MannKind Adds To Wednesday's Gains, Back Above $7

Joel Elconin is the co-host of Benzinga's #PreMarket Prep, a daily trading idea radio show.

MannKind Corporation MNKD shares were trading higher by $0.30 (5 percent) at $7.10 in Thursday's session. It has been on steady march higher since it put in multiple lows at the $5.30 level in mid-January.

MannKind is back over the key psychological resistance level of $7.00 since it closed at $7.04 on September 9. Shortly after it went public in July 2004, it peaked at $24.31 and cratered to $1.86 during the financial crisis. It revisited that level in March 2012, when it made its all-time low at $1.57. It rebounded to $11.48 in June 2014, only to come back down under $5.00 at the end of last year.

Benzinga Pro reported on February 2 that 1935 February 7 call contracts traded at $0.15 when the issue was at the $6.50 level.

Another catalyst for the rally may be the large short position in the issue, which stands at roughly 30 percent of the shares outstanding.