Nvidia, Pfizer, New Fortress Energy, Tesla, Alphabet: What Sparked Heavy After-Hours Trading In These 5 Stocks?

U.S. stocks experienced a modest pullback from their record highs as a strong August retail sales report tempered hopes of a bigger cut by the Federal Reserve at the September rate-setting meeting.

Most experts and market watchers expect the central bank, led by Chair Jerome Powell, to cut rates by 25 basis points to 4-4.25%, with a section of them bracing for a “Sell the news” move.  Former JPMorgan strategist Marko Kolanovic warned of a potential spike in volatility. In a post on X, he said, “Systematic investors are maxed out. Potentially an explosive situation (like this April) when volatility increases.”

Ahead of the crucial Fed meeting, the following stocks saw increased trading volume in Tuesday’s extended trading session.

Nvidia Corp. (NVDA)

After-hours move: +0.15%

Trading volume: 7.6 million

Nvidia’s stock fell for a second straight session on Tuesday, dragged by another negative China headline. The stock ended the session down 1.61% after a Reuters report, citing two people, said the company’s new artificial intelligence (AI) inference chip, the RTX6000D, has poor uptake in the country.

The Nvidia stock continued to elicit ‘bearish’ sentiment (43/100) from among the retail users of Stocktwits, and the message volume also stayed at ‘low’ levels.

The stock has gained 30% year-to-date (YTD).

Pfizer, Inc. (PFE)

After-hours move: +0.17%

Trading volume: 7.49 million

Pfizer shares, which are down 5% YTD, came on investors’ radar amid the oversold levels of the stock. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr.’s stance on vaccines and the resultant divisions within the department have also shifted the focus on vaccine developers, including Pfizer.

Retail sentiment toward the stock stayed ‘bullish’ (61/100) and the message volume remained at ‘high’ levels.

New Fortress Energy LLC (NFE)

After-hours move: +35.49%

Trading volume: 27.92 million

New Fortress Energy stock surged higher in the after-hours following a 45% jump in regular trading. The after-hours surge came after the company struck a long-term liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply contract with Puerto Rico. 

"Matching our LNG production with long-term offtake has always been our goal. This locks in sustainable long-term margins for NFE and provides a foundation of financial stability for our company," said Chris Guinta, CFO of New Fortress Energy.

The New York-based integrated gas-to-power company has lost about 87% of its valuation this year due to investor worries concerning its debt, even as project delays weigh down. The strength seen in the stock is due to hopes that the company would reach a deal to restructure its debt.

Retail sentiment toward the stock has improved to ‘extremely bullish’ (93/100) by late Tuesday, from ‘bullish’ a day ago, and the message volume rose to ‘extremely high’ levels.

Tesla, Inc. (TSLA)

After-hours move: +0.29%

Trading volume: 4.33 million

Tesla stock outperformed the broader market on Tuesday as it climbed 2.77% despite the S&P 500’s modest pullback. The stock is steadily moving toward its highest level this year, thanks to a few catalysts, including CEO Elon Musk buying $1 billion worth of shares, the billionaire renewing his commitment toward the electric-vehicle business, optimism over the robotaxi opportunity, and expectations of delivery outperformance in the third quarter.

The stock is still trading way off its all-time high of $488.54.

On Stocktwits, retail traders stayed ‘extremely bullish’ (91/100) toward the Tesla stock, and the message volume continued to be ‘extremely high.’

Tesla’s stock is up 4.40% for the year.

Alphabet, Inc. (GOOGL) (GOOG)

After-hours move: +0.04%

Trading volume: 4.16 million

Alphabet, which is the newest $3 trillion club member, saw its shares retreat modestly on Tuesday. Alphabet’s Class C stock is up 32.45% this year. Sentiment toward the stock, however, remained ‘bearish’ (42/100), and the message volume dropped to ‘normal’ levels.

Alphabet announced a $5 billion AI investment, while it faces a lawsuit from sell-side advertising company Magnite (MGNI), with the latter seeking financial damages and remedies following the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia’s April ruling which found Google “willfully engaged in a series of anticompetitive acts to acquire and maintain monopoly power" in the ad exchange and ad server markets.

For updates and corrections, email newsroom[at]stocktwits[dot]com.

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