Check out the companies making the biggest moves midday: Drug stocks — Shares of drugmakers rallied a second day as investors bet the industry will strike more deals with the Trump administration. On Tuesday, Pfizer received a three-year exemption to tariffs in exchange for investing in domestic manufacturing and discounting drug prices for Medicaid patients. Pfizer , Merck , Eli Lilly and Amgen all advanced about 6%. Conagra — The maker of Duncan Hines cake mixes rose 4% after fiscal first quarter revenue, adjusted EBITDA and earnings per share all topped Wall Street consensus estimates, according to numbers compiled by FactSet. Corteva — The agricultural technology company slumped 7% after setting plans to split into two publicly-traded companies in the second half of 2026. Acuity Brands — The lighting and building management controls maker jumped 9% after fiscal fourth quarter adjusted earnings per share of $5.20 beat analysts’ estimate for $4.83, according to a FactSet consensus forecast. Operating profit rose 9% and margins improved to 18.6%. Axcelis Technologies and Veeco Instruments — Axcelis dropped more than 6% and Veeco climbed almost 5% after the two semiconductor fabrication equipment makers agreed to merge in an all-stock deal expected to close in the second half of next year. Axcelis shareholders will control 58% of the stock in the new company and a majority of the board seats. GEO Group — The private prison provider climbed more than 7% after winning a two-year contract from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for services under an “intensive supervision appearance program.” No dollar value was provided. AST SpaceMobile — The Texas-based satellite designer and manufacturer soared 13% after saying on social media that its BlueBird 6 completed final assembly and testing and it expects 45-60 satellites in orbit by the end of next year. Tesla — The Elon-Musk-led electrical vehicle maker gained 2% after hiking its vehicle lease rates following the expiration of a $7,500 federal tax credit, Reuters reported Wednesday. Reddit – Shares fell nearly 10% after new data showed Chat GPT’s citations for the social media platform dropped by at least 8 percentage points from the beginning of September. AES — The renewable and thermal power producer climbed 15% after a Financial Times report that Blackrock-owned Global Infrastructure Partners is in late-stage talks to acquire the Virginia-based utility. Sunrun — The solar panel maker jumped 8% after a Jefferies upgrade to buy from hold highlighted Sunrun’s strong cash generation. Arm Holdings — Shares of the chipmaker rose nearly 4% after Reuters reported that Qualcomm will shift its chips to the latest Arm computing architecture . The decision may have soothed investor concerns as the companies remain in a legal dispute. Arm plans to appeal a legal decision on Tuesday that favored Qualcomm. Peloton — The exercise equipment maker dropped 9% after saying it’s revamping its product assortment , launching a commercial equipment line and raising prices for both subscriptions and hardware ahead of the holiday season. Nike — The athletic shoe and clothing maker rose more than 5% after beating Wall Street expectations for both revenue and net income in the first fiscal quarter and saying it sees better-than-expected sales growth. Nike warned that sales could slide this holiday season, however, and that it’s experiencing higher tariff costs than previously anticipated. Coinbase — The cryptocurrency platform advanced 3% after BTIG initiated research coverage with a buy rating, and crypto-related stocks are moving higher Wednesday as Bitcoin rallies. Additionally, The Information said Tuesday that the Securities and Exchange Commission is developing a plan to regulate stock trading on blockchains—a regulatory shift that could benefit Coinbase. Netflix — The media streaming stock fell nearly 3% after Tesla CEO Elon Musk posted Wednesday on X that users should cancel their Netflix subscriptions, kicking off a wave of boycott calls. Lithium Americas — Shares jumped 30% after the Department of Energy said Tuesday it plans to take a 5% equity stake in the lithium miner. Wolfspeed — The chipmaker slumped 17% after formally exiting Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, saying it reduced its total debt by some 70%, cut it annual cash interest costs by about 60% and has “ample liquidity” to continue supplying customers. Cal-Maine Foods — The egg producer dropped 3% after fiscal first quarter earnings per share lagged Wall Street estimates, according to numbers compiled by FactSet, and saying it received a subpoena from New York State asking for information tied to an investigation into anticompetitive practice and high prices. — CNBC’s Elizabeth Napolitano, Christina Cheddar-Berk, Alex Harring, Fred Imbert and Sarah Min contributed reporting. ( Learn the best 2026 strategies from inside the NYSE with Josh Brown and others at CNBC PRO Live. Tickets and info here . )
