OCGN - Hot Penny Stocks To Watch As AMC Stock Ignites Small Caps In June
These Former Penny Stocks Are Surging In June & AMC Stock May’ve Helped
When it comes to penny stocks, no others have clearly demonstrated the potential better than AMC stock & GameStop. This year has been one for the record books. While 2020 was all about recovery and reopening, 2021 is becoming the year of meme stocks. These are companies that Wall Street has essentially written off. They’ve also come under more extreme pressure from short-sellers looking to benefit from their downward spirals. However, the rally cry went out, first on Reddit, to “fight the suits,” as they say.
Hoards of retail traders banded together with 1 goal in mind: show Wall Street that retail isn’t “dumb money.” If you look at the discussions about penny stocks on Reddit and even higher-priced names, it’s not all about hype. Sure the “YOLO” posts and “HODL” updates are in there. But over the last 18 months, conversations are becoming more information-based.
In my opinion, compared to 5 years ago, due diligence is playing a more prominent role. Social media isn’t just talking about “OMG, this is AMAZING.” There are many more real discussions that involve speculative commentary based on publicly available information. In short, I think it has been great for the markets in general.
Small-Cap Stocks Shine Bright After AMC Meme Stocks Breakout
Needless to say, we’re here to talk about penny stocks . Thanks to the epic rise of GME stock and AMC Entertainment ( NYSE: AMC ), nothing is out of the question as long as there’s a story to be told. I will say that given the speculative climate and sentiment-driven activity, doing plenty of research is a must. Verifying information that you read online is important, especially when it comes to investing your own money. However, at the end of the day, this meme stock revolution has helped give a layer of legitimacy to the world of small-cap stocks. If you look at leading ETFs, you’ll see what I mean.
It isn’t the only reason, but traders have focused on small-caps thanks to interest in cheaper stocks. Look at the Russell 2000 Small-Cap ETF ( NYSE: IWM ), for instance. Year-to-date, the IWM is up over 16%. Meanwhile, the S&P Small-Cap ETF ( NYSE: IJR ) has posted a YTD move of more than 20% so far. These figures are much higher than the Dow’s ( NYSE: DIA ) YTD move of “only” 14% or the S&P 500’s ( NYSE: SPY )roughly 12% YTD move.
In this article, we’ll take a look at a few former penny stocks that continue to test higher levels. While they aren’t technically “meme stocks,” they certainly haven’t been negatively impacted by the boisterous resolve retail traders have for small-cap stocks in 2021.
- GT Biopharma ( NASDAQ: GTBP )
- Atossa Therapeutics ( NASDAQ: ATOS )
- Bionano Genomics ( NASDAQ: BNGO )
- Ocugen Inc. ( NASDAQ: OCGN )
Hot Penny Stocks To Watch #1: GT Biopharma (NASDAQ: GTBP)
GT Biopharma is no longer a penny stock, but it was trading under $5 per share not that long ago. The company is one that we’ve discussed for months at this point. What’s more, over the last few months, GTBP stock has managed to mount a strong rally. In fact, since late February, the former penny stock jumped from under $4 to nearly $19. Not only that, but analysts have continued initiating coverage on the biotech company. Right now, Roth Capital, B. Riley, and HC Wainwright all have Buy ratings on GT Biopharma and price targets ranging from $21 to $25 for the former penny stock.
Now, aside from what’s happening in the stock market today, GT Biopharma has an actual business too. Thanks, in part to progress being made in its treatment pipeline, attention continues to focus on the company. GT Biopharma has developed a novel treatment technology called TriKE to use in developing immunotherapies. Its lead treatment, GTB-3550, has taken center stage in a Phase 1/2 study initially in patients with acute myeloid leukemia and myelodysplastic syndrome. Early data has already shown meaningful progress.
In fact, B. Riley analysts Justin Walsh and Mayank Mamtani stated earlier this quarter that “The longer you look, the better it gets.” This was about the GTB-3550 TriKE™ ( click here for the full analyst report ). They “believe that the future and clinical development pathway for GTB-3550 will be clearer by the end of the summer, with multiple potential outcomes providing opportunities for investors to benefit.”
Available results from the first 9 patients in a Phase 1/2 study demonstrated GTB-3550’s ability to reduce up to 63.7%bone marrow blast levels as well as no signs of adverse side-effects. With bullish momentum in the market and a positive outlook from analysts, it will be interesting to see what comes next for GT Biopharma.
2. Atossa Therapeutics (NASDAQ: ATOS)
Similar to GTBP stock, Atossa is one of the companies we’ve followed for some time now. In fact, if you look back to our article in December of last year, ATOS stock was trading around 95 cents. Since then, the biotech penny stock has rallied to highs this week of $6.35 so far.
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The biggest focus recently has been on one of its main programs is Endoxifen. It’s currently in Phase II clinical trials to treat and prevent breast cancer. The company has also been sporadically in the news thanks to its other pipeline treatments. Atossa’s AT-301 is a nasally administered treatment in patients diagnosed with COVID-19. The company’s also developing AT-H201 to improve lung function in those with COVID-19.
This week, however, it’s all about Endoxifen and long-awaited data. Atossa announced that it would release and discuss final data from its Phase 2 study on June 9, 2021. The webinar will be attended by Dr. Steven Quay, CEO and President, Kyle Guse, CFO, and General Counsel, and Dr. B. Heather Fraser, VP Clinical, Regulatory, and CMC.
While the move might be highly speculative, it has helped spark further momentum in the stock market today. Let us know in the comments what you think the company will come out with this week. Will data be positive or negative in this study?
3. Bionano Genomics (NASDAQ: BNGO)
Sticking with the biotech trend, Bionano Genomics is no stranger to bullish sentiment. It’s odd to think that just last December, shares were trading around 50 cents. Then, earlier this year, BNGO stock actually reached highs of $15.69. As things have settled for the former penny stock, retail traders continue focusing on the company’s genomic diagnostic systems.
This week, the company announced the appointment of a new Chief Commercial Officer, Jason Priar. Obviously, for any biotechnology company, the goal is commercialization to start driving more revenue. In this case, Priar brings a wealth of industry expertise. His record includes stints at major biotech organizations, including GeneDx, Sema4, and PerkinElmer Genomics.
In particular, according to the company, under his leadership, GeneDx’s revenue grew from $8M to over $225M. So this news has been well-received in the stock market this week. Shares have broken back above the $8 mark for the first time since April.
4. Ocugen Inc. (NASDAQ: OCGN)
Finally, no list of “penny stocks that hit it big” would be complete without mentioning Ocugen. This time last year, OCGN stock was trading around 30 cents. While it was a frequently discussed company, the real excitement came toward the end of the year and the start of 2021. This was when Ocugen began making headway with its COVID-19 treatment development.
As discussed in our article about Biotech Penny Stocks to Watch, Before 2021 , Ocugen began its work with Bharat Biotech to bring its Covaxin COVID-19 vaccine to the U.S. Since then, a lot has happened. I won’t give the history lesson on the company. But I will point out that attention began growing once Covaxin showed potential efficacy against multiple variants of the SARS-CoV-2 disease, including India and Brazil variants.
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Fast-forward to right now, and Ocugen has expanded COVAXIN’s commercialization rights to include Canada. Last week the company made the announcement, which helped spark momentum in the market. “As we work towards the submission of the emergency use application in the US, we will simultaneously seek authorization under interim order for emergency use in Canada. We believe COVAXIN™ has the potential to play a key role in saving lives from COVID-19 in the US and Canada, as well as across the globe, due to the strong immune response it generates against multiple antigens,” said Dr. Shankar Musunuri, Ocugen’s Chairman, CEO, and Co-founder.
What’s Next For Penny Stocks In 2021?
Clearly, whether we’re talking about AMC stock, GME, or any of the names mentioned in this article, penny stocks have become a big part of trading for retail investors. The key isn’t finding “the next AMC stock” but identifying opportunities. In this article, the companies discussed weren’t just rallying from hype alone.
There were many fundamental aspects to take into consideration along the way. Regardless, this article highlights just a few of the many breakout small-cap stocks to watch this year. It also shows a clear appeal to industries like biotech. Leave us a comment below with what you think could be the next industry to gain the interest of the meme surge.