Advanced technology and cryptocurrencies might steal most of the spotlight on Wall Street, but a very old company had a very good day on Friday. Gunmaker Smith & Wesson (NASDAQ:SWBI) rallied on news of a strong earnings report.
Elsewhere, Sykes Enterprises (NASDAQ:SYKE) climbed on a merger deal, Roku (NASDAQ:ROKU) garnered interest on the strength of its move into original programming, Micron (NASDAQ:MU) came under pressure from an analyst call and PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) received the benefit of higher fees charged to merchants.
Meanwhile, medical psychedelics company atai Life Sciences (NASDAQ:ATAI) jumped on its first day of trading. And Alfi (NASDAQ:ALF) and KnowBe4 (NASDAQ:KNBE) both capped off a standout week of gains.
Shares of Smith & Wesson climbed more than 17% on Friday, boosted by earnings released the previous evening. The gunmaker beat expectations in its fourth quarter, with sales that rose 67% to $323 million. The company also raised its dividend.
Sykes Enterprises posted a tremendous gain on Friday, as the company agreed to be acquired by Sitel Group. The purchase price of $54/share totals about $2.2B. SYKE jumped nearly 30% to close at $53.45.
For his part, an early investor in Roku sees long-term value in the move into original programming. Waverley Capital founder Daniel Leff told CNBC that the streaming TV company can succeed, as long as its programming doesn't alienate its major corporate partners.
PayPal got a boost during the trading session, thanks to news that it was raising its merchant processing fees. The new policy relates to payments made through its proprietary products, including PayPal Checkout, Pay with Venmo, and PayPal Credit. PYPL advanced nearly 2% on the news.
Shares of atai Life Sciences jumped on their first day on the public market. The company, which is developing therapies based on psychedelic drugs, finished at $19.45, up nearly 30% from its $15 IPO price.
Commenting on the news, ATAI's founder Christian Angermayer told CNBC that the IPO will help it push its products through clinical trials. The company has multiple products in the pipeline, including ones based on the chemicals found in magic mushrooms and ayahuasca.
Alfi (ALF) capped off a good week with yet another stellar performance Friday. Shares added nearly 30% on the last day of the week, building on gains posted in previous sessions.
ALF's rally was ignited earlier in the week by news that its digital screens would be rolled out in ride-hailing vehicles. On June 11, the stock finished at $3.51. A week later, it closed the session at $7.96, a gain of about 127% over that time.
KnowBe4 also closed out a strong week on a good note. Shares climbed another 13% Friday, marking its seventh session of gains. The stock is up more than 70% since June 9.
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