Hot stocks: Chinese stocks soar; FRGE skyrocketed at launch; PANW hit a high level; ORIC, GRPH plunge

Wall Street resumes recent rally on Tuesday, led by Nasdaq’s 2% gain, to close above 14,000 for the first time period since mid-February. The rally comes amid rising bond yields, with investors adding risk to their portfolios in a scramble for higher returns.

As an example of the appetite for more speculative names, Chinese stocks were among the session’s best performers. Bilibili (BILI), Alibaba (TORTOISE), JD.com (JD) and Baidu (BIDU) all posted notable intraday gains.

Forge Global (FRGE) is another featured artist. Stocks spiked in the first trading session after the close of SPAC trading.

Meanwhile, Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) added to recent gains and set new 52-week highs, as rising geopolitical risks have put their cybersecurity services in the spotlight.

Looking at the downside, Oric Pharmaceuticals (ORIC) fell by nearly 30% after weak clinical data forced it to change its development program. In the same line, Graphite Bio (GRPH) fell to a post-IPO low after delaying the release of its own clinical data.

Field in focus

Chinese stocks, particularly in the tech and internet industries, remain among the most volatile names on Wall Street. The area recovered on Tuesday, continuing the uneven rally that began last week.

Last Wednesday, signs of a more constructive regulatory regime in Beijing spurred a massive buying wave in the sector. KraneShares CSI Internet ETF China (KWEB) is up about 40% in a single day, breaking out of the lows hit earlier in the week.

Since then, the sector has seen violent upheavals, often more than 8%. This Tuesday continues, with KWEB is more complete up 8% after falling nearly 7% in the previous session.

With Tuesday’s action, Bilibili (BILI) posted 20% ahead, while Alibaba (TORTOISE) has increased by 11%. JD.com (JD) and Baidu (BIDU) each gained more than 5% during the session.

Outstanding Gainer

Forge Global (FRGE) launched prominently on Wall Street, up 58% after go public through SPAC trading.

The private equity market launched through a SPAC agreement with Motive Capital, in a deal first announced last September. The original merger deal valued the company at around $2 billion.

Early in Tuesday’s trading session, FRGE rose to $26.75, up more than 160%. The stock has fallen significantly since then but the stock still ended the day with a gain of $5.89. FRGE closed the session at $16.

Outstanding loser

Oric Pharmaceuticals (ORIC) dropped 29% after claiming to shift focus away from a once-promising cancer treatment after clinical outcomes fell short of expectations.

ORIC says it will give up its top contender, ORIC-101, as a potential treatment for metastatic prostate cancer and solid tumors. This decision was made after analyzing interim data from two Phase 1b trials.

The company reports that it will continue to pursue the development of three other programs that are currently in beta 1. New data from these candidates is expected in the first half of 2023.

ORIC reassures investors that it has enough cash to continue operating through the second half of 2024.

However, investors reacted negatively to the disappointing news about ORIC-101. Shares fell $1.92 to close at $4.76. The stock also set a 52-week intraday low of $3.94.

ORIC, which had a 52-week high of $27.14, was trading above $25 as recently as mid-September. Shares have fallen 81% since then.

Remarkable new high

With the Ukraine conflict heightening wide-ranging geopolitical tensions, cybersecurity company Palo Alto Networks (PANW) continued its recent rally, gaining 3.5% and setting a 52-week high.

Shares rose $20.22 to close Tuesday’s trading at $597.42. Shares also hit a 52-week intraday high of $609.49.

This marks PANW’s sixth straight session of gains. Shares are up nearly 14% since March 14.

The recent move comes as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has raised the specter of cyberattacks, suggesting that demand for PANW’s services will increase in the coming years. Earlier this week, the Biden administration warned the Russian government that the US was exploring options to resist any cyber attack.

Notable new lows

The delay of an important data release raised concerns about clinical-stage gene-editing company Graphite Bio (GRPH), fell nearly 11% on Tuesday to hit its lowest level since going public last June.

As part of their quarterly earnings announcement, GRPH has revealed that its GPH101 product early demonstration data on sickle cell disease will be released later than previously forecast. The company said it now expects to release information based on a Phase 1/2 clinical trial, in 2023.

The company has previously indicated that the data will be released later this year.

Based on the news, GRPH plunged during early trading, hitting a 52-week intraday low of $5.54 before bouncing back up a bit later in the day. Ultimately, the stock closed at $6.16, down 73 cents in the session.

In the long term, GRPH has fallen by nearly 64% in the past six months.

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