Wall Street Mixed: Teva Surges on FDA Approval, SimilarWeb Details CEO Pay

Wall Street wrapped up the trading week with mixed trends, as the S&P 500 and Nasdaq indexes declined on Thursday while the Dow Jones recorded a moderate gain, followed by an across-the-board recovery on Friday. Several Israeli-linked stocks drew significant market attention.

Teva Pharmaceuticals surged following approval for a new schizophrenia treatment. Teva shares jumped 4.7% on Friday on higher-than-average trading volume on the New York Stock Exchange, closing at a yearly high of $41.10 and pushing the pharmaceutical company's market capitalization to $47.9 billion. This marks the highest trading price for the stock in nearly a decade, since November 2016. Led by CEO Richard Francis, Teva is also traded on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, where it stands as the second-largest company.

The stock rally was triggered by the company's announcement of a marketing approval for a new original drug: the U.S. FDA approved WELTRUZA, also known as Olanzapine, which is the first and only once-monthly injectable treatment for adults with schizophrenia. Teva noted that the approval follows clinical trial results demonstrating improvements in disease symptoms, significant reductions in severity, and enhanced personal and social functioning.

Teva previously outlined its proprietary product pipeline, projecting peak sales for the drug to reach between $1.5 billion and $2 billion. Dr. Eric Hughes, Executive Vice President, Global Head of Research and Development, and Chief Medical Officer at Teva, stated that the approval reflects the strength of the company's patient-focused innovation.

SimilarWeb's new CEO to receive a $500,000 sign-on bonus and performance-based equity rewards. Roughly two weeks after software firm SimilarWeb announced the prospective appointment of Michael Ackerman as CEO, replacing founder Or Offer, the company has convened a shareholder meeting for November 16 to approve Ackerman's compensation terms. The proposed package includes an annual base salary of $550,000, an annual performance bonus of up to $550,000, and a one-time sign-on bonus of $500,000.

Citi downgrades Nova, with shares dropping 41.7% from recent peaks. Nova's stock has erased most of its impressive gains from earlier in the year. Until reaching its peak in June, the stock had surged by 84.4%, but has since lost 41.7% of its value, bringing its year-to-date return to 7.5%. Nova, managed by Gabi Weissman, is traded at a valuation of $11.2 billion and manufactures metrology systems for the semiconductor manufacturing industry.