Lufax Holding Stock (NYSE:LU), Trade Ideas

Lufax Holding

Lufax Holding Ltd is a technology-empowered personal financial services platform in China. The company address the large unmet demand for personal lending among small business owners as well as salaried workers in China and provides tailor-made wealth management solutions to China's middle class and affluent population. Its platform has two hubs namely Retail Credit Facilitation Hub and Wealth Management Hub.

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Calix Reports Mixed Results, Joins Cadence Design Systems And Other Big Stocks Moving Lower In Tuesday&#39;s Pre-Market Session

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Key Takeaways:


	Lufax announced a massive special dividend of $2.42 per ADS, equal to about half of its Friday closing price of $4.48
	The company slashed the size of its loan portfolio by 45% last year, and expects to reduce it by another 32% this year as it focuses on higher quality borrowers


By Doug Young

Investors Unimpressed By Massive Dividend From Shrinking Lufax

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U.S. stock futures were higher this morning, with the Dow futures gaining by around 0.1% on Friday.

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Wedbush analyst David Nierengarten reiterates Vor Biopharma (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/VOR#NASDAQ">VOR</a>) with a Outperform and maintains $11 price target.

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Wedbush Reiterates Outperform on Vor Biopharma, Maintains $11 Price Target

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SMCI

Super Micro Computer shares are trading higher as the stock rebounds following Friday's selloff.

Canaccord Genuity analyst Jeremy Hoy maintains Skeena Resources (TSX:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SKE#TSX">SKE</a>) with a Speculative Buy and raises the price target from C$14.75 to C$17.

TSX:SKE

Canaccord Genuity Maintains Speculative Buy on Skeena Resources, Raises Price Target to C$17

GE Vernova shares are trading higher. GE Aerospace today reported Q1 earnings.

ALAB

Astera Labs shares are trading higher as AI and semiconductor-related stocks rebound after Friday's drop.

JP Morgan analyst Reginald Smith reiterates Affirm Holdings (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/AFRM#NASDAQ">AFRM</a>) with a Neutral.

AFRM

JP Morgan Reiterates Neutral on Affirm Holdings

In early 2021, Ark Invest, led by tech investor Cathie Wood, managed a staggering $59 billion across six funds, making it the world&#8217;s <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/topic/cathie-wood">largest active ETF manager.</a>
Three years later, a significant 80% downturn occurred, with assets under management in those funds plummeting to just $11.1 billion. This decline can be attributed to a combination of factors, including high interest rates dampening Wood&#8217;s long-term speculative tech investments and the subsequent wave of outflows from disillusioned investors.
To give a sense of the&nbsp;scale, investors had withdrawn a substantial $2.24 billion from Wood&#8217;s actively managed funds by the end of the third week of April 2024, nearly tripling the outflows seen throughout all of 2023. 
Notably, Ark&#8217;s flagship fund, the ARK Innovation ETF (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ARKK#NYSE">ARKK</a>), experienced outflows exceeding $1.3 billion in less than four months this year, far surpassing the $578 million seen in 2023.
Below is a breakdown of the fund flows for Ark&#8217;s actively managed ETFs in 2024 compared to 2023:
<figure class="wp-block-table is-style-stripes"> 
<table>
<thead>
<tr>
<th>ARK Actively Managed ETFs</th>
<th>YTD 2024 Fund Flows (as of Apr. 19)</th>
<th>2023 Fund Flows</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>ARK Innovation ETF </td>
<td>-1.37 B</td>
<td>-578.15 M</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>ARK Next Generation Internet ETF (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ARKW#NYSE">ARKW</a>)</td>
<td>-211.66 M</td>
<td>-63.93 M</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>ARK Genomic Revolution ETF (BATS:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ARKG#BATS">ARKG</a>)</td>
<td>-363.74 M</td>
<td>40.41 M</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>ARK Fintech Innovation ETF (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ARKF#NYSE">ARKF</a>) </td>
<td>-144.93 M</td>
<td>-58.26 M</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>ARK Autonomous Technology &amp; Robotics ETF (BATS:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ARKQ#BATS">ARKQ</a>)</td>
<td>-126.76 M</td>
<td>-53.14 M</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>ARK Space Exploration &amp; Innovation ETF (BATS:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ARKX#BATS">ARKX</a>)</td>
<td>-21.97 M</td>
<td>-42.23 M</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
<tfoot>
<tr>
<td>Total</td>
<td>2.24 B</td>
<td>755.3 M</td>
</tr>
</tfoot>
</table>
<figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Source: VettaFi</figcaption></figure>
"The loyal shareholders have become frustrated," Todd Rosenbluth, head of research at data provider VettaFi, told <a href="https://www.wsj.com/finance/investing/ark-funds-cathie-wood-investors-56e2950c">The Wall Street Journal</a>. 
Despite the promising outlook for Ark&#8217;s growth and disruptive technology investment style this year, Rosenbluth said heavy concentration of funds in underperforming companies remains a concern. 
With the sole exception of Coinbase Global Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/COIN#NASDAQ">COIN</a>) and Robinhood Markets Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/HOOD#NASDAQ">HOOD</a>), none of the other top 10 holdings in the Ark innovation ETF have yielded positive returns in 2024.
<figure class="wp-block-table is-style-stripes"> 
<table>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>Name</td>
<td>Weight</td>
<td>Return</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Coinbase Global, Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/COIN#NASDAQ">COIN</a>)</td>
<td>9.38%</td>
<td>35.60%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/TSLA#NASDAQ">TSLA</a>)</td>
<td>9.32</td>
<td>-41.76</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Roku, Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ROKU#NASDAQ">ROKU</a>)</td>
<td>8.27</td>
<td>-33.26</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Block, Inc. (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SQ#NYSE">SQ</a>)</td>
<td>6.98</td>
<td>-4.80</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>UiPath Inc. (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/PATH#NYSE">PATH</a>) </td>
<td>5.69</td>
<td>-21.46</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/CSRP#NASDAQ">CSRP</a>)</td>
<td>4.92</td>
<td>-7.28</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Zoom Video Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ZM#NASDAQ">ZM</a>)</td>
<td>4.50</td>
<td>-15.59</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Roblox Corporation (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/RBLX#NYSE">RBLX</a>)</td>
<td>4.47</td>
<td>-19.14</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Robinhood Markets, Inc. </td>
<td>4.21</td>
<td>38.85</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Unity Software Inc. (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/U#NYSE">U</a>)</td>
<td>3.33</td>
<td>-43.14</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Data as of Apr. 23, 2024</figcaption></figure>
Read Also: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/equities/24/04/38368840/cathie-woods-ark-invest-seizes-tesla-dip-acquires-over-17m-in-shares-ahead-of-q1-results-zoom-st">Cathie Wood&#8217;s Ark Invest Seizes Tesla Dip, Acquires Over $17M in Shares Ahead Of Q1 Results — Zoom Stock Dumped</a>
<h1 class="wp-block-heading">Short Strategies On Cathie Wood&#8217;s Ark Funds Emerge</h1>
The underperformance of Cathie Wood&#8217;s actively managed funds has prompted other ETF issuers to undertake short strategies on Ark ETFs. 
AXS Investments launched the AXS Short Innovation Daily ETF (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SARK#NASDAQ">SARK</a>) at the end of 2021, which shorts Wood&#8217;s flagship ARKK fund and has seen a 40% increase since inception. During the same timeframe, the ARKK Innovation ETF were down by over 60%. 
In May 2022, AXS Investments also launched the AXS 2X Innovation ETF (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/TARK#NASDAQ">TARK</a>), which shorts ARKK with a leverage of 2x. 
<h1 class="wp-block-heading">Chart: Shorting Cathie Wood&#8217;s Flagship Fund Brings Robust Returns </h1>
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="495" src="https://editorial-assets.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/23110907/image-167-1024x495.png" alt="" class="wp-image-304720" srcset="https://editorial-assets.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/23110907/image-167-1024x495.png 1024w,https://editorial-assets.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/23110907/image-167-300x145.png 300w,https://editorial-assets.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/23110907/image-167-768x372.png 768w,https://editorial-assets.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/23110907/image-167-1536x743.png 1536w,https://editorial-assets.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/23110907/image-167.png 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>
Greg Bassuk, CEO of AXS Investments, highlighted on CNBC last month a spike in inflows affecting these two funds: "With thousands of startups and small high growth companies driving innovation having received financing from Silicon Valley Bank and others like it, this really could be a harbinger for concern around the ability of these kinds of innovation-driving companies to get financing going forward."
Seven days following the fallout of Silicon Valley Bank, the AXS Short Innovation Daily ETF and the AXS 2X Innovation ETF witnessed an 80% and 50% jump in trading activity, respectively. 
Read Now: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/analyst-ratings/analyst-color/24/04/38372445/cathie-woods-ark-invest-says-bitcoin-could-be-priming-for-over-3-000-rally-over-nex">Cathie Wood&#8217;s Ark Invest Says Bitcoin Could Be Priming For Over 3,000% Rally Over Next 12 Months As King Crypto Becomes Less Inflationary Than Gold After Halving</a>
Cathie Wood photo courtesy of Ark Invest.

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Cathie Wood's Ark Empire Bleeds As Investor Outflows Spike: 'The Loyal Shareholders Have Become Frustrated'

Mueller Industries shares are trading higher following mixed Q1 results.

Wedbush analyst David Nierengarten reiterates TScan Therapeutics (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/TCRX#NASDAQ">TCRX</a>) with a Outperform and maintains $10 price target.

TCRX

Wedbush Reiterates Outperform on TScan Therapeutics, Maintains $10 Price Target

The future of the automotive industry looks upbeat, with almost one-third of cars on China&#8217;s roads expected to be electric by 2030, along with nearly one-fifth in both the U.S. and the European Union, according to a&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.iea.org/news/the-worlds-electric-car-fleet-continues-to-grow-strongly-with-2024-sales-set-to-reach-17-million" rel="noreferrer noopener">report&nbsp;</a>by the International Energy Agency (IEA).
More than one in five cars sold worldwide this year&nbsp;is anticipated&nbsp;to be electric, marking a significant shift that will reshape the global auto industry and&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com//node/38346490" rel="noreferrer noopener">reduce oil consumption for road transport.</a>
The latest edition of the IEA&#8217;s Global EV Outlook reveals that global electric car sales&nbsp;are projected&nbsp;to reach approximately 17 million by the end of 2024, with a 25% increase compared to the same period in 2023.
China is poised to lead the electric vehicle (EV) revolution, with an estimated 10 million electric cars sold in 2024, accounting for about 45% of all car sales in the country.
In the U.S., approximately one in nine cars sold&nbsp;is projected&nbsp;to be electric, while in Europe, despite challenges in some markets, electric&nbsp;cars&nbsp;are still anticipated to represent about one in four cars sold.
The surge in electric vehicle sales follows a record-breaking year in 2023, where global electric car sales soared by 35% to nearly 14 million.
Investments in the electric vehicle supply chain, coupled with policy support and declining EV prices, are expected to drive further growth in the years ahead.
Related:&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com//node/38351314" rel="noreferrer noopener">Did Tesla&nbsp;Just&nbsp;Trigger Another Brutal Price War In China? Li Auto Blinks First With Up To $4,000&nbsp;Discount</a>
Under current policy settings, the IEA predicts that every other car sold globally will be electric by 2035, with significant implications for the auto industry and energy sector.
Tesla&nbsp;Inc&nbsp;(NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/TSLA#NASDAQ">TSLA</a>),&nbsp;Rivian Automotive&nbsp;Inc&nbsp;(NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/RIVN#NASDAQ">RIVN</a>),&nbsp;Lucid Group&nbsp;Inc&nbsp;(NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/LCID#NASDAQ">LCID</a>),&nbsp;XPeng&nbsp;Inc&nbsp;(NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/XPEV#NYSE">XPEV</a>)&nbsp;and&nbsp;NIO Inc&nbsp;(NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/NIO#NYSE">NIO</a>)&nbsp;are some of the know electric vehicle manufacturers.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
Photo by Octus_Photography on Shutterstock

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XPEV

Automotive Industry Shifts Gears: Electric Cars To Dominate Roads By 2030

Spotify (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/spot#NYSE">SPOT</a>) came out with quarterly earnings of $1.05 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.63 per share. This compares to loss of $1.24 per share a year ago. These figures are adjusted for non-recurring items.
This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of 66.67%. A quarter ago, it was expected that this music-streaming service operator would post a loss of $0.08 per share when it actually produced a loss of $0.39, delivering a surprise of -387.50%.
Over the last four quarters, the company has surpassed consensus EPS estimates two times.
Spotify, which belongs to the Zacks Technology Services industry, posted revenues of $3.95 billion for the quarter ended March 2024, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.05%. This compares to year-ago revenues of $3.26 billion. The company has topped consensus revenue estimates two times over the last four quarters.
The sustainability of the stock&#39;s immediate price movement based on the recently-released numbers and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management&#39;s commentary on the earnings call.
Spotify shares have added about 44.9% since the beginning of the year versus the S&amp;P 500&#39;s gain of 5.1%.
What&#39;s Next for Spotify?
While Spotify has outperformed the market so far this year, the question that comes to investors&#39; minds is: what&#39;s next for the stock?
There are no easy answers to this key question, but one reliable measure that can help investors address this is the company&#39;s earnings outlook. Not only does this include current consensus earnings expectations for the coming quarter(s), but also how these expectations have changed lately.
Empirical research shows a strong correlation between near-term stock movements and trends in earnings estimate revisions. Investors can track such revisions by themselves or rely on a tried-and-tested rating tool like the Zacks Rank, which has an impressive track record of harnessing the power of earnings estimate revisions.
Ahead of this earnings release, the estimate revisions trend for Spotify: mixed. While the magnitude and direction of estimate revisions could change following the company&#39;s just-released earnings report, the current status translates into a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) for the stock. So, the shares are expected to perform in line with the market in the near future.
It will be interesting to see how estimates for the coming quarters and current fiscal year change in the days ahead. The current consensus EPS estimate is $0.75 on $4.02 billion in revenues for the coming quarter and $3.50 on $16.56 billion in revenues for the current fiscal year.
Investors should be mindful of the fact that the outlook for the industry can have a material impact on the performance of the stock as well. In terms of the Zacks Industry Rank, Technology Services is currently in the bottom 40% of the 250 plus Zacks industries. Our research shows that the top 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries outperform the bottom 50% by a factor of more than 2 to 1.
One other stock from the same industry, Allot Communications (NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/allt#NASDAQ">ALLT</a>), is yet to report results for the quarter ended March 2024.
This internet protocol services company is expected to post quarterly loss of $0.10 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of +52.4%. The consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has remained unchanged over the last 30 days.
Allot Communications&#39; revenues are expected to be $19.1 million, down 9.6% from the year-ago quarter.
<a href="https://www.zacks.com/stock/news/2259779/spotify-spot-surpasses-q1-earnings-and-revenue-estimates?cid=CS-BENZ-FT-tale_of_the_tape|yseop_template_4-2259779">To read this article on Zacks.com click here.</a>

Earnings

ALLT

SPOT

Spotify Surpasses Q1 Earnings and Revenue Estimates

Weatherford International's (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/WFRD#NYSE">WFRD</a>) short percent of float has fallen 10.58% since its last report. The company recently reported that it has 2.78 million shares sold short, which is 5.07% of all regular shares that are available for trading. Based on its trading volume, it would take traders 4.98 days to cover their short positions on average.
<h3>Why Short Interest Matters</h3>
Short interest is the number of shares that have been sold short but have not yet been covered or closed out. <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/how-to-short-a-stock/">Short selling</a> is when a trader sells shares of a company they do not own, with the hope that the price will fall. Traders make money from short selling if the price of the stock falls and they lose if it rises.
Short interest is important to track because it can act as an indicator of market sentiment towards a particular stock. An increase in short interest can signal that investors have become more bearish, while a decrease in short interest can signal they have become more bullish.
See Also: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/short-interest">List of the most shorted stocks</a>
<h3>Weatherford International Short Interest Graph (3 Months)</h3>
<img src="https://www.benzinga.com/files/images/story/2024/1713892522_0.png" alt="short_fig" />
As you can see from the chart above the percentage of shares that are sold short for Weatherford International has declined since its last report. This does not mean that the stock is going to rise in the near-term but traders should be aware that less shares are being shorted.
<h3>Comparing Weatherford International's Short Interest Against Its Peers</h3>
Peer comparison is a popular technique amongst analysts and investors for gauging how well a company is performing. A company's peer is another company that has similar characteristics to it, such as industry, size, age, and financial structure. You can find a company's peer group by reading its 10-K, proxy filing, or by doing your own similarity analysis.
According to <a href="https://pro.benzinga.com/">Benzinga Pro</a>, Weatherford International's peer group average for short interest as a percentage of float is 6.90%, which means the company has less short interest than most of its peers.
Did you know that increasing short interest can actually be bullish for a stock? <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/how-to-make-money-on-a-short-squeeze/">This post by Benzinga Money explains how you can profit from it.</a>
This article was generated by Benzinga's automated content engine and was reviewed by an editor.

Short Ideas

WFRD

Looking Into Weatherford International's Recent Short Interest

Varonis Systems's (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/VRNS#NYSE">VRNS</a>) short percent of float has risen 4.64% since its last report. The company recently reported that it has 6.88 million shares sold short, which is 7.21% of all regular shares that are available for trading. Based on its trading volume, it would take traders 7.28 days to cover their short positions on average.
<h3>Why Short Interest Matters</h3>
Short interest is the number of shares that have been sold short but have not yet been covered or closed out. <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/how-to-short-a-stock/">Short selling</a> is when a trader sells shares of a company they do not own, with the hope that the price will fall. Traders make money from short selling if the price of the stock falls and they lose if it rises.
Short interest is important to track because it can act as an indicator of market sentiment towards a particular stock. An increase in short interest can signal that investors have become more bearish, while a decrease in short interest can signal they have become more bullish.
See Also: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/short-interest">List of the most shorted stocks</a>
<h3>Varonis Systems Short Interest Graph (3 Months)</h3>
<img src="https://www.benzinga.com/files/images/story/2024/1713892517_0.png" alt="short_fig" />
As you can see from the chart above the percentage of shares that are sold short for Varonis Systems has grown since its last report. This does not mean that the stock is going to fall in the near-term but traders should be aware that more shares are being shorted.
<h3>Comparing Varonis Systems's Short Interest Against Its Peers</h3>
Peer comparison is a popular technique amongst analysts and investors for gauging how well a company is performing. A company's peer is another company that has similar characteristics to it, such as industry, size, age, and financial structure. You can find a company's peer group by reading its 10-K, proxy filing, or by doing your own similarity analysis.
According to <a href="https://pro.benzinga.com/">Benzinga Pro</a>, Varonis Systems's peer group average for short interest as a percentage of float is 4.21%, which means the company has more short interest than most of its peers.
Did you know that increasing short interest can actually be bullish for a stock? <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/how-to-make-money-on-a-short-squeeze/">This post by Benzinga Money explains how you can profit from it.</a>
This article was generated by Benzinga's automated content engine and was reviewed by an editor.

VRNS

Looking Into Varonis Systems's Recent Short Interest

Smart for Life's (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SMFL#NYSE">SMFL</a>) short percent of float has risen 260.64% since its last report. The company recently reported that it has 271 thousand shares sold short, which is 35.09% of all regular shares that are available for trading. Based on its trading volume, it would take traders 1.0 days to cover their short positions on average.
<h3>Why Short Interest Matters</h3>
Short interest is the number of shares that have been sold short but have not yet been covered or closed out. <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/how-to-short-a-stock/">Short selling</a> is when a trader sells shares of a company they do not own, with the hope that the price will fall. Traders make money from short selling if the price of the stock falls and they lose if it rises.
Short interest is important to track because it can act as an indicator of market sentiment towards a particular stock. An increase in short interest can signal that investors have become more bearish, while a decrease in short interest can signal they have become more bullish.
See Also: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/short-interest">List of the most shorted stocks</a>
<h3>Smart for Life Short Interest Graph (3 Months)</h3>
<img src="https://www.benzinga.com/files/images/story/2024/1713892512_0.png" alt="short_fig" />
As you can see from the chart above the percentage of shares that are sold short for Smart for Life has grown since its last report. This does not mean that the stock is going to fall in the near-term but traders should be aware that more shares are being shorted.
<h3>Comparing Smart for Life's Short Interest Against Its Peers</h3>
Peer comparison is a popular technique amongst analysts and investors for gauging how well a company is performing. A company's peer is another company that has similar characteristics to it, such as industry, size, age, and financial structure. You can find a company's peer group by reading its 10-K, proxy filing, or by doing your own similarity analysis.
According to <a href="https://pro.benzinga.com/">Benzinga Pro</a>, Smart for Life's peer group average for short interest as a percentage of float is 2.68%, which means the company has more short interest than most of its peers.
Did you know that increasing short interest can actually be bullish for a stock? <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/how-to-make-money-on-a-short-squeeze/">This post by Benzinga Money explains how you can profit from it.</a>
This article was generated by Benzinga's automated content engine and was reviewed by an editor.

SMFL

Looking Into Smart for Life's Recent Short Interest

Stifel analyst John Annis maintains Southwestern Energy (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SWN#NYSE">SWN</a>) with a Hold and raises the price target from $6.6 to $7.6.

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AGNC

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Oppenheimer&nbsp;analyst Timothy Horan maintained&nbsp;Verizon Communications Inc&nbsp;(NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/VZ#NYSE">VZ</a>) with an Outperform rating and a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.benzinga.com/quote/VZ/analyst-ratings" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">$48&nbsp;price target</a>. The stock is trading higher on Tuesday following Monday&#8217;s first-quarter print.
Horan noted Verizon continued to build on strong momentum from 2023, driven by significant network upgrades, refreshed management and improved go-to-market. Results were messy due to January price increases, which he noted impacted volumes, as did one-time expenses, which is a good setup for strong FCF growth.&nbsp;
Also Read:&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/earnings/24/04/38356319/verizons-q1-flat-revenue-bump-in-free-cash-flow-and-stable-2024-outlook" rel="noreferrer noopener">Verizon&#8217;s Q1: Flat Revenue, Bump In Free Cash Flow And Stable 2024 Outlook</a>
A 25bps EBITDA beat could have been larger given low upgrade volumes, but as the analyst stated, returning to subscriber growth is prioritized.
Horan said Verizon was much better positioned than two years ago, with solid momentum and trends were set to improve further.&nbsp;
It remains one of his best dividend plays with an attractive ~7% yield. Debt is high at $151.7 billion, but paydown is of focus and should be reduced by over $6 billion per year, as per Horan.
The analyst flagged ARPA grew 3.9%, driven by pricing action and consistent myPlan adoption, which created a recurring revenue stream of perks/services.&nbsp;
He said the second quarter would be the high watermark for growth, given the quarter impact of price increases, followed by tougher year-on-year comps in the second half.
Postpaid phone net adds of -68K improved vs fiscal first-quarter 2023&#8217;s -127K. He estimated as many as 50K phone additions were from second lines, but this is a limited opportunity and not a primary source of momentum. The company expects to achieve positive Consumer net adds for fiscal 2024.&nbsp;
<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="750" height="650" src="https://editorial-assets.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/23120758/newplot-26.png" alt="" class="wp-image-304854" srcset="https://editorial-assets.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/23120758/newplot-26.png 750w,https://editorial-assets.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/23120758/newplot-26-300x260.png 300w" sizes="(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" /></figure>
The analyst said Verizon now serves over 11 million broadband customers across FWA and wireline. FWA net adds moderated to +354K, but this was not unexpected given ramping competition from&nbsp;AT&amp;T Inc&nbsp;(NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/T#NYSE">T</a>) and the low move environment. FiOS remains steady at +53K net adds.&nbsp;
Horan trimmed fiscal 2024 and 2025 revenue by 20bps each, mainly on weaker equipment revenues but a net positive for EBITDA and FCF. He reduced fiscal 2024 and 2025 EPS by $0.01 each on higher interest expense. The analyst maintained his remaining fiscal 2024 quarterly and 2025 postpaid phone net adds and FWA estimates. The fiscal 2024 FCF estimate of $19 billion is unchanged, but $1.5 billion was shifted from the first to the second half.
Verizon stock gained 8% in the past 12 months. Investors can gain exposure to the stock via&nbsp;Invesco Dow Jones Industrial Average Dividend ETF&nbsp;(NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/DJD#NYSE">DJD</a>) and&nbsp;First Trust Morningstar Dividend Leaders Index Fund (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/FDL#NYSE">FDL</a>).
VZ Price action: Verizon shares traded higher by 3.45% at $39.93 at the last check Tuesday.
Read Next: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/earnings/24/04/38381615/whats-going-on-with-tesla-stock-ahead-of-earnings-tuesday">What&#8217;s Going On With Tesla Stock Ahead Of Earnings Tuesday?</a>
Photo: Shutterstock

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FATE

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