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Planet Fitness hits record highs after earnings beat expectations

One year after its Wall Street debut, Planet Fitness Inc. stock jumped to new highs Thursday after reporting better-than-expected quarterly earnings. The chain of gyms said net income in the second quarter reached $18.1 million, or 11 cents a share, on revenue of $91.5 million; after adjustments for interest and other factors, the company claimed profit of 17 cents a share. Analysts on average expected Planet Fitness to report adjusted earnings of 15 cents a share on revenue of $85 million, according to FactSet. Analysts also projected same-store sales to grow 5.9% in the period, FactSet reported, while Planet Fitness said same-store sales jumped 7.6%. After closing with a 0.8% gain at $20.33 Thursday, Planet Fitness shares topped the all-time intraday high of $21.06 in late trading.

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

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Walter Investment MSR Sale Drives Public Offering

A company that acquired mortgage-servicing rights on more than $70 billion in loans from Walter Investment Management Corp. is planning a public offering to help fund the transaction.

On Tuesday, New Residential Investment Corp. announced that it was acquiring MSRs on $35 billion in conventional residential loans from Tampa, Florida-based Walter Investment.

In addition, New York-based New Residential agreed to acquire assets from Walter that include MSRs on another $37 billion in mortgages. The combined purchase price is $514 million.

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From:: Financing

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Oil futures settle at a nearly 3-week high

Oil futures settled at their highest level since July 22 on Thursday, just a day after marking their lowest finish in a week. Comments from Saudi Arabia’s oil minister raised the possibility that major crude producers will take action to stabilize the market at a meeting next month. September WTI crude rose $1.78, or 4.3%, to settle at $43.49 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

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

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Roughly two-thirds of Californians can’t afford to buy a home

California’s affordability crisis continues to plague the state, pricing more and more would-be homeowners out of the market. How could they buy a home though? Homebuyers need to earn more than a minimum annual income of $100K to qualify for the median-priced, existing single-family home in the state. Think that’s steep? It only gets more outrageous in the latest data from the California Association of Realtors. …read more

From:: Real Estate Wire

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Donald Trump talks housing (and everything else) in speech to homebuilders

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump spoke Thursday to the National Association of Home Builders. And in a wide-ranging speech that touched on the Iraq War, the current political climate in the Middle East, and more, Trump doubled down on his claim that Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and President Obama are the “founders of ISIS.” He even managed to mix in some housing talk as well. …read more

From:: Real Estate Wire

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Gold futures ends lower after two session climb

Gold futures finished modestly lower Thursday, as the rally in the U.S. stock market and some strength in the dollar prompted prices to surrender earlier gains. December gold lost $1.90, or 0.1%, to settle at $1,350 an ounce, following two straight sessions of gains.

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

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Decade-Low for Mortgage Delinquency

The last time that the rate of past-due payments on residential loans was this low, the U.S. real estate market was near its peak.

As of June 30 of this year, mortgage delinquency of at least one month, including foreclosures, stood at a rate of 6.30 percent.

The non-current ratio moved lower compared to the end of the first quarter, when it closed out the period at a 6.51 percent rate.

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From:: Financing

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CBOE Holdings’ stock drops after bearish call at BofA Merrill Lynch

Shares of CBOE Holdings Inc. slumped 1.7% in midday trade Thursday, after Bank of America Merrill Lynch turned bearish on the options trading exchange, citing weaker volume trends, increasing competition and a what is believed to be peak valuation. Analyst Michael Carrier cut his rating to underperform, after being at neutral since February 2015. He cut his stock price target to $65, which is more than 3% below current levels, from $69. Carrier said CBOE faces “intense competition” in the multi-listed options market, with 14 exchanges competing for share. From 2008 through 2015, he said CBOE’s revenue fell 66%, market share has declined 19% and pricing has dropped 48%. He wrote in a research note this trend could worsen, as he said he thinks “it will be tougher to offset as skillfully as the team as done over the past few years.” Instead of CBOE, Carrier recommends Intercontinental Exchange Inc. , which he rates a buy; the stock is up 0.5% Thursday. CBOE’s stock has tacked on 3.4% year to date, while the S&P 500 has gained 7%.

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