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U.S. stock-index opened firmly higher on Thursday, with the Dow on track to book its fifth straight advance, as investors digested a wave of economic reports. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 156 points, or 0.6%, at 25,049, set to notch its longest win streak in about 9 weeks and its highest level in about two, coming after a brutal period of selling. The S&P 500 index rose 16 points, or 0.6%, at 2,714, while the Nasdaq Composite Index was up 43 points, or 0.6%, at 7,186. In the latest economic data, initial jobless claims rose by 7,000 to 230,000 in the latest week, as had been expected, but claims remain near multi-decade lows. Separately, wholesale prices rose 0.4% in January, led by a rise in oil prices, though core producer prices were also up by 0.4%. The figure was the latest view on inflation, following Wednesday’s consumer price index.

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From:: Stock Market News

The Nasdaq Composite Index rose for a fifth straight session on Thursday, putting the tech-heavy index on track for its biggest one-week percentage gain in more than three years. The Nasdaq is up 4.3% thus far this week, which represents its best week since October 2014. The index has been supported by a broad recovery in the U.S. equity market, which has rebounded from recent concerns over inflation. Company news, such as strong results at Cisco Systems Inc. , a large weight in the index, have also supported gains. The index rose 0.4% on Thursday, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.6% and the S&P 500 added 0.4%. The Dow is up 3.5% thus far this week while the S&P is up 3.4%. Both are poised for their biggest weekly percentage gain since November 2016.

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From:: Stock Market News

Shares of Criteo SA gained 2% in premarket trading Thursday after analysts at KeyBanc Capital Markets upgraded the stock to overweight from sector weight. The stock jumped 29% a day earlier after the company reported better-than-expected financial results. The analysts at KeyBanc, led by Andy Hargreaves, were impressed by the company’s execution in its latest quarter and see more growth opportunities ahead. “Criteo is building a platform that appears well positioned to serve as a primary independent data broker for retailers in the internet era,” Hargreaves wrote. “This should support strong growth in existing products and allow for new products that expand the addressable market over time.” Criteo shares are down 35% over the past 12 months, compared with a 15% gain for the S&P 500 Index .

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Shares of Salesforce.com Inc. are up 2.4% in premarket trading Thursday after analysts at Jefferies upgraded the stock to buy from hold. “Our field checks indicate enterprise new business growth was strong in the Americas and even stronger internationally,” wrote the analysts, led by John DiFucci. He’s upbeat about Salesforce’s pipeline and the strength of its commercial business. DiFucci believes that competition from Microsoft Corp. seems to be easing up. His model has the company growing billings by 23% for the fourth quarter, ahead of consensus figures. DiFucci raised his price tagret to $132 from $97. Salesforce shares are up 33% over the past 12 months, while the S&P 500 Index 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.

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From:: Stock Market News

Shares of all 30 Dow Jones Industrial Average components rose in premarket trade Thursday, led by a 7.9% surge in Cisco Systems Inc.’s stock . The gains come as Dow futures jumped 185 points, adding to the Dow’s 1,033-point gain over the past four sessions. Among shares of other more-active movers ahead of Thursday’s open, Apple Inc. climbed 1.2%, General Electric Co. gained 0.4% and Intel Corp. tacked on 0.3%. Cisco’s stock surge comes after the networking company reported late Wednesday fiscal second-quarter results that beat expectations, provided an upbeat outlook for the current quarter and raised its dividend.

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Noble Energy Inc. said Thursday it has reached a deal with Fieldwood Energy LLC to divest its deepwater Gulf of Mexico assets for a total value of $710 million. The oil and gas exploration and production company said it will use the proceeds to partly finance a $750 million share buyback program that will be executed between now and 2020. Shares rose 2.3% premarket, but are down 29% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 has gained about 15%.

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From:: Stock Market News

Oracle Corp. said Thursday that it would be acquiring Zenedge, a cybersecurity company that helps protect cloud-based critical IT systems. The company helps businesses secure applications and databases from dangerous web traffic via its web application firewall (WAF) and distributed denial of service (DDoS) mitigation products, Oracle said. “The combination with Zenedge equips Oracle Cloud Infrastructure with integrated, next-generation network and infrastructure security, to address modern security threats,” said Don Johnson, Oracle’s senior vice president of product development, in a release. Zenedge’s chief executive said in the release that the company’s products contribute to a “99% reduction in illicit website traffic [and] a 99.75% improvement in page load times.” Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed. Oracle shares are up 19% over the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 is up 15% in that time.

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From:: Stock Market News

Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc. said Thursday it will raise its quarterly dividend by 32% to 22.5 cents a share, from 17 cents a share. The new dividend will be payable on March 30 to shareholders of record on march 9. Based on Wednesday’s stock closing price of $33.65, the new annual dividend rate of 90 cents a share, implies a dividend yield of 2.67%, compared with the payout yield for the SPDR S&P Retail ETF of 1.50% and the implied yield for the S&P 500 of 1.89%, according to FactSet. “The significant increase in our dividend demonstrates the strength of our balance sheet and the confidence we have in our company’s future,” said Dick’s Chief Executive Edward Stack. The stock, which was little changed in premarket trade, has run up 25.3% over the past three months, while the retail ETF has climbed 14.8% and the S&P 500 has gained 5.2%.

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LyondellBasell Industries NV said Thursday it has reached an agreement to acquire plastics maker A. Schulman Inc. in a deal valued at $2.25 billion. The deal “builds upon LyondellBasell’s existing platform in this space to create a premier Advanced Polymer Solutions business with broad geographic reach, leading technologies and a diverse product portfolio,” the plastics, chemicals and reining company said in a statement. Under the terms of the agreement, A. Schulman shareholders will receive $42 per share in cash and one contingent value right per share. The combined entity will have revenue of $4.6 billion and is expected to generate run-rate cost synergies of $150 million within two years of closing and to boost earnings within the first year. The deal is expected to close in the second half. A. Schulman shares jumped 9% premarket on the news, and are up 15% in the last 12 months, matching the S&P 500’s gain.

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From:: Stock Market News

Shares of Shopify Inc. slumped 1.5% in premarket trade Thursday, after the cloud-based commerce platform beat fourth-quarter profit and sales expectations but providing a mixed first-quarter outlook. The net loss for the quarter to Dec. 31 narrowed to $3.0 million, or 3 cents a share, from a loss of $8.9 million, or 10 cents a share, in the same period a year ago. Excluding non-recurring items, adjusted earnings per share came to 15 cents, above the FactSet consensus of 5 cents. Revenue rose to $222.8 million from $130.4 million, beating the FactSet consensus of $209.7 million. Monthly recurring revenue as of Dec. 31 was $29.9 million, up 62% from a year ago, while fourth-quarter gross merchandise volume increased 65% to $9.1 billion. For the first quarter, the company expects revenue of $198 million to $202 million, above the FactSet consensus of $195.6 million, and projects an adjusted operating loss of $6 million to $8 million. Based on 99.55 million shares used to calculate fourth-quarter per-share losses, the FactSet consensus of a 1-cent-per-share loss for the first quarter implies a loss of about $1.0 million. The stock has soared 40.3% over the past three months through Wednesday, while the S&P 500 has gained 5.2%

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.

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From:: Stock Market News