with the Dow Jones and S&P’s main index the only gainers, up 0.86 percent and 0.16 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite dropped by 0.38 percent.
In this article, we will take a look at what buoyed the companies’ share prices.
To come up with Monday’s top gainers, we considered only the stocks with at least $2 billion in market capitalization and $5 million in daily trading volume.
A woman reading and analyzing stock market data. Photo by Artem Podrez on Pexels
10. Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (NYSE:CLF)
Shares of an American steel manufacturer Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) kicked off the trading week on a positive note, rallying by 5.96 percent to close at $10.49 apiece with investor sentiment buoyed by reports that it was looking to acquire United States Steel Corp. (X).
According to news, Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) is currently in talks with Nucor Corp. (NUE) to jointly acquire US Steel (X) at over $30 per share. It would then sell US Steel’s Big River Steel subsidiary to Nucor.
The proposed acquisition came after President Joe Biden blocked a deal for Japan-based Nippon Steel to acquire US Steel for $14 billion.
According to Biden, steel producers, and the American steelworkers “are the backbone of our nation.”
“A strong domestically owned and operated steel industry represents an essential national security priority and is critical for resilient supply chains. … Without domestic steel production and domestic steelworkers, our nation is less strong and less secure,” he noted.
9. United States Steel Corp. (NYSE:X)
Shares of US Steel (X) rose for a second day on Monday as investors cheered news that two American companies have joined forces to acquire the former.
Over the weekend, reports said that Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) was in talks with its rival Nucor Corp. (NUE) to jointly acquire US Steel (X) at more than $30 per share.
The proposed acquisition came after President Joe Biden blocked a deal for Japan-based Nippon Steel to acquire US Steel for $14 billion.
Biden blocked Nippon’s proposed acquisition of US Steel, saying the steel producers and the American steelworkers “are the backbone of our nation.” However, the administration announced that it delayed an order for Nippon to totally abandon the acquisition plan until June, fueling hopes that a deal could still push through.
Cleveland-Cliffs, however, remained mum on the reports.
8. Frontline Plc (NYSE:FRO)
Frontline (FRO) saw its stock prices grow by 6.21 percent to finish at $18.3 apiece as investors took heart from outgoing president Joe Biden’s official imposition of tariffs against Russia’s oil and gas sectors and its “shadow fleet.”
According to Biden, the taxes were sanctions slapped on Russia in a bid to reach a deal for peace in Ukraine.
Cyprus-based Frontline (FRO), currently the fourth largest oil tanker shipping firm globally, stands to benefit from the imposition of tariffs on Russian firms on expectations that oil buyers will look elsewhere for supply, including areas that it services.
Other oil-producing countries such as the Middle East and Africa may step in to fill the gap left by Russian exports.
7. CVS Health Corp. (NYSE:CVS)
Shares of CVS Health (CVS) rose by 7.31 percent on Monday to close at $51.52 apiece as investors snapped up stocks in the company ahead of a quarterly dividend distribution.
Earlier this month, CVS Health said that its board of directors gave the green light for a quarterly dividend of 66 cents for each of the corporation’s common stocks. The dividend is payable on February 3, 2025, to holders of record on January 23, 2025.
In other news, CVS share prices rose over expectations that the ongoing wildfire in Los Angeles could lead to an increase in healthcare-related needs, including medical services, healthcare supplies, and pharmaceuticals. According to data, CVS Health has more than 1,000 pharmacies in California.
As of press time, the fire resulted in thousands of people injured, 24 deaths, and $250 billion in economic damages.
6. Nebius Group Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIS)
Nebius Group’s (NBIS) shares rallied by 7.66 percent on Monday to finish at $35.72 apiece after an investment research firm initiated a favorable outlook on the company.
In a report on Monday, BWS Financial gave Nebius Group a favorable outlook with a “buy” rating and a price target of $51 each.
Nebius Group, an artificial intelligence company, has been recognized for its ownership of a data center in Finland along with co-location facilities in Paris and Kansas City. The company also recently gained investor confidence after Nvidia Corp. (NVDA), a leader in AI computing, backed the company.
Analysts said investors cheered Nvidia’s investment in Nebius in hopes that it would propel the latter’s growth similar to SoundHound AI, which in the past year alone, saw its shares surge by more than 600 percent, thanks to the booming AI sector.
5. Mosaic Co. (NYSE:MOS)
Shares of American chemical firm Mosaic (MOS) rose by 8.01 percent on Monday to close at $26.82 each following news that the company entered into an agreement with Fosfatados Centro SPE Ltda for the sale of a phosphate asset owned by Mosaic in Patos de Minas, Brazil.
Upon closing of the transaction, Mosaic is expected to raise $125 million from the sale, payable over six years.
The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals, including approval by the Brazilian Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE), and other conditions precedents.
“This transaction aligns with Mosaic’s strategy to scrutinize and monetize non-core assets and redeploy capital to high-returning areas, and we believe the full value of the Patos asset will be realized in the capable hands of Fosfatados Centro,” said Mosaic Executive Vice President Karen Swager. “We are grateful to our employees who have been dedicated to the continued maintenance of the asset.”
4. BridgeBio Pharma Inc. (NASDAQ:BBIO)
BridgeBio Pharma (BBIO) traded 15.99 percent higher on Monday, closing the day at $33.73 as investor sentiment was buoyed by news that its newly approved drug called Attruby has seen a substantial demand with 430 prescriptions from 248 unique healthcare providers.
The early success highlights the medical community’s recognition of the need for new treatment options for patients with this progressive, fatal disease.
In addition, BridgeBio fully enrolled participants in three major market Phase 3 clinical trials. These include FORTIFY for the potential treatment of limb-girdle muscular dystrophy type 2I/R9 (LGMD2I/R9); CALIBRATE for autosomal dominant hypocalcemia type 1 (ADH1); and PROPEL 3 for achondroplasia.
Each trial is expected to complete its last patient visit and release the results in the second half of the year.
3. Option Care Health Inc. (NASDAQ:OPCH)
Shares of Option Care Health (OPCH) rallied by 15.55 percent on Monday to finish the day at $27.72 apiece as investors cheered growth in its preliminary unaudited financial results for the fourth quarter and full year of 2024.
In a statement, Option Care Health (OPCH) said it expects to book a net income of $56.8 to $60.9 million, or diluted earnings per share of $0.33 to $0.36.
Meanwhile, net revenues were projected between $1.34 billion to $1.35 billion, representing approximately 19.2% to 20.1% growth over the fourth quarter of 2023.
While it did not provide any net income outlook for the year, Option Care Health said it expects net revenues this year to grow between $5.2 billion to $5.4 billion year-on-year; adjusted EBITDA of $445 million to $465 million; and adjusted earnings per share of $1.59 to $1.69.
2. Trump Media & Technology Group (NASDAQ:DJT)
Shares of Trump Media (DJT) spiked by 21.52 percent on Monday to finish at $42.91 each, two weeks ahead of incoming president Donald Trump’s return to office.
Monday’s trading marked the company’s largest single-day jump since Trump won the presidential election.
Trump Media, which is owned by the president-elect, is an American media and technology company headquartered in Florida. It runs the Truth Social social media platform.
Trump Media has remained in a precarious financial position over the past couple of years. The company reported yet another quarterly loss in its third-quarter earnings last November. In the three months ended Sept. 30, Trump Media lost $19.2 million, with revenue falling 5.6% to just $1.01 million from a year earlier.
1. Intra-Cellular Therapies Inc. (NASDAQ:ITCI)
Shares of Intra-Cellular (ITCI) jumped by more than 34 percent on Monday to end at $127.19 apiece following news that it was set to be acquired by Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) for $14.6 billion. The transaction would mark the latter’s biggest deal in more than two years, bolstering its presence in the brain disease treatments market.
Johnson & Johnson was said to have offered to buy Intra-Cellular shares at a price of $132 each.
The agreement would provide Johnson & Johnson with access to Intra-Cellular’s oral treatment, Caplyta, which is approved in the U.S. for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder-related depressive episodes, along with other experimental drugs in the pipeline.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
