Why Akorn, Inc. (AKRX), Lumber Liquidators Holdings Inc (LL) and Office Depot Inc (ODP) Are 3 of Today’s Best Stocks

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Safer assets were favored Tuesday as global markets were jittery following the worst terror attack in Belgium’s history. At least 31 people died in explosions at a Brussels airport and subway station, which is close to European Union headquarters.

Why Akorn, Inc. (AKRX), Lumber Liquidators Holdings Inc (LL) and Office Depot Inc (ODP) Are 3 of Today's Best StocksThe dollar rose against a basket of its major rivals, but even with that, gold also gained as traders looked for safe havens. Showing some resilience to tragedy in Belgium, U.S. stocks incurred only modest losses as the S&P 500 finished lower by 0.09% while the Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 0.23%. The Nasdaq Composite was the leader on the day with a gain of 0.27%.

Modesty was the not the game being played by Akorn, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKRX), Lumber Liquidators Holdings Inc (NYSE:LL) and Office Depot Inc (NASDAQ:ODP) as big gains helped that trio rank among today’s best stocks.

Akorn, Inc. (AKRX)

Pharmaceuticals maker Akorn surged 40.6% on more than seven times the average daily volume after the company delivered 2015 financial results and guidance for this year. Last year, AKRX said it overstated some results for fiscal 2014, forcing a delay in releasing its 2015 numbers.

For 2015, AKX said it earned $1.14 a shares on sales of $985 million. AKRX expects to earn $2.10 to $2.20 per share this year on revenue of $1.06 billion to $1.08 billion. That guidance misses Wall Street estimates.

Lumber Liquidators Holdings Inc (LL)

Shares of controversy-ridden Lumber Liquidators climbed nearly 16% on more than triple the stock’s average daily turnover after the company said it will pay $2.5 million to California regulators to settle charges pertaining to the safety of some of its hardwood flooring products.

LL has been under pressure due to some of its China-sourced products, drawing the ire of some noted Wall Street short sellers while also being the topic of a segment on “60 Minutes.” Over the past year, shares of LL have lost roughly half their value.

Last month, federal regulators said some types of laminate flooring have increased cancer-causing risks, reports MarketWatch. In the settlement with California, LL did not admit to any wrongdoing.

Office Depot Inc (ODP)

Office Depot jumped 9.7% on more than triple the average daily volume as efforts by Staples, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPLS) to acquire ODP continued at a hearing before federal regulators. Staples is trying to acquire ODP for $6.3 billion, but the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is trying to block the deal on the grounds that the combined company would control so much of the office products and supplies market that it would gain unfair pricing power.

Some media reports allude to Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) potentially becoming a player in the office supplies market, which could clear the way for SPLS to acquire ODP on the basis that that combined company would have a credible rival in Amazon.

The FTC argued Monday that Amazon is not yet a legitimate threat to ODP or SPLS and that Amazon has not procured a major large business client. The hearing is expected to last for as long as two weeks.

At the time of this writing, Todd Shriber did not own any of the aforementioned securities.

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Todd Shriber has been an InvestorPlace contributor since 2014.


Article printed from InvestorPlace Media, https://investorplace.com/2016/03/why-akorn-inc-akrx-lumber-liquidators-holdings-inc-ll-and-office-depot-inc-odp-are-3-of-todays-best-stocks/.

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