A lackluster trading persisted throughout Thursday, with Wall Street’s main indices ending the day with only marginal changes.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped by 0.16 percent, while the S&P 500 shed 0.21 percent, and the Nasdaq Composite declined by 0.89 percent.
Meanwhile, 10 companies bucked an overall dull trading, having posted impressive gains. Let’s take a closer look at the top performers and explore the factors driving their exceptional results.
To come up with Thursday’s top gainers, we considered only the stocks with at least $2 billion in market capitalization and $5 million in daily trading volume.
A trader cheers on gains. Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko on Pexels
10. SoFi Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:SOFI)
SoFi Technologies (SOFI) rose for a third day on Thursday, adding 5.09 percent to close at $16.3 apiece as investors took heart from news that it raised $525 million from a loan program with PGIM Fixed Income.
The transaction followed a $350 million investment from PGIM in May 2024 and builds on SoFi’s $3.9 billion in personal loan collateral sold in the third quarter of 2024 alone.
Edwin Wiches, managing director and co-head of securitized products at PGIM, said that SoFi’s personal loans represent an attractive opportunity for PGIM.
“We continue to expand our platform as an asset-based finance lender and source investments that provide compelling risk-adjusted returns for our clients with partners who put their customers first,” he said.
9. DexCom Inc. (NASDAQ:DXCM)
DexCom (DXCM), a company that manufactures and distributes continuous glucose monitoring systems for diabetes management, saw its shares rally by 5.52 percent on Thursday, ending the day at $84.84 each after earning an optimistic outlook from an analyst.
During the day, investment banking firm Baird upgraded its outlook for DexCom to “outperform” from “neutral,” citing progress in US sales and upcoming catalysts to buoy its business performance.
It also raised its price target for DexCom by 6 percent to $104 from $98 previously.
According to Baird, its outlook was based on projections of improved salesforce productivity and the potential for US growth to return to low-to-mid teens in the middle of the year.
DexCom also recently made earlier-than-expected progress on the G7 15-day sensor and its potential approval for hospital-based use.
8. IonQ Inc. (NYSE:IONQ)
Shares of IonQ (IONQ) rose for a third consecutive day to end Thursday’s trading up by 5.48 percent at $41.55.
Investor sentiment continued to be buoyed by a more positive outlook for the quantum computing sector from Microsoft’s strategic missions and technologies chief Mitra Azizirad, who highlighted the emergence of a dependable era in quantum computing.
Earlier this week, Azizirad urged the sector to get ready because “we are right on the cusp of seeing quantum computers solve meaningful problems and capture new business value.”
It can be recalled that quantum computing stocks took a beating over the past few weeks following bearish statements from chief executives of Nvidia Corp. and Meta Platforms that the practical use of quantum computers will only be felt 15 to 30 years away.
7. XPeng Inc. (NYSE:XPEV)
Chinese automaker XPeng Inc. (XPEV) grew for a third day on Thursday, adding 6.28 percent to close at $13.87 each as investors cheered further developments from the company’s vehicle launches.
During the Consumer Electronics Show 2025 in Las Vegas last week, XPeng unveiled the Aero HT, which it calls the “modular flying car,”—an electric minivan with a folding electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicle in the back.
Xpeng’s (XPEV) approach to the carrier and eVTOL follows a hybrid approach, allowing the user to drive the car and initiate a single command to release and unfold the aircraft. Once it finishes flying and landing, the aircraft then reconnects to the carrier which then folds its arms and restores the aircraft to the starting position in the trunk.
XPeng’s (XPEV) Aero HT highlighted what economies will expect from the global transportation industries in the future.
6. Applied Digital Corp. (NASDAQ:APLD)
Applied Digital (APLD) grew for a second day on Thursday, ending the day up by 7.29 percent at $8.98 each after earning a price target upgrade from investment research firms.
In a recent report, analysts at HC Wainwright increased their price targets for Applied Digital to $12 from $10 previously, while maintaining a “buy” rating on the stock.
Analysts said their recent upgrade was based on the “pivotal” financing deal with Macquarie Asset Management while reporting better earnings performance, having narrowed its losses by 60 percent to only 6 cents loss per share for the second quarter versus the 15 cents loss per share reported in the first quarter.
The optimistic outlook for the company was further buoyed after Lake Street Capital Markets maintained its “buy” rating and $11 price target for the company, citing the firm’s second-quarter performance that beat analyst expectations.
5. Carvana Co. (NYSE:CVNA)
Used car retailer Carvana Co. (CVNA) resumed a four-day winning streak on Thursday, adding another 8.35 percent to its share prices to close at $231.92 each after gaining an upgraded outlook from Zack Research.
On Thursday, Zack Research said it upgraded Carvana to Zacks Rank #2, indicating a “buy” rating, with the upgrade based on an upward trend in the company’s earnings estimates.
“This company is expected to earn $1.25 per share for the fiscal year ending December 2024, which represents a year-over-year change of 66.7 percent. Analysts have been steadily raising their estimates for Carvana. Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the company has increased 26.4 percent,” the investment research firm noted.
According to Zacks, Carvana’s (CVNA) rating upgrade positions itself in the top 20 Zacks-covered stocks in terms of estimate revisions, implying that it might move higher in the near term.
4. Nextdecade Corp. (NASDAQ:NEXT)
LNG development company Nextdecade Corp. (NEXT) saw its share prices rally on a third day, ending Thursday up by 11.6 percent at $9.04 apiece after the company raised $175 million in fresh funds for its mega LNG project in Texas.
Nextdecade, through its subsidiary Rio Grande LNG Super Holdings, recently entered into a credit agreement with General Atlantic Credit’s Atlantic Park Fund to raise finances for two trains at the LNG export terminal under construction at the Port of Brownsville, Texas.
Part of the proceeds will also be used to repay outstanding borrowings under the $50 million revolving credit facility and $12.5 million interest-term loan made a year ago with MUFG Bank.
The remaining funds will also be used for working capital and general corporate purposes, including development expenses for the expansion of trains 4 and 5 at the Rio Grande LNG facility.
3. Rumble Inc. (NASDAQ:RUM)
Rumble Inc.’s (RUM) shares grew for a second day on Thursday, jumping by 12.59 percent to close at $12.25 each following bullish coverage from analysts and optimism over President-elect Donald Trump’s plans to create a US strategic cryptocurrency reserve.
Rumble, a video-sharing platform and Bitcoin mining firm, earned a “buy” rating and a one-year price target of $20 from Maxim analyst Tom Forte.
Meanwhile, investor confidence was further boosted after reports that Trump was serious about creating a US cryptocurrency reserve and that he would move to add cryptocurrencies including XRP, Solana, and USD Coin to the project.
Late last year, Rumble (RUM) said it made a $20 million Bitcoin purchase for its own cryptocurrency reserve. Not long after, it was announced that Tether was pouring as much as $775 million into the company.
2. Symbotic Inc. (NASDAQ:SYM)
Shares of American robotics warehouse firm Symbotic (SYM) jumped by 18.86 percent on Thursday—a third consecutive day—to close at $31.82 apiece following news that it was set to take over Walmart’s (WMT) robotics business.
Under the deal, Symbotic will pay Walmart $200 million for the transaction, alongside $350 million in additional future payments, for a total of $550 million.
According to Symbotic, it would be tasked with building and deploying an automation system for Walmart’s accelerated pickup and delivery centers, which will help the retailer speed up the systems that power its in-store pickup and same-day home delivery services.
Walmart will fund a development program to help Symbotic develop that technology; the retailer will pay the technology provider a total of $520 million for the development program.
1. Immunitybio Inc. (NASDAQ:IBRX)
Shares of Immunitybio (IBRX) surged by 27.2 on Thursday, a second consecutive day, as investors cheered announcements of plans to submit multiple treatments for approval by the Food and Drug Administration in 2025.
Late Wednesday, Immunitybio said it would submit a supplemental biologics license application (BLA) for the treatment of bladder cancer. If approved by the FDA, the BLAs will allow the company to sell its products across the US.
In addition, it would also submit another BLA for the treatment of patients with a certain type of lung cancer.
Immunitybio (IBRX) said that a Phase 2B study had already indicated positive results for patients whose first and second treatment attempts ended unsuccessfully after using the company’s Anktiva drug in combination with other inhibitors.
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Disclosure: None. This article was originally published at Insider Monkey.
