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Schlumberger adjusted profit, revenue beat expectations

Schulmberger Ltd. reported Friday a fourth-quarter net loss that widended to $2.26 billion, or $1.63 a share, from $204 million, or 15 cents a share, in the same period a year ago. Excluding non-recurring items, such as impairment and other charges, adjusted earnings per share came to 48 cents, which beat the FactSet consensus of 44 cents. Revenue rose 15% to $8.18 billion from $7.11 billion, above the FactSet consensus of $8.12 billion, amid 59% growth in North America revenue to $2.81 billion, which was partially offset by a 4% decline in Middle East & Asia revenue to $2.40 billion. The oil services company said it expects strong growth in demand in the oil market to continue in 2018, which should boost investment appetite and availability of financing for North American shale oil production. The stock, which slipped 0.2% in premarket trade, has rallied 18.4% over the past three months, but was still down 12.4% over the past 12 months. In comparison, the VanEck Vectors Oil Services ETF has lost 17.4% over the past year and the S&P 500 has climbed 23.6%.

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San Francisco Fed President John Williams is up for No. 2 Fed post: report

John Williams, president of the San Francisco Federal Reserve, is being considered by the White House to become vice chairman of the Federal Reserve Board in Washington, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday. That would put him in the No. 2 position behind new Fed Chairman Jerome Powell. The Journal reported that other candidates for the job include Pimco director Richard Clarida, former Fed official Lawrence Lindsey and former Pimco CEO Mohamed El-Erian.

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From:: Stock Market News

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House passes stopgap spending bill, but Democrats may block in Senate

The House passed a short-term spending bill late Thursday in at attempt to avert a government shutdown, but the bill still faces a major hurdle in the Senate, where it is scheduled to be voted on later Thursday night. After days of negotiations, the 230-197 vote in the House won the approval of holdout conservatives, but Senate Democrats say they have the votes to block the legislation. The government will shut down at midnight Friday if no bill is passed.

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Trump lawyer used shell company to pay off ex-porn star: report

President Donald Trump’s personal attorney used a shell company and pseudonyms to pay for a former porn star’s silence over claims that she had a sexual encounter with Trump, according to a Wall Street Journal report Thursday. Citing corporate documents and confidential sources, the Journal reported Michael Cohen opened a private Delaware company in October 2016 and then used a bank account linked to the company to pay $130,000 to Stephanie Clifford, also known as Stormy Daniels, in exchange for a nondisclosure agreement. Both parties used pseudonyms to mask the transaction, the Journal said. Cohen, however, used his own name as an “authorized person” for the company, the Journal reported, rather than hiring a lawyer for that task to hide his identity. Cohen told the Journal last week that Trump denies the claims. This week, the magazine In Touch Weekly ran a 2011 interview with Clifford in which she describes the 2006 sexual encounter with Trump, though she has since denied details of the affair.

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From:: Stock Market News

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ADT prices IPO below target

ADT Inc. said Thursday that it is pricing its initial public offering at $14 a share, which is below the $17 to $19 range the company targeted. The company is expected to start trading Friday and is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker “ADT.” At $14 a share, the company has raised about $1.6 billion, suggesting a market capitalization of just over $10 billion. Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, Barclays, Deutsche Bank Securities, and RBC Capital Markets are acting as joint book-runners for the IPO. Private equity firm Apollo Global Management took the firm private in a $6.9 billion leveraged buyout in February 2016. Apollo will continue to own a majority stake, making it a “controlled company” under NYSE rules. According to the company’s prospectus, a survey found that ADT has 95% brand awareness. ADT hasn’t yet released its 2017 financial results and has only been able to offer investors expectations ahead of the IPO.

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From:: Stock Market News

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HSBC paying $101 million to settle charges it front-ran clients with currency trades

HSBC Holdings will pay a $63.1 million penalty and $38.4 million in disgorgement and restitution to settle charges it conducted front-running of two of its clients. According to the Justice Department, on two separate occasions in 2010 and 2011, traders on its foreign exchange desk misused confidential information provided to them by clients that hired HSBC to execute multi-billion dollar foreign exchange transactions involving the British Pound Sterling. HSBC previously settled with one of its victims, paying $8 million to Cairn Energy . The Justice Department didn’t identify the other client.

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From:: Stock Market News

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Mortgage Rates Higher Again, To Continue Rising

The latest reading on mortgage rates is that they continued deteriorating on both a weekly and monthly basis. Short- and long-term forecasts have further escalation ahead for fixed rates.

On all residential loans that closed during December, thirty-year note rates averaged 4.28 percent. The rate climbed 4 basis points from the prior month — when they were also higher — and 23 BPS from a year prior.

Rates most recently averaged 4.32 percent on conventional mortgages, 4.31 percent on loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration and 4.05 percent on loans guaranteed by the Department of Veterans Affairs.

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American Express to halt share buyback program thanks to $2.6 billion tax charge

Shares of American Express Co. fell 2% late Thursday after the credit-card company posted a surprise GAAP quarterly loss and said it has suspended its stock buyback program for now, thanks to a tax charge related to the U.S. tax overhaul. American Express said it lost $1.2 billion, or $1.41 a share, in the fourth quarter, versus earnings of $825 million, or 88 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Adjusted for one-time items, including a $2.6 billion tax charge, the company said it earned $1.58 a share in the quarter. Revenue rose to $8.84 billion, compared with $8.02 billion a year ago. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected GAAP earnings of 72 cents a share and adjusted earnings of $1.54 a share on sales of $8.72 billion. “We ended the year with record billings and strong loan growth,” which helped drive the revenue increase, Chairman and Chief Executive Kenneth Chenault said in a statement. Card member spending rose 11% and loans grew 14% in the quarter. The $2.6 billion charge “reduced our capital ratios,” the company said. American Express will continue to pay its quarterly dividend at the same level but plans to halt its share buyback program for the first half of 2018 “in order to rebuild our capital,” it said. American Express said it expected 2018 earnings to be between $6.90 a share and $7.30 a share. “I feel very good about the progress we’ve made throughout 2017 and will be leaving American Express in very strong hands when Steve Squeri succeeds me as chairman and chief executive officer at the end of this month,” Chenault said. Shares of American Express ended the regular trading session down 0.9%.

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From:: Stock Market News

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Builder Confidence Going Strong

By Susanne Dwyer

Home builder confidence in the new, single-family construction market is going strong, despite dialing back in the latest National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). The Index reading for January was 72, just two points under a spike in December. An above-50 reading indicates more builders have a positive outlook than a negative one.

“Builders are confident that changes to the tax code will promote the small business sector and boost broader economic growth,” said Randy Noel, chairman of the NAHB, in a statement. “Our members are excited about the year ahead, even as they continue to face building material price increases and shortages of labor and lots.”

Home builders’ expectations regarding present and expected single-family home sales both dipped in January, down one point to 79 and one point to 78, in order, while expected homebuyer traffic was down four points to 54.

However, “the HMI gauge of future sales expectations has remained in the 70s, a sign that housing demand should continue to grow in 2018,” said Robert Dietz, chief economist of the NAHB, in the statement. “As the overall economy strengthens, owner-occupied household formation increases and the supply of existing-home inventory tightens, we can expect the single-family housing market to make further gains this year.”

Source: National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)

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From:: Real Estate News

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Builder Confidence Going Strong

By Susanne Dwyer

Home builder confidence in the new, single-family construction market is going strong, despite dialing back in the latest National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). The Index reading for January was 72, just two points under a spike in December. An above-50 reading indicates more builders have a positive outlook than a negative one.

“Builders are confident that changes to the tax code will promote the small business sector and boost broader economic growth,” said Randy Noel, chairman of the NAHB, in a statement. “Our members are excited about the year ahead, even as they continue to face building material price increases and shortages of labor and lots.”

Home builders’ expectations regarding present and expected single-family home sales both dipped in January, down one point to 79 and one point to 78, in order, while expected homebuyer traffic was down four points to 54.

However, “the HMI gauge of future sales expectations has remained in the 70s, a sign that housing demand should continue to grow in 2018,” said Robert Dietz, chief economist of the NAHB, in the statement. “As the overall economy strengthens, owner-occupied household formation increases and the supply of existing-home inventory tightens, we can expect the single-family housing market to make further gains this year.”

Source: National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)

For the latest real estate news and trends, bookmark RISMedia.com.

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From:: Finance and Economy