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U.S. stocks opened mostly lower Tuesday, with disappointing earnings from Netflix Inc. weighing on sentiment a day after the S&P 500 and Dow notched new all-time highs. The S&P fell 4 points, or 0.2%, to 2,163, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 16 points, or 0.3%, to 5,040. The Dow industrials fell 10 points, or 0.1%, to 18,523.

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From:: Stock Market News

Shares of SciClone Pharmaceuticals Inc. plunged 21% in premarket trade Tuesday, after the drugmaker said it was no longer continuing active discussions with potential acquirers. The company said it had approached a number of potential acquirers, but determined it was in the best interest of its shareholders to remain an independent publicly-traded company. “None of the bids under discussion reflected a premium to the company’s recent trading price,” SciClone said in a statement. The company said it expects adjusted 2016 earnings per share of 70 cents to 74 cents, compared with 56 cents a year ago. There is no FactSet consensus for 2016. Revenue is expected to rise to $158 million to $163 million from $157.3 million a year ago. The stock had run up 44% year to date through Monday, while the S&P 500 has gained 6%.

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Ally Financial Inc. said Tuesday it will begin paying a quarterly dividend of eight cents a share and announced a new $700 million share repurchase program. The financial services company said the dividend and buyback program were part of its capital plan under the comprehensive capital analysis and review (CCAR) that the Federal Reserve OK’d in June. The new dividend will be payable Aug. 15 to shareholders of record on Aug. 1. Based on Monday’s stock closing price of $17.47, the new dividend represents an annual dividend yield of 1.83%, compared with the annual payout of 2.15% for the SPDR Financial ETF and the aggregate yield of 2.10% for the S&P 500 . The stock buyback program will begin in the third quarter of 2016 and continue through the second quarter of 2017. Ally’s stock, which was unchanged in premarket trade, has lost 6.3% year to date, while the S&P 500 has gained 6%.

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From:: Stock Market News

The Hershey Company is expanding its Times Square store to an even bigger location right down the street. The company said the new retail store will be three times bigger than the current site. It will be located at 20 Times Square, a site currently under construction right near rival store M&M World. Shares of Hershey were inactive in premarket trade, but have risen 16% in the past three months and 20% in 12 months, outperforming the S&P 500 . The index is up 3% in three months and 2% on the year.

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From:: Stock Market News

Mattel Inc. announced Tuesday that it won a global toy licensee deal for Jurassic World beginning in July 2017. Under terms of the deal, Mattel will design, produce and market toy products and games inspired by the Jurassic Park films, including the next film in the series scheduled for release in 2018. “We are honored that NBCUniversal chose Mattel to help bring the Jurassic World brand to life, and we look forward to developing multiple new lines of innovative, engaging toys and products,” said Mattel Chief Executive Chris Sinclair. The stock rose 0.6% in premarket trade. It has climbed 20% year to date through Monday, while the S&P 500 has gained 6%. Mattel is scheduled to report second-quarter results after Wednesday’s closing bell.

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Arena Pharmaceuticals Inc. shares rose 8.8% in pre-market trade Tuesday after the company said its weight-loss drug with Eisai Inc. received Food and Drug Administration approval. Eisai shares were up 4.0% in pre-market trade after the news. The drug, BELVIQ XR(R), has a once-daily dosing option that “may help them achieve and maintain weight loss,” in contrast with an already available twice-daily formulation, the company said. Both weight management drugs must be used in conjunction with a reduced-calorie diet and increased exercise in obese or overweight adults with a weight-related medical condition. Arena Pharma shares dropped 6.6% over the last three months, compared with a 3.2% rise in the S&P 500 .

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Monsanto Company said early Tuesday that Bayer AG’s about $65 billion takeover bid was “financially inadequate and insufficient to ensure deal certainty.” The new Bayer offer , at a $3-a-share increase, came after Monsanto rejected a previous bid on similar grounds. Monsanto said it was open to continued conversations with Bayer but “there is no assurance that any transaction will be entered into or consummated, or on what terms.” Monsanto and Bayer shares were both down 1.3% in pre-market trade.

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From:: Stock Market News

The dollar edged lower against the lira Tuesday after Turkey’s central bank cut a key interest rate for the fifth straight month. The greenback was down 0.1% at 2.9790 lira, compared with 2.9813 lira late Monday in New York. Turkish stocks tumbled Tuesday, with the iShares MSCI Turkey ETF down 0.3% at $38.88. The central bank cut its overnight-lending rate to 8.75% from 9%, while keeping its benchmark one-week repo rate steady at 7.5% and its overnight borrowing rate at 7.25%. Some economists said they expected the central bank to wait before continuing to cut rates after the Turkish government fended off an attempted coup over the weekend.

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Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. slipped nearly 2% after the company reported second-quarter earnings that came in below expectations. Philip Morris reported net earnings of $1.78 billion, or $1.15 per share for the quarter, compared with $1.88 billion, or $1.21 per share during the same period a year ago. The FactSet consensus on earnings was $1.20 per share. Net revenue hit $19.04 billion during the quarter, compared with $18.76 billion a year earlier. Excluding excise taxes, revenue was $6.65 billion, compared with $6.86 billion during the year earlier. The FactSet revenue consensus was $6.77 billion. Chief Executive Andre Calantzopoulos said in a statement he expects growth to take place mainly in the second half of the year. “Our cigarette shipment volume was particularly impacted by declines in low-margin geographies,” Calantzopoulos said. “Nevertheless, we remain fully on track to deliver our full-year guidance.” The company expects full-year earnings to be in the range of $4.45 to $4.55 per share. Shares of Philip Morris are up more than 17% in the year to date, outperforming the S&P 500 Index, which is up 6% in the year.

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Shares of Lockheed Martin Corp. rose nearly 2% in premarket trade Tuesday after the government contractor reported stronger-than-expected sales and earnings for the second quarter. The company, which makes fighter jets and guided weapons systems, reported net income of $1.02 billion, or $3.32 a share, compared with $929 million, or $2.94 a share, in the year-earlier period. Revenue for the period rose to $12.9 billion from $11.6 billion a year ago. Both metrics beat Wall Street consensus expectations. Analysts surveyed by FactSet were calling for earnings of $2.94 a share on sales of $12.6 billion. The company also slightly raised the lower-end of its full-year sales guidance, to a range of $50 billion to $51.5 billion, versus $49.6 billion to $51.1 billion previously, and raised its earnings per share estimate to a range of $12.15 to $12.45 a share from $11.50 to $11.80 previously.

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From:: Stock Market News