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U.S. stock benchmarks on Thursday opened in record territory as a pair of components of the Dow Jones Industrial Average reported better-than-expected quarterly results. The Dow rose 100, or 0.4%, at 26,359, the S&P 500 index climbed 0.3% to 2,847, while the Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 0.6% at 7,455. Both Dow components Caterpillar Inc. and 3M Co. were leading the way higher after both companies reported better-than-expected quarterly results before the opening bell. Meanwhile, the European Central Bank kept rates unchanged by ECB President Mario Draghi failed to keep a lid a rising euro , which shot higher after he acknowledged that the eurozone economy is on a firmer footing. The euro’s rise weighed on greenback as measured by the ICE U.S. Dollar Index , which fell to a fresh three-year low around 88.

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From:: Stock Market News

Helios & Matheson Analytics Inc. , the majority owner of growing movie going subscription company MoviePass, filed a $400 million shelf registration with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday. Shares of the data firm fell more than 5% at the open. In its filing, the company said it will, “from time to time” sell in one or more offerings up to $400 million in any combination of stock, preferred stock, warrants, units and subscription rights. Shares of Helios & Matheson have ballooned roughly 155% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 index is up more than 23% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up close to 31%.

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

Square Inc. shares rose 1.3% in premarket trading Thursday after the company said that it had acquired assets from Entrees On-Trays, a restaurant-delivery service with a presence in the Dallas area. Square said the Entrees On-Trays works with “dozens of the region’s most popular restaurants,” including Chick-fil-A. Signing on chain restaurants is considered by analysts to be a key growth catalyst for restaurant-delivery firms, as Mizuho’s Jeremy Scott wrote in a note about GrubHub Inc. late Wednesday. The Entrees On-Trays acquisition is expected to help Square enhance its Caviar food-delivery offering, which is housed within the company’s rapidly growing subscription and services segment. The company hopes to generate traction for the Caviar platform in Dallas by working with some restaurants there to offer “secret off-menu” items that can only be purchased through Caviar. A price for the Entrees On-Trays deal wasn’t disclosed. Square shares are up 204% over the past 12 months, while the S&P 500 has gained 23%.

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 ConforMIS Inc. plunged 35% in active premarket trade Thursday, after the maker of joint replacement implants priced a large stock offering at a deep discount. The stock was the biggest percentage decliner ahead of the open. Premarket volume topped 1 million shares, which is already more than double the full-day average, according to FactSet. The public stock offering of 13.33 million shares, which represents about 29% of the shares outstanding, were priced at $1.50 a share, or 34% below Wednesday’s closing price of $2.27. That was just above the Dec. 14, 2017 record close of $2.24. ConforMIS also granted the underwriters of the offering options to buy up to an additional 2 million shares. All of the shares in the offering are being sold by the company. The stock has plummeted 74% over the past 12 months through Wednesday, while the S&P 500 has run up 23%.

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

The euro rallied past the psychological level of $1.25 against the U.S. dollar on Thursday, marking a new high since December 2014. The move happened while the European Central Bank, which left interest rates unchanged on Thursday, held its news conference. ECB head Mario Draghi’s mention of the strong eurozone economy helped propel the shared currency higher. Comments that the currency required monitoring given the potential of uncertainty from exchange rate volatility didn’t knock the euro’s ascend. One euro last bought $1.2513, compared to $1.2410 late Wednesday.

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

The euro flipped into positive territory during the European Central Bank’s news conference on Thursday, as ECB President Mario Draghi said the economy was expanding at a robust pace. Versus the U.S. dollar, the euro jumped to a new high since December 2014, last buying $1.2495. The shared currency defended the move even as Draghi said volatility in foreign-exchange markets warranted monitoring. The ECB left its monetary policy unchanged earlier and reiterated that interest rates will remain low for a prolonged period of time. The euro also turned positive versus the British pound , strengthening 0.2% to £0.8732, and the Japanese yen , up 0.3% at ¥135.92

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 Nutanix Inc. dropped 5% in premarket trading Thursday after analysts at J.P. Morgan downgraded the stock to underweight on concerns that shares could lag those of peers in the near future following a recent rally. Shares of BlackLine Inc. fell 2% and shares of Talend S.A. slipped 1.9%, also on downgrades to underweight. The analysts, led by Mark Murphy, think that Nutanix’s transition to a more software-oriented model could “create near-term business disruption” given that it will require operational adjustments. A change to the company’s sales leadership team might also be disruptive, he argued. BlackLine, meanwhile, could see its revenue growth decelerate to below 30%, whereas it has been in the mid-40%s lately. Regarding Talend, Murphy believes that a quota capacity shortage may hurt billings growth for most of 2018. Nutanix shares have gained 15% over the past 12 months, though the stock price has more than doubled from its 52-week low. BlackLine shares are up 22% over the past 12 months, while Talend shares have risen 73% and the S&P 500 has gained 23%.

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

Upbeat earnings are expected to give a big lift to the Dow Jones Industrial Average on Thursday, as the rallies in the shares of the Dow components that reported results were accounting for the bulk of gains in Dow futures ahead of the open. Shares of 3M Co. shot up $6.31, or 2.6%, toward a record high in premarket trade, after the industrial and consumer products company beat fourth-quarter profit expectations and raised its outlook. That gain would add about 43 points to the Dow’s price. Caterpillar Inc.’s stock climbed $6.53, or 3.9%, in premarket trade after beating earnings expectations and offered upbeat guidance. That price gain would add about 45 points to the Dow’s price. Dow futures were up about 110 points.

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

Menlo Therapeutics Inc. priced its initial public offering late Wednesday at $17 a share, the high end of its $16 to $17 range, according to Nasdaq. The company sold 7 million shares to raise $119 million. The company has upsized the deal and lifted the price range from a previous plan to offer 5.7 million shares at $14 to $16 a pop. The stock will start trading later Thursday on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “MNLO.” Jefferies, Piper Jaffray and Guggenheim are lead managers on the deal, with JMP Securities acting as co-manager. Menlo is a late-stage biotech focused on treatments for pruritus, or itch, in skin conditions including atopic dermatitis, psoriasis and others.

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

Kroger Co. shares are up 4.2% in Thursday premarket trading after reports that the grocer is in talks to partner with online retailer Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. . Alibaba, like Amazon.com Inc. operates stores that don’t have queues or cashiers. Kroger executives met with Alibaba in China and there’s already a report of a deal across both online and off-line channels, according to The New York Post. Kroger shares are down 12% for the past year while Alibaba’s shares have climbed 88% for the period. The S&P 500 index is up 23.5% 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.

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From:: Stock Market News