Author: admin

Priceline Group Inc. said Wednesday that it is changing its name to Booking Holdings Inc., effective today. The company will change its ticker to “BKNG” effective February 27. The company has grown from the Priceline website to six brands with operations around the world, the company’s Chief Executive Glenn Fogel said in a statement. Its largest brand is Booking.com with more than 1 million bookings each day and a “significant majority”of its gross bookings and operating profit. The company is “[m]aking this change to more accurately align our company name with our largest business,” he said. Other Booking brands include Kayak and OpenTable. The company headquarters will remain in Norwalk, Conn. Priceline shares are indicating higher in premarket trading, and are up 15% for the past year. The S&P 500 index is also up nearly 15% for the last 12 months.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

AbbVie Inc. and Neurocrine Biosciences Inc. shares rose 1.7% and 1.1% respectively in premarket trade Wednesday after the companies announced that their drug met its primary endpoint in a phase 3 trial testing it in women with uterine fibroids. The therapy, elagolix, combined with low-dose hormone therapy reduced heavy menstrual bleeding in 68.5% of women, compared with 8.7% of women on the placebo. The phase 3 trial, ELARIS UF-I, is the first of two late-stage studies, and the Wednesday release was based on topline results from a six-month primary analysis. Uterine fibroids affect an estimated 7.5 million U.S. women, and consist of growths in the uterus that can cause heavy bleeding, pain and bladder problems. Other companies are also developing drugs in this area, includingMyovant , Allergan and the biotech ObsEva . AbbVie and Neurocrine’s elagolix is also being developed for endometriosis with associated pain, and is being reviewed by the Food and Drug Administration for that indication. AbbVie shares have surged 24.6% over the last three months, and Neurocrine shares have surged 14%, compared with a 4.5% rise in the S&P 500 .

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

Popular Christian evangelist preacher Billy Graham, known for tent revivals and, eventually, sermons delivered in filled-to-capacity stadiums and across television broadcasts, has died at age 99, the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association told NBC News early Wednesday. “God has sent me out as a warrior … ,” he once said. Graham, an ordained Southern Baptist minister, became internationally recognized with his “crusades” from about 1949 on. He was known to meet and consult with American presidents from both parties. His son, Franklin Graham, tweeted on Presidents Day earlier this week that his father had met every U.S. president from Harry Truman to Donald Trump.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

Women’s clothing retailer Chico’s FAS Inc. said Wednesday it is raising its quarterly dividend by 3% to 8.50 cents a share. The new dividend will be payable April 2 to shareholders of record as of March 19. Shares were not yet active premarket, but have fallen 36% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 has gained 15%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

GPS provider Garmin Ltd. said Wednesday it had net income of $138.8 million, or 73 cents a share, in the fourth quarter, up from $136.6 million, or 72 cents a share, in the year-earlier period. Adjusted per-share earnings came to 70 cents, ahead of the FactSet consensus of 75 cents. Sales rose to $888.5 million from $860.8 million, also ahead of the FactSet consensus of $871 million. Outdoor, fitness, marine and aviation revenue grew 9% over the year-earlier quarter to account for 78% of total revenue. Looking ahead, Garmin said it expects full-year revenue of about $3.2 billion, compared with a current FactSet consensus of $3.1 billion. EPS is expected to come to about $3.05, ahead of the FactSet consensus of $2.97. Shares were slightly higher premarket, but have gained 29% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 has gained 15%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

MKM Partners raised its Amazon.com Inc.’s price target to $1,750 from $1,350 on analyst belief that the company has created a competitive advantage that it can maintain and grow into other categories. “We continue to think Amazon is the best growth story of all the mega-caps over the very long term,” analyst Rob Sanderson wrote in a note. MKM maintained its buy stock rating. Analysts highlight investor support for Amazon’s investment spending; say that higher-margin businesses, like AWS and advertising, are growth engines for the e-commerce giant; and highlight the online retail growth of 19% in 2017. MKM sees prospects for earnings per share of $78 in 2022, up from previous estimate of $66. Amazon shares are up 0.7% in premarket trading, and up 71.5% for the past year. The S&P 500 index is up nearly 15% for the last 12 months.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

Dish Network Corp. said Wednesday it had net income of $1.39 billion, or $2.64 a share, in the fourth quarter, up from $355 million, or 73 cents a share, in the year-earlier period. Net income included an income tax benefit of about $1.2 billion due to adjustments to deferred tax assets and liabilities, following the tax revamp signed into law in December. Revenue fell to $3.48 billion from $3.75 billion. The FactSet consensus was for EPS of 55 cents and revenue of $3.524 billion. The company ended the quarter with 13.242 million pay-TV subscribers, including 11.030 million Dish TV subscribers and 2.212 million Sling TV subscribers. Net pay-TV subscribers rose about 39,000 in the quarter, including 75,000 reactivations in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, following the damage caused by Hurricane Maria. Shares were not yet active premarket, but have fallen 29% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 has gained 15%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

Vice President Mike Pence was set to secretly meet with North Korean officials during his recent trip to the Winter Olympics in South Korea, but the North Koreans pulled out of the meeting at the last minute, according to reports Tuesday. The Washington Post reported Pence’s meeting with Kim Yo Jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, and premier Kim Yong Nam was canceled about two hours before it was scheduled to start. “We regret their failure to seize this opportunity,” State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said Tuesday, according to the Associated Press. Both the Post and AP said the North Koreans ditched the meeting over Pence’s hard-line stance, as well as displeasure over recent new sanctions.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News