Nektar, AMD, Esperion, and More: Here’s Why These Five Stocks Are Surging

Although the broader markets are relatively calm, five stocks, Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR), Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD), Esperion Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:ESPR), Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA), and Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc – Ordinary Shares (NASDAQ:JAZZ) are each surging for various reasons. In this article, let’s uncover why traders are buying and analyze smart money sentiment toward them.

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Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) shares are 28% in the green after the company reported that opioid analgesic NKTR-181 met both primary and secondary endpoints in a phase 3 study for patients with moderate to severe chronic pain. The FDA has granted NKTR-181 its fast track designation for the treatment of moderate to severe chronic pain. Martin Hale, M.D., medical director of Gold Coast Research, said, ‘The data from this efficacy study are extremely important because they demonstrate that NKTR-181 produces strong analgesia in patients suffering from chronic pain while NKTR-181 has also demonstrated significantly lower abuse potential than oxycodone in a human abuse potential study’. Full data from the phase 3 study will be presented at a medical meeting in the second half of 2017. Of the 742 elite funds we track, 16 funds owned $152.96 million of Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) and accounted for 8.10% of the float on December 31, versus 17 funds and $222.31 million respectively on September 30.

Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD) has surged 6.3% after Mark Lipacis of Jefferies upped his price target on the semi-conductor maker to $16 from $13, citing improved visibility for the company’s launch of the Ryzen 5 and Ryzen 7 processor. Given that product launch, the analyst thinks AMD will gain ‘meaningful’ market share versus Intel in the Server, Desktop, and Notebook segments this year. 32 top funds had a bullish position in Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD) at the end of the fourth quarter, down 15 funds from the previous quarter.

On the next page, we examine Esperion Therapeutics Inc, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, and Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc – Ordinary Shares