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Shares of International Business Machines Corp. sank 3.1% in premarket trade Friday, in the wake of fourth-quarter results, which would cut the Dow Jones Industrial Average’s gain by more than half. IBM’s stock price decline of $5.22 would shave about 36 points off the Dow, while Dow futures were up about 22 points. The stock’s pullback comes after it had run up 10% so far in 2018 to close Thursday at a nine-month high. A stock selloff after earnings isn’t much of a surprise, as it is on track to suffer the 12th one-day, post-earnings decline in the past 14 quarters. Meanwhile, IBM has beat earnings-per-share expectations for 13-straight quarters.

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From:: Stock Market News

Apple Inc. shares were little changed in premarket trading Friday after analysts at Mizuho predicted that the company would beat average selling price estimates for the latest quarter when it reports results Feb. 1. “IPhone ASP expectations seem very low,” wrote Mizuho’s Abhey Lamba, who predicts an average selling price of between $780 and $790 for the device, above consensus estimates for $752. His prediction for 80 million to 81 million iPhone units sold during the December quarter also implies upside to consensus figures. “We continue to see healthy upgrade activity within the installed base which, along with better services contribution, should help the company perform,” Lamba wrote. He raised his price target on Apple shares to $175 from $160 but kept his neutral rating on the stock. Apple shares are up 50% over the past 12 months, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 32%.

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Chip pricing trends remain strong, according to Mizuho analyst Vijay Rakesh, and he thinks that could bode well for Advanced Micro Devices Inc. , Nvidia Corp. , Micron Technology Inc. and Western Digital Corp. in the first half of the year. Sold-state drive (SSD) pricing looks “robust,” Rakesh wrote, and “should be a tailwind for Micron and WDC.” Meanwhile, regarding graphics processing unit (GPU) pricing, Rakesh thinks the trends continue to suggest “tight inventory and availability.” Accordingly, he sees upside potential for Nvidia’s and AMD’s GPU segments for the December and March quarters. “We believe it is key to understand that pricing reflects more of a stronger GPU demand and tight GPU inventory than a pricing tailwind,” he added. Nvidia shares are up 113% over the last 12 months, while AMD’s stock is up 28%. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index has risen 49% in that time, compared with a 24% gain for the S&P 500 .

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Shares of Square Inc. rose 3.8% in premarket trading Friday after analysts at Instinet raised their target price to $64, by far the highest among Wall Street analysts tracked by FactSet. The analysts, led by Dan Dolev, believe that an inflection in GPV growth will help Square keep transaction yield stable even as large sellers become a more important part of the business. They also see Square’s margins expanding as the company’s Square Capital lending business expands and as the company generates continued momentum for its software offerings. Dolev’s price target suggests more than 50% upside from current levels, though he wrote that “analogous to Amazon or Google in their early days, little of this upside is evident using conventional valuation methodologies.” Square shares are up 173% over the past 12 months, while the S&P 500 Index is up 24% in that time.

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From:: Stock Market News

Shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. tacked on 0.7% in premarket trade Friday, after Raymond James finally backed off from its bearish stance on the Mexican food quick-service restaurant chain, saying it no longer sees material downside risk to 2018 estimates. Analyst Brian Vaccaro raised his rating to market perform, after being at underperform for the past 15 months. Vaccaro said his view of a more stable earnings outlook comes after Chipotle confirmed earlier this week menu price increases impacting nearly half its restaurants, and given stabilizing industry demand trends. “While not out of the woods given 4Q traffic likely remained negative and [quarter-to-date] trends were likely negatively impacted by another norovirus incident in late December (Los Angeles), we view the stock as fairly valued on firmer 2018 estimates and see a more neutral risk/reward from current levels,” Vaccaro wrote in a note to clients. The stock has gained 3.8% over the past three months through Thursday, but has lost 17.5% over the past 12 months, while the S&P 500 has gained 23.6% the past year.

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 Nike Inc. rallied 1.1% in premarket trade Friday, after the athletic gear company was upgraded at Wedbush, which cited increasing confidence that an inflection in margin and a return to growth in North America will materialize in fiscal 2019, which begins in June of this year. Analyst Christopher Svezia raised his rating to outperform from neutral, and boosted his stock price target to $74 from $57. He said fiscal fourth-quarter 2018 results, which ends in May, should show overall gross margin expansion for the first time in 10 quarters, as pricing pressure on footwear subsides and direct-to-consumer sales increase. In addition, Svezia said there are more “tangible product drivers to the story around casual and lifestyle that should resonate and be more impactful to consumers.” The stock has soared 21.7% over the past three months, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average has gained 12.3%.

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Lincoln Financial Group said Friday it will pay $3.3 billion to buy Liberty Life Assurance Company of Boston from Liberty Mutual Insurance Group. Under terms of the deal, which is expected to close in the second quarter of 2018, Lincoln Financial’s payment consists of $1.45 billion total net investment for the group benefits business, which includes a purchase price of $1.02 billion and $425 million in required capital. The deal also includes $1.20 billion associated with excess capital in LLAC, $4210 million of individual life and annuity value paid by Protective Life and $211 million of tax items. “Through this transaction, Lincoln Financial will have a significantly increased presence in the group benefits market by complementing our existing small to middle-market strengths with even deeper large case and disability expertise,” said Chief Executive Dennis Glass. The stock, which was still inactive in premarket trade, has rallied 24.6% over the past 12 months, while the SPDR S&P Insurance ETF has gained 12.1% and the S&P 500 has climbed 23.6%.

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From:: Stock Market News

Shares of biotech Acorda Therapeutics Inc. surged 20% in premarket trade Friday, after media reports that Biogen Inc. and others are eyeing the company as a possible takeover target. The speculation has been swirling for more than a week. On Thursday, the company offered preliminary guidance for 2017 sales of $542 million, an increase of approximately 10% from 2016. The FactSet consensus is for sales of $568 million. Chief Executive Ron Cohen said he expects 2018 to be a transformative year and for the company to achieve approval and launch its Inbrija investigational inhaled levodopa treatment for symptoms of OFF periods in people with Parkinson’s disease taking carbidopa/levodopa. Shares have gained 21% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 has gained about 24%.

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From:: Stock Market News

Genesee & Wyoming Inc. reported Friday fourth-quarter traffic volumes, which showed a 4.7% increase from a year ago to 802,428 total carloads, but a 3.4% decline in same-railroad carloads to 740,816. In North America, the railroad operator said total carloads declined 1.9% and same-railroad carloads fell 3.2%, amid 15% tumbles in coal & coke and metallic ores and a 10% drop in agricultural products, which was partially offset by a 15% increase in auto & auto parts and a 9.8% rise in minerals & stone. Outside of the U.S., the Australian operations, which is majority owned by Genesee & Wyoming, saw total carloads jump 61%, while U.K./European operations had a 2.6% decline. The stock, which was still inactive in premarket trade, has gained 9.5% over the past 12 months, while the Dow Jones Transportation Average has rallied 22.9% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average has climbed 31.9%.

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From:: Stock Market News

Travel retailer Hudson Ltd. set the terms for its planned initial public offering on Friday, saying it will offer 34.9 million shares priced at $19 to $21 each. The company is planning to list on the New York Stock Exchange, under the ticker symbol “HUD”. Credit Suisse, Morgan Stanley, UBS, BofA Merrill Lynch and Goldman Sachs are lead managers with Banco Santander, BBVA, BNP Paribas, Credit Agricole, HSBC, Natixis, Raiffeisen Centrobank and Unicredit acting as co-managers. Hudson has 989 stores in 88 locations across North America, according to its prospectus, many of them in airports. Sales totaled $1.7 billion in the 12 months to end September, 2017.

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