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Shares of Advanced Micro Devices Inc. and Nvidia Corp. are up 2.4% and 1.5%, respectively, in Tuesday morning trading after Morgan Stanley analyst Joseph Moore penned an upbeat note about their cryptocurrency mining businesses. He initially expected that mining revenue would “decelerate meaningfully” beginning in the fourth quarter, but he’s more optimistic now given higher Ethereum prices. He increased his quarterly revenue estimates for both firms by $100 million, though he cautions that at AMD especially, the mining business could be masking weakness in other areas of the company. “Certainly a shortage in AMD graphics cards is limiting traction in the longer-lived gaming business,” he wrote. Analysts at Susquehanna Financial Group also talked up the two firms’ crypto businesses in a note last week. AMD shares are up 31% over the past 12 months, while Nvidia shares have gained 125%. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index is up 50% in that time, compared with a 25% gain for the S&P 500 .

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Attorney General Jeff Sessions was questioned last week by Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s office as part of the investigation into Russian meddling in the election, the New York Times reported Tuesday. The meeting was the first time investigators are known to have interviewed a member of President Donald Trump’s cabinet. The Times said Sessions was accompanied by a longtime Washington lawyer, Chuck Cooper, to the interview.

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U.S. stock indexes opened near break-even levels on Tuesday as investors turned their attention to earnings after Congress passed a three-week funding bill to end the government shutdown. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 10 points, or 0.1%, to 26,204. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 18 points, or 0.2%, to 7,426. The S&P 500 was flat at 2,832. All three benchmark indexes closed at records on Monday. The waning of political uncertainty has pushed the strengthening economy back into focus.

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Twitter Inc. shares are down 3.2% in premarket trading Tuesday after the company said that COO Anthony Noto would be stepping down to take a chief-executive role at another firm. Media reports suggest that company could be Social Finance, or SoFi. “Anthony has been an incredible advocate for Twitter and a trusted partner to me and our leadership team,” said Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey in a statement. Noto joined Twitter in 2014. The company said that Noto’s responsibilities in “business operations and revenue generating operations” would be handled by other executives. Matt Derella, the firm’s vice president of global revenue and operations, will still head up the ad sales business. Shares of Twitter are up 40% over the past 12 months, while the S&P 500 is up 25%.

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Apple Inc.’s delayed HomePod speaker will hit stores on Feb. 9, the company said Tuesday, and be available to order online beginning Jan. 26 in key markets. Apple announced the device in June and originally said that the speaker would be out in December. The company’s Tuesday release says that the HomePod uses “spatial awareness to sense its location in the room” and “automatically adjusts the audio to sound great wherever it is placed.” It will cost $349, more than the combined total of its two main rivals, the Amazon Echo and Google Home speakers. Apple is trying to catch up with Alphabet Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. , both of which have offered smart speakers for years. Sales of smart speakers jumped 237% last year, according to the Consumer Technology Association. Apple shares have gained 47% over the past 12 months, compared with a 32% rise for the Dow Jones Industrial Average .

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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Shares of Baidu Inc. are down 0.9% in premarket trading after analysts at Jefferies cut their rating to hold from buy. The analysts, led by Karen Chan, are upbeat about Baidu’s strong position in artificial intelligence but worry that investments in this area, as well as spending on channel marketing, could curb opportunities for margin expansion. She also warns that the company might start to face harder comparisons for its search business this year as well as stronger competitive pressures in key areas, such as e-commerce. “While we remain long-term positive on Baidu’s leading AI position, we would await for a better entry point post the strong share rebound of 60% from its low in May 2016,” Chan wrote. She lowered her price target on shares to $285 from $291. Baidu’s stock is up 45% over the past 12 months, while the S&P 500 has gained 25% in that time.

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Troubled retailer Claire’s stores Inc. has hired Lazard as its investment banker to help it reduce debt. “Lazard’s engagement is not related to operations, which remain strong,” the company said in a statement. Same-store sales rose 2.7% in the first three quarters of 2017 and adjusted EBITDA — defined as earnings before income taxes, net interest expense, depreciation and amortization, loss (gain) on early debt extinguishments, and asset impairments — has grown 18.3%. “The steps we are taking now with Lazard will help to ensure Claire’s long-term success for years to come,” Chief Executive Ron Marshall said in the statement. “We believe this is the right time to undertake this initiative and we want to assure our vendors, employees and stakeholders that we believe we have ample liquidity to honor our commitments through the completion of this process.” Claire’s has $2.2 billion of long-term debt, according to FactSet, most of it taken on when the company was bought out by Apollo Global Management for $3.1 billion in a 2007 LBO.

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Apple Inc. shipped 29 million of its flagship iPhone device during the holiday quarter, according to analysts at research firm Canalys, making it the most shipped model during the period. The device was in short supply for much of the quarter, but production ramped up toward the end of November and into December, Canalys said in a release. Chinese customers accounted for 7 million of the shipments, by the firm’s count. “While new technologies, such as Face ID and bezel-less displays, help to justify the US$999 price tag and maintain competitiveness with Samsung, Huawei and Google, having a larger portfolio allows Apple to meet its overall shipment targets, and protect its market leadership in the premium segment,” the release said. Apple reports earnings for the December quarter on Feb. 1 and analysts surveyed by FactSet expect that the company sold 79 million iPhones in total during the period. Apple shares have gained 47% over the past 12 months, compared with a 32% rise for the Dow Jones Industrial Average .

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Whirlpool Corp. shares rose 3.8% in Tuesday premarket trading after news Monday that President Donald Trump would hit imported solar panels and washing machines with a new tariff. The new tax is expected to hit Trump’s desk on Tuesday. The administration is imposing 20% tariffs on the first 1.2 million machines imported each year, and 50% on those after that. There will also be a 50% tariff on washing machine parts. After the news broke, Whirlpool put out a release saying it had added 200 full-time workers in Ohio in anticipation of increased demand. “The new hires are just the beginning of increased investments in innovation, manufacturing and additional manufacturing jobs for Whirlpool and its vendors,” the release said. However, whether the tariffs will give a boost to U.S. manufacturing and jobs is still to be determined, according to The Wall Street Journal. Whirlpool has been embroiled in litigation with Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Electronics Inc. over washing machine imports to the U.S. Whirlpool shares are down nearly 11% for the past year while the S&P 500 index is up 25% for the period.

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J.P. Morgan Chase said Tuesday it will invest $20 billion over five years on employee benefits including wage hikes, along with measures to support local growth across the U.S. The bank said it will raise wages to between $15 and $18 an hour for 22,000 employees in more than 100 cities in branches and customer service centers, including New York, San Francisco and Boston. The bank will reduce health care costs for employees earnings less than $60,000 a year. The bank is also planning to expand its branch network into new markets in the U.S., to make increased commitments to mortgage and small-business lending and increase its philanthropic investments. “We are a leader in 23 states, but aren’t yet in major markets like Washington D.C., Boston, Philadelphia, and many others,” said Gordon Smith, CEO of consumer and community banking at Chase. Shares were slightly lower premarket, but have gained 37% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 has gained 25% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average has gained 32%.

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