Sirius XM, Converted Organics: Early Volume Plays

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Several stocks trading near $5 were moving on above-average volume during Tuesday's session.

Sirius XM (SIRI) rose by a penny, or 1.7%, to 98 cents after Janco Partners upgraded the stock to buy from accumulate and raised its stock price target to $1.30 from 80 cents, citing operating leverage on a market rebound. Analyst Martin Pyykkonen said he expects Sirius XM to leverage its financial strength to contain or reduce operating expense areas such as programming and content as a percentage of revenue, adding that a delisting from the Nasdaq is "not likely." Volume topped 48.41 million shares, compared to the 50-day average daily volume of 159.23 million, according to the Nasdaq.

CAS Medical Systems (CASM) jumped by 24 cents, or 14.4%, to $1.87 after the company said the Japanese Patent Office has granted a new patent for the company's LASER-SIGHT technology, covering methods for non-invasively determining biological tissue oxygenation in general and for non-invasive methods utilizing near-infrared spectroscopy techniques. Volume topped 83,400 shares, compared to the 50-day average daily volume of 7,900.

Popular (BPOP) rose by 28 cents, or 9.2%, to $3.33 after the company announced a preliminary net loss of approximately $85 million for the first quarter, which would narrow from a fourth-quarter loss of $213.2 million. In addition, Popular said it has commenced a public offering of depositary shares, which is intended to raise $900 million. Volume topped 25.95 million shares, compared to the 50-day average daily volume of 9.72 million.

Converted Organics (COIN) jumped by 19 cents, or 21.5%, to $1.07 after the company said sales of its organic fertilizer products and tip fees totaled $811,600 for the first quarter, an increase of 65% from a year ago. In addition, Converted Organics said its annual report no longer contains a "going concern" qualification from its independent public accountants. Volume topped 1.26 million shares, compared to the 50-day average daily volume of 949,000.

-- Written by Robert Holmes in Boston.

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