Stocks making the biggest moves midday: Block, Truist, PepsiCo, Rivian and more

Check out the companies making headlines in midday trading.

Skechers — The shoe company gained 2.6% after UBS reiterated its buy rating on shares. UBS said Skechers’ brand and products “continue to resonate with global customers.”

Palantir Technologies — Shares of Palantir Technologies gained nearly 2% after the data analytics and software company won a $250 million contract with the U.S. Army, working to develop artificial intelligence and machine-learning capabilities through 2026.

PepsiCo — The beverage giant gained 2.2% after posting a third-quarter earnings beat Tuesday. The company reported an adjusted $2.25 per share on $23.45 billion in revenue, while analysts polled by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv, forecast earnings of $2.15 per share and revenue of $23.39 billion.

Solar companies — Shares of solar companies rallied Tuesday, putting the Invesco Solar ETF (TAN) on pace for its best day since March 21. SolarEdge added 4.5% and First Solar rose more than 5%. Sustainability-focused real estate investment trust Hannon Armstrong advanced 7%, bolstered by Baird saying the stock could have 81% upside.

Electronic Arts — Shares of the video game publisher rose 3% after Bank of America upgraded Electronic Arts to buy from neutral. The investment firm said the rebrand of EA’s FIFA franchise is going well, creating upside for the stock.

Defense stocks — L3Harris Technologies and Northrop Grumman both pulled back about 1% Tuesday. The defense and aerospace companies rose Monday after the Israel-Hamas war began over the weekend. 

Rivian — Shares of the electric vehicle manufacturer rose more than 5% after UBS upgraded the stock to buy from neutral. Analyst Joseph Spak said a recent sell-off has opened up an attractive entry point for investors.

Truist Financial — Shares jumped more than 6%. Late Monday, Semafor, citing people familiar, reported that Truist is in talks to sell its insurance brokerage business to private equity firm Stone Point in a $10 billion deal.

Block — Shares added 5.5% after Bank of America reiterated its buy rating on the payments stock. Analyst Jason Kupferberg cited the stock’s currently cheap valuation and strong fundamentals as catalysts for potential upside.

Akero Therapeutics — Shares of the biotechnology company tumbled 67% after its cirrhosis drug efruxifermin failed to meet a primary benchmark during its Phase 2B study.

Unity Software — The video game software company added 3.2%. Late Monday, the company announced that John Riccitiello is retiring as CEO of Unity and will no longer be on its board. The move follows a controversial pricing change Unity announced in September. James Whitehurst will become Unity’s interim CEO.

Arm Holdings — Shares added 2% a day after several bullish calls on the stock. Deutsche Bank and JPMorgan were among the firms that initiated coverage of Arm Holdings with buy ratings Monday. The firms were positive on the semiconductor’s revenue growth.

Ameris Bancorp — Shares of Ameris rose 2.9% midday after D.A. Davidson upgraded the stock to buy from neutral. The firm said capital levels are healthy and appear well-shielded from unrealized losses tied to rising rates. D.A. Davidson also hiked its price target by $1 to $44 per share, implying about 15% upside from Monday’s close.

— CNBC’s Pia Singh, Tanaya Macheel, Jesse Pound, Michelle Fox, Lisa Kailai Han and Samantha Subin contributed reporting.