Biggest stock movers Monday: MU, QUBT, and more

[Momentum in Motion - Rising Line Graph Across a Digital Grid]

Stock futures edged higher Monday morning as investors looked beyond the extended government shutdown, which has delayed key economic data releases ahead of the Federal Reserve’s upcoming rate decision.

Here are some of Monday's biggest stock movers:

BIGGEST STOCK GAINERS

* CRITICAL METALS (NASDAQ:CRML [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/CRML]) +75% – Shares surged following a report that said the Trump administration is in talks to take an equity stake in the company, whose flagship Tanbreez mine in Greenland is one of the world’s largest rare earth deposits. Critical Metals, which last year agreed to buy Tanbreez for $5M in cash and $211M in stock, had applied for a $50M Defense Production Act grant that could now be converted into an ~8% government stake. Discussions remain preliminary. The potential investment would be separate from a $120M U.S. Export-Import Bank loan under review to fund Tanbreez’s $290M development. Earlier this week, the company raised its ownership in Tanbreez to 92.5% from 42%. The move follows Trump’s recent rare earth push, with the administration also taking stakes in Lithium Americas (LAC) and MP Materials (MP).
* FIREFLY AEROSPACE (NASDAQ:FLY [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/FLY]) +15% – Shares surged after the company announced plans to acquire national security technology firm SciTec for about $855M, comprising $300M in cash and $555M in Firefly shares issued at $50 per share, with the deal expected to close by the end of 2025. The acquisition aims to strengthen Firefly’s (NASDAQ:FLY [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/FLY]) defense capabilities by integrating SciTec’s expertise in software, big data analytics, remote sensing, and multi-phenomenology data into its existing portfolio. SciTec will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary, led by CEO Jim Lisowski, who will report directly to Firefly CEO Jason Kim.
* MICRON TECHNOLOGY (NASDAQ:MU [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/MU]) +3% – Shares rose after Morgan Stanley upgraded the stock to Overweight from Equal-Weight, citing expectations of multiple quarters of double-digit price increases ahead. Analyst Joseph Moore said the stronger pricing environment should drive “substantially higher earnings power” and clear up concerns around high-bandwidth memory for AI applications. He added that DRAM and NAND demand continues to strengthen, with buyers showing concern over supply availability through CY26 amid robust server and storage needs. The firm set a price target of $220, implying ~17% upside from the prior close.

BIGGEST STOCK LOSERS

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QUANTUM COMPUTING (NASDAQ:QUBT [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/QUBT]) -8% – Shares fell after the company announced securities purchase agreements with institutional investors for the sale of ~37.18M shares in an oversubscribed private placement, expected to raise $750M in gross proceeds. The offering, set to close around October 8, 2025, will fund commercialization, strategic acquisitions, volume production expansion, and workforce growth across sales and engineering. Following the deal’s completion, Quantum Computing’s pro forma cash position is projected to reach ~$1.55B.

MORE ON RELATED STOCKS:

* Firefly Aerospace: From Moon Landing Glory To A Valuation Crash Landing [https://seekingalpha.com/article/4827878-firefly-aerospace-from-moon-landing-glory-to-a-valuation-crash-landing]
* Micron Is A Steal At All-Time Highs [https://seekingalpha.com/article/4827599-micron-is-a-steal-at-all-time-highs]
* Firefly Aerospace: Buy The 51% Discount Since IPO [https://seekingalpha.com/article/4827205-firefly-aerospace-buy-the-51-percent-discount-since-ipo]
* Weekly tech check: Western Digital rises on AI demand, while Paycom drops on valuation concerns [https://seekingalpha.com/news/4501812-weekly-tech-check-western-digital-rises-on-ai-demand-while-paycom-drops-on-valuation-concerns]
* Quantum Computing to raise $750M privately [https://seekingalpha.com/news/4501872-quantum-computing-to-raise-750-privately]