The stock market was in rally mode last week, and the good vibes looked like they were continuing after the weekend. As of 8:30 a.m., futures on the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC -0.64%) led the market higher, rising about half a percent to climb above the 12,200 mark.
Investors have been more interested in stock splits than ever, and some big-name companies have joined in the trend. Tesla (TSLA 4.96%) hasn't been a stranger to the stock-split party, having just done a 5-for-1 split back in 2020. Yet even as Tesla shareholders wait patiently for the chance to vote on another round of share-splitting, the rest of the market is looking closely at a much smaller Nasdaq-listed company that's soaring on Monday morning. You'll find all the details below.
Tesla's split is still a ways off
Shares of Tesla were up more than 1% on Monday morning. That largely reflected the move in the broader market, with the electric vehicle pioneer often seeing somewhat more volatility in both directions than the Nasdaq as a whole.
Tesla has proposed its 3-for-1 stock split, but investors have to wait until the company's annual shareholder meeting in order to vote to approve it. That's because the number of shares available is insufficient to handle a stock split of this size currently. The meeting is expected to happen in August, and it'll likely take a week or two beyond the approval date for the stock split to take effect.
In the meantime, Tesla continues to work to overcome challenges and keep its business growing steadily. Even when professional analysts find flaws with the company, they're hesitant to take too bearish of a view. For instance, early Monday morning, analysts at Mizuho cut their price target on the stock by $150 per share. But that only brought the target down to $1,150, and most of the comments had to do with short-term impacts from supply chain disruptions and COVID-19 shutdowns in Shanghai. Mizuho did cite some macroeconomic issues as being potential threats, but overall, it still sees the second half of 2022 being stronger, and analysts kept their buy rating on the stock.
A Tesla stock split won't have any fundamental impact on the company, but it does reflect Tesla's own confidence in its stock price. Many investors look at Tesla as a bellwether for the broader market, so it'll be interesting to see where shares go as the current uncertainty in the markets play out.
Awesome news from Axsome
The big winner of the morning, though, was Axsome Therapeutics (AXSM 0.49%). The small-cap biopharmaceutical company got good news from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration that boosted confidence in its prospects.
Axsome made a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to tell shareholders that the company had received proposed labeling from the FDA with regard to its AXS-05 candidate treatment for major depressive disorder. Axsome said that it would review the FDA proposal and then reply as necessary to reach a final agreement with respect to the labeling.
The news comes after Axsome has made several announcements about data from its clinical trials for AXS-05. Earlier this month, the biopharma said that AXS-05 has shown rapid, substantial, and durable improvements in depressive symptoms and functioning in one trial that were sustained over a 12-month period. Another trial showed improvement in anhedonic symptoms. A third study showed the immense need for new treatments for major depressive episodes, as Axsome tries to support its filing for approval of AXS-05.
Investors are increasingly hopeful that AXS-05 will win approval, based on all these preliminary steps taking place. That's not guaranteed, but it would be a major victory for a company whose stock has seen huge ups and downs in recent years.
