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Wall Street firms cut their forecasts for U.S. economic growth in the first quarter of 2018 after a disappointing decline in retail sales in January. Morgan Stanley chopped its estimate for gross domestic product to 2.9% from 3.3%. Barclays and IHS trimmed their GDP estimates to 2.3% from 2.5%. And Bank of America Merrill Lynch lowered its target to 2% from 2.3%. Sales at U.S. retailers fell 0.2% in January, the biggest drop in almost a year.

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From:: Stock Market News

The U.S. oil benchmark edged higher, erasing an earlier loss, after government data showed a smaller-than-expected rise in crude inventories last week. West Texas Intermediate crude for March delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange were up 43 cents, or 0.7%, at $59.62 a barrel after trading as low as $58.20 in earlier action. The Energy Information Administration said U.S. inventories rose by 1.8 million barrels in the week ended Feb. 9. A survey of analysts by The Wall Street Journal had produced a forecast for a 2.6 million barrel increase. Product inventories, however, rose more than expected, with gasoline stocks up 3.6 million barrels versus an average forecast of 1.4 million. Distillate stocks rose 500,000 barrels versus an expected 600,000 barrel decline. Refiners operated at 89.8% of operable capacity, below the forecast of 91.1%.

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The military parade proposed by President Donald Trump could cost between $10 million and $30 million, depending on the length, Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney told the House Budget Committee on Wednesday. Last week, Defense Secretary James Mattis said the Pentagon was “putting together some options” on the parade. Democrats have criticized the idea.

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Medical device company Motus GI Holdings priced its initial public offering late Tuesday at $5 a share, the low end of its $5 to $7 price range. The Israeli company sold 3.5 million shares to raise $18.5 million. The company was originally planning to offer 4.3 million shares but reduced the size of the deal ahead of pricing. Motus will start trading on Nasdaq later Wednesday under the ticker symbol “MOTS.” Piper Jaffray and Oppenheimer were joint bookrunners on the deal.

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Shares of water management, infrastructure services and drilling company maker Layne Christensen Co. surged more than 22% Wednesday, after the company agreed to be acquired by Granite Construction Inc. in a stock-for-stock deal valued at $565 million, including debt. Layne shareholders will receive 0.270 Granite share for each Layne share owened, equal to a premium of 33% over the volume-weighted average prices for Granite and Layne shares over the past 90 trading days. Granite is expecting the deal to boost adjusted per-share earnings and adjusted cash EPS in the first year after closing. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter. Granite said the deal will enhance its presence in the growing water infrastructure market, and generate about $600 million in water-related sales. “With Layne’s expertise and leading water positions, Granite will advance its goal of becoming a full suite provider of construction and rehabilitation services for the water and wastewater market,” Granite Chief Executive James Roberts said in a statement. GRanite shares fell 3.9% and are up about 6% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 has gained 14%.

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UBS analyst Steven Milunovich weighed in Wednesday on how Apple Inc. can winnow down its $163 billion net-cash pile and achieve its goal of becoming net-cash neutral, a target the company cited on its latest earnings call. “We think Apple leans toward buybacks with the potential to increase the dividend yield closer to other large technology companies,” he wrote, adding that the possibility of large M&A or a special dividend would be “surprising.” He sees Apple being able to achieve a net-cash neutral position by fiscal 2023 through a 5% annual reduction in share count and a yield of 3%. Apple’s dividend yield is 1.54%, compared with Microsoft Corp.’s yield of 1.88%. He deems other possibilities for the money unlikely. CEO Tim Cook said at Apple’s shareholder meeting Tuesday that he wasn’t a “fan” of special dividends, and Apple has traditionally opted for small acquisitions rather than major ones. “Transformational M&A would result in a collision of different cultures and priorities, which Apple has thus far avoided,” Milunovich wrote. Apple shares are down 0.4% in Wednesday morning trading and up 22% over the past 12 months. The Dow Jones Industrial Average has risen 20% in that time.

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Apple Inc. may start buying NAND flash memory chips from a state-backed Chinese company, according to the Nikkei Asian Review, which wrote Wednesday that the two companies had been in talks. Were Apple to indeed bring on the company, Yanktze Memory Technologies, as a supplier, it would mark the first time the smartphone maker bought memory chips from a Chinese company, according to the report. Apple currently gets NAND chips from several providers, including Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. , Toshiba Corp. , and Western Digital Corp. , the Nikkei Asian Review said, and the company might only start out with a small order from Yangtze if a deal is reached. Memory chips have become expensive over the last two years and Apple has already made a move to own part of a distributor. Shares of memory companies including Micron Technology Inc. and Western Digital were down in Wednesday morning trading. Apple’s stock is down 0.5% in Wednesday trading but up 22% over the past 12 months, compared with a 20% rise for the Dow Jones Industrial Average .

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From:: Stock Market News

U.S. stocks opened solidly lower on Wednesday, suggesting major indexes would snap a three-day streak of gains, after the latest data on inflation underlined concerns that the Federal Reserve could become more aggressive in raising interest rates. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 120 points, or 0.4%, to 24,535. The S&P 500 lost 9 points to 2,655, a drop of 0.3%. The Nasdaq Composite Index shed 27 points to 6,986, a decline of 0.4%. In the latest economic data, the consumer price index rose by its highest amount in five months in January. That builds on a recent spike in wage growth, which triggered concerns about inflation returning to the economy. That fear was enough to spark a sharp decline in stocks, taking both the Dow and the S&P into correction territory. Separately, U.S. retail sales fell 0.3% in January, the largest drop in almost a year, adding to concerns about the state of the economy. In company news, Fossil Group Inc. soared 78% after it reported earnings that topped forecasts. Chipotle Mexican Grill added 12% a day after naming a new chief executive.

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Shares of Galmed Pharmaceuticals Ltd. plunged 62% to pace all the premarket decliners, after the Israel-based biopharmaceutical company said a phase 2a trial of its treatment for HIV-associated liver disease (Aramchol) failed to meet its primary endpoint. That puts the stock on track to open at a 13-month low. The company said the trial showed no difference between HIV patients receiving Aramchol for 12 weeks and with HIV patients receiving the placebo. “While further analysis is required, the results may mean that the pathogenesis of HIV-related NAFLD is likely different and potentially due to a complex mix of triggers that are both unique to HIV-associated NAFLD and may also have some shared pathways with primary NAFLD,” said Rohit Loomba, the principal investigator of the study. The stock had more than doubled (up 128%) over the past 12 months, while the iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF has rallied 11% and the S&P 500 has gained 14%.

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From:: Stock Market News