Ten stocks kicked off the trading week, clocking double-digit gains, mirroring a broader market rally, as investors digested and loaded portfolios from a flurry of key industry catalysts. Of the 10, five companies rallied to new all-time highs.
Meanwhile, the tech-heavy Nasdaq surged by 0.48 percent, the S&P 500 grew 0.26 percent, and the Dow Jones was up by 0.15 percent.
Indices aside, we highlight the 10 top-performing stocks during the session and detail the reasons behind their strong performance.
To come up with the list, we focused exclusively on mid-cap stocks with more than $2 billion in market capitalization and 5 million shares in trading volume.
Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko on Pexels
10. Galaxy Digital Ltd. (NASDAQ:GLXY)
Galaxy Digital rebounded on Monday, jumping 10.97 percent to finish at $34.29 apiece as investors mimicked the company’s optimism for Bitcoin hitting $200,000.
In an interview posted on YouTube, Galaxy Digital Ltd. (NASDAQ:GLXY) Chief Executive Officer Mike Novogratz said that he expects Bitcoin to crack past the $200,000 level if a more dovish Federal Reserve chairman gets appointed.
Optimism was further supported by the company’s series of investments in digital assets, including in K Wave Media—a Korean cultural innovation and digital asset firm—which earlier announced plans to develop a tokenization platform for facilitating fractional ownership and automated royalty distribution for films, concerts, and other creative works.
According to K Wave, it secured a $1 million investment from Galaxy Digital Ltd. (NASDAQ:GLXY), funds of which will be used to transform how entertainment projects raise capital and how fans engage with their favorite stars and creative works. The platform will also accept Bitcoin as a means of payment and investment.
Aside from K Wave, Galaxy Digital Ltd. (NASDAQ:GLXY) also raised its stake in Solana to a total of $1.55 billion following the acquisition of $306 million worth of tokens in just one day.
9. Riot Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ:RIOT)
Riot Platforms extended gains for a second day on Monday, jumping 11.81 percent to finish at $19.78 apiece as investors took path from optimism for Bitcoin to break past the $200,000 level and analysts’ positive ratings for its stock.
Riot Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ:RIOT) rallied alongside its counterparts, namely CleanSpark, MARA Holdings, and Galaxy Digital, after the latter’s chief executive turned highly optimistic for Bitcoin to hit the $200,000 territory, assuming a dovish chairman leads the Federal Reserve.
In other news, Riot Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ:RIOT) recently earned positive ratings from various analysts.
For its part, Citigroup raised its stock to “buy” from “hold,” while upgrading its price target to $24 from $13.75 previously, following an overall optimism for the high-performance computing (HPC) industry, buoyed by a number of billion-dollar partnerships. Riot Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ:RIOT) is transitioning to HPC services to capture and support the strong demand from the AI market.
Apart from Citi, the Bitcoin miner also gained an “overweight” rating from JPMorgan, an upgrade from the “neutral” previously, while raising its price target to $19 from $15.
8. Robinhood Markets Inc. (NASDAQ:HOOD)
Robinhood Markets bounced back from losses on Monday to hit an all-time high after its prediction market services surged to a new record level.
In intra-day trading, the company soared to its highest 52-week price of $136.84 before giving up marginal gains to end the day up by 12.27 percent at $136.72 apiece.
This followed Robinhood Markets Inc. (NASDAQ:HOOD) Chief Executive Officer Vlad Tenev’s announcement that the company’s prediction markets officially cracked past the 4 billion event contracts, more than half of which occurred in the third quarter alone.
In partnership with Kalshi, a US-based financial exchange and prediction market regulated by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Robinhood Markets Inc. (NASDAQ:HOOD) provides its customers the ability to trade prediction-market contracts. Just recently, it expanded its offerings into pro- and college football contracts.
In other developments, investors also continued to digest Robinhood Markets Inc.’s (NASDAQ:HOOD) news last week that it officially rolled out banking services as part of its broader push to become a full-service financial hub.
7. Lufax Holding Ltd (NYSE:LU)
Lufax Holding soared by 13.09 percent on Monday to almost hit a new 52-week high as investors snapped up shares ahead of an “extraordinary” general meeting on Tuesday, September 30.
In a notification to its shareholders earlier this month, Lufax Holding Ltd (NYSE:LU) said it would hold a shareholder meeting at 2 PM Hong Kong time on September 30, which is at 2 AM Eastern Time on the same date.
Lufax Holding Ltd (NYSE:LU) is one of the leading financial service enablers for small business owners in China. It offers financing products designed to address the needs of small business owners.
Last month, the company announced membership changes in its Board of Directors, following the resignation of Weidong Li as an independent non-executive director, a member of the audit committee, and the chairman of the nomination and remuneration committee of the company.
Lufax Holding Ltd (NYSE:LU) said that the resignation was not due to any dispute or disagreement with the company.
Li was replaced by Wai Ping Tina Lee, a legal and banking professional with over four decades of experience across leading financial institutions and law firms.
6. CleanSpark, Inc. (NASDAQ:CLSK)
Shares of CleanSpark recovered by 14.74 percent on Monday to finish at $14.87 apiece, bolstered by strong optimism for the Bitcoin industry.
CleanSpark, Inc. (NASDAQ:CLSK) rallied alongside its Bitcoin mining firms on Monday, namely MARA Holdings, Riot Platforms, and Galaxy Digital, after the latter’s chief executive said that he expects the price of Bitcoin to propel past the $200,000 level if a new dovish chairman takes over the Federal Reserve.
The rally suggested strong confidence for the company even after getting a rating downgrade from JPMorgan.
Over the weekend, JPMorgan downgraded CleanSpark, Inc. (NASDAQ:CLSK) to “neutral” from “overweight” previously, while maintaining its price target of $14.
According to the investment firm, CleanSpark, Inc. (NASDAQ:CLSK) is currently fully priced after announcing expansion to 50 EH/s in June. It is currently the 7th largest Bitcoin mining firm in terms of market capitalization.
In other news, CleanSpark, Inc. (NASDAQ:CLSK) last week raised $100 million in fresh funds through tapping a credit facility with Two Prime. Proceeds will be used to support Bitcoin mining hashrate deployment, invest in high-performance computing (HPC) capabilities, and fund its evolving digital asset management strategies.
5. MARA Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MARA)
MARA Holdings grew its share prices by 15.69 percent on Monday to end at $18.66 apiece as investor sentiment was boosted by an overall optimism for the Bitcoin industry, with a company chief executive projecting it to grow past the $200,000 level.
During the session, MARA Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MARA) climbed alongside its peers, namely Riot Platforms, CleanSpark, and Galaxy Digital, after the latter’s CEO said he expects Bitcoin prices to jump to the $200,000 territory. As of writing, Bitcoin was up by 1.82 percent at $114,155.20 apiece.
In other news, investors have repositioned portfolios ahead of the results of its Bitcoin mining performance for September.
Last August, MARA Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MARA) was able to mine 705 Bitcoins, or 2 units higher than the 703 in July. This followed a higher operating hash rate of 59.4 EH/s versus the 58.9 EH/s in the same comparable period.
4. Etsy, Inc. (NASDAQ:ETSY)
Shares of Etsy Inc. (NASDAQ:ETSY) soared to a new record high on Monday, as investor sentiment was boosted by plans to transfer its listed shares to the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in October.
In intra-day trading, the stock rallied to a new 52-week high of $75.77 before paring gains to finish the session just up by 15.83 percent at $74.34 apiece. This followed news that it will transfer to the NYSE on October 13 and cease to trade on the Nasdaq on October 10.
Investors viewed the transfer positively as getting listed on the NYSE—the largest stock exchange in the world—could help bolster its public exposure to a higher number of institutional and retail investors.
At present, the NYSE holds a roster of 2,300 listed companies with an overall market capitalization of $31 trillion, followed by the Nasdaq with $29 trillion in total market cap.
“We’re excited to join the [NYSE] and stand alongside some of the world’s most respected and innovative companies,” said Etsy, Inc. (NASDAQ:ETSY) CEO Josh Silverman.
“For 20 years, Etsy has connected tens of millions of thoughtful shoppers with creative entrepreneurs around the world, and we will continue to keep commerce human as we build even more personalized and differentiated shopping experiences. We’re looking forward to partnering with the NYSE to deliver on our commitments to transparency, excellence, and creating long-term shareholder value,” he added.
3. Sandisk Corp. (NASDAQ:SNDK)
Sandisk extended its gains for a second day on Monday, to hit a new record high, as investors continued to load up positions after maintaining a bullish rating from an investment firm.
During the session, Sandisk Corp. (NASDAQ:SNDK) soared to its highest level of $114 before trimming gains to end the day just up by 16.87 percent at $113.50 apiece, as investors continued to digest Citigroup’s maintained “buy” recommendation for its stock, alongside a price target of $125.
The said figure suggests a 9.6 percent upside potential from its latest closing price.
In other news, Sandisk Corp. (NASDAQ:SNDK) announced the official unveiling date for its new storage solutions exclusively for ROG Xbox Ally Handhelds.
To be launched on October 16, the new products, a microSD card and an SSD, are now available for pre-order.
The microSD cards alone are offered in various storage sizes such as 512 GB, 1 TB, and 2TB, while the SSD will be able to store 4 TB of data.
“In the era of massive game sizes and game libraries, there is an increasing demand for high-performing storage solutions with greater capacities,” Sandisk Corp. (NASDAQ:SNDK) said.
2. Merus NV (NASDAQ:MRUS)
Shares of Merus NV soared to a new record high on Monday, as investors gobbled up shares following news that it was set to be acquired by Genmab AS at a 41-percent premium.
In a statement, Genmab AS said that it entered into an agreement with Merus NV (NASDAQ:MRUS) for the acquisition of the latter, through its subsidiary, Purchaser, for $8 billion.
Under the deal, Purchaser will acquire all of Merus NV’s (NASDAQ:MRUS) outstanding shares at a price of $97 apiece.
The tender offer is subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, including a minimum acceptance condition of at least 80 percent of Merus NV’s (NASDAQ:MRUS) common shares.
The companies said the purchase price stands at a 41-percent premium over Merus NV’s (NASDAQ:MRUS) $68.89 closing price on September 26, and approximately 44 percent over its 30-day volume-weighted average price of $67.42.
Genmab said it will finance the transaction through a combination of cash on hand and approximately $5.5 billion of non-convertible debt financing. Genmab has obtained a funding commitment from Morgan Stanley Senior Funding, Inc. for the said amount.
1. Tilray Brands Inc. (NASDAQ:TLRY)
Tilray soared at an all-time high on Monday as investors took path from President Donald Trump’s promotion of the use of cannabis and cannabidiol (CBD) in the US.
In intra-day trading, Tilray Brands Inc. (NASDAQ:TLRY) hit its highest price of $1.86 before trimming gains to finish the day just up by 60.87 percent at $1.85 apiece, as investors took Trump’s three-minute video post promoting the use of cannabis and CBD for medical use as a cue for the US government’s support for the legalization of the substance.
According to the video, the CBD oil is able to revolutionize senior healthcare and reduce medical costs in the US by $64 billion.
The announcement helped propel share prices of cannabis product makers, including Tilray Brands Inc. (NASDAQ:TLRY), Canopy Growth, Cronos Group, and Aurora Cannabis, among others.
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