Category: Stock Market News

Oil futures rallied Wednesday to settle at their highest level since late October after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries announced its first agreement in eight years to cut its crude production. January West Texas Intermediate crude rose $4.21, or 9.3%, to settle at $49.44 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement was the highest since Oct. 27 and prices scored their strongest one-day percentage gain since February, according to FactSet data. It gained about 5.5% for the month, based on the most-active contracts.

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American Eagle Outfitters Inc. said Wednesday that stores located near Aéropostale locations that are liquidating experienced a two- to four-percentage-point same-store sales decline. Aéropostale, which sought chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in May, plans to go from about 800 stores to 229. The liquidation is also having an impact on American Eagle’s traffic, said Robert Madore, American Eagle’s chief financial officer, on the company’s Wednesday earnings call, according to a FactSet transcript. “That has dissipated quite a bit as we look to Q4,… but it definitely did have impact to us in Q3,” he said. Sporting goods retailers, like teen retailers, have seen a spate of bankruptcy filings recently. Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc. has benefitted from the misfortunes of competitors including The Sports Authority and Golfsmith. American Eagle shares are down 12.7% in Wednesday trading after third-quarter same-store sales results missed estimates. The company’s shares are up 6.5% for the year so far while the S&% 500 index is up 7.7% for the same period.

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Gold futures sank on Wednesday, notching its worst month of the year, as oil prices rallied after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries reached a deal to cut oil production that is equivalent to 1% of global output. Crude oil soared on the heels of the news as appetite for risky assets revived. February gold declined $16.90, or 1.4%, to settle at $1,173.90 an ounce. Gold futures fell about 7.9% for the month, based on the settlement for the most-active contract on Oct. 31, notching its biggest monthly drop in 2016.

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Nucor Inc. said Wednesday it will raise its quarterly dividend by one-quarter cent, or 0.7%, to 37.75 cents a share. The new dividend will be payable Feb. 10 to shareholders of record on Dec. 30. Nucor said it has increased its dividend every years since it started paying dividends in 1973. This marks the seventh-straight year that it has raised its quarterly dividend by 1/4-cent, following a 1-cent rise the year before. Based on current share prices, the steel company’s new implied annual dividend yield is 2.42%, compared with the aggregate S&P 500 dividend yield of 2.11%, according to FactSet. The stock climbed 1.4% to trade just shy of its eight-year closing high of $62.85 on Friday. It has run up 22% since the election and 55% so far this year, while the S&P 500 has gained 8.1% year to date.

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The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries has agreed to cut its crude-oil production by 1.2 million barrels a day to a ceiling of 32.5 million barrels a day, Mohammed bin Saleh al-Sada, president of the OPEC Conference, announced Wednesday in Vienna, confirming earlier news reports on the deal. Key non-OPEC producers have agreed to cut back their production by 600,000 barrels a day, with Russia taking on half of that cut, al-Sada said. Indonesia, which had rejoined OPEC as a member less than a year ago after a suspension in 2009, has asked OPEC to suspend its membership. Indonesia expressed difficulty in participating in the deal because it is a net importer of oil, al-Sada said. January West Texas Intermediate crude rose $3.93, or 8.7%, to $49.16 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. February Brent crude traded at $51.66 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange in London, up $4.34, or 9.2%.

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While the Dow Jones Industrial Average marches toward its ninth record close of the month, market internals are showing a rather mixed market. The number of declining stocks are outnumber advancers by a 1,493 to 1,404 margin on the New York Stock Exchange, but the volume of advancing stocks is doubling up declining volume by 224.9 million shares to 107.7 million shares. On the Nasdaq exchange, declining stocks are beating decliners 3,008 to 2,972, but advancing volume is well above declining volume 213.4 million shares to 144.0 million shares. The Dow was up 85 points in morning trade, while the Nasdaq Composite Index slipped 0.3%, the S&P 500 gained 0.2% and the Russell 2000 Index tacked on 0.3%.

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Oil futures held onto its earlier gains Wednesday after the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported that domestic crude supplies in the week ended Nov. 25 fell by 900,000 barrels. The American Petroleum Institute late Tuesday reported a decline of 717,000 barrels, according to sources. Analysts polled by S&P Global Platts expected a fall of 250,000 barrels. Gasoline supplies climbed by 2.1 million barrels and distillate stockpiles surged higher by 5 million barrels, according to the EIA. January crude rose by $3.20, or 7.1%, to $48.43 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices, which had already been rallying following reports that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries has reached a deal to cut output, traded at $48.56 before the data.

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Wayfair Inc. shares rose 4.2% in Wednesday trading after the home furnishings and decor retailer reported a 46% year-over-year jump in sales for the five-day period between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday. The company’s strongest day ever was Cyber Monday, with order volume peaking between 9 p.m. and midnight ET. TV stands were the top seller, with the most popular version, the Sunbury TV Stand by Beachcrest Home, sold every 19 seconds on Cyber Monday. On that day, the company sold a rug every four seconds, and a mattress every 12 seconds. Ahead of the holiday season, Wayfair expanded its selection of Christmas trees and other seasonally decorative items, adding the 5 for $25 Ornament Shop with two-day free shipping. Wayfair shares are down 24% for the year so far while the S&P 500 index is up 8.1% for the same period.

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The Dow Jones Industrial Average hit an intraday record after opening higher Wednesday, led by the energy sector as hopes rose that the world’s major oil producers are near a deal on limiting output. A better-than-expected report on private-sector hiring boosted the main indexes. The benchmark S&P 500 and Dow were on track to post their largest monthly gains since March. The S&P 500 gained 5 points, or 0.2%, to 2,209. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 62 points, or 0.3%, to 19,184, trading in record territory. The Nasdaq Composite was 7 points, or 0.1%, higher at 5,386.

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Shares of CSX Corp. climbed 1.3% in premarket trade Tuesday, after the railroad operator provided an upbeat fourth-quarter earnings and volume outlook. Chief Financial Officer Frank Lonegro said at a Credit Suisse industrial conference that he now expects earnings per share to be flat to up slightly, compared with guidance provided earlier this month of “flat to slightly down.” And given that “macroeconomic headwinds impacting the company’s volume are moderating,” Lonegro now expects volume to be flat to up slightly, compared previous guidance of “roughly flat.” He said many markets are showing more moderate declines than in previous quarters, with coal in particular is showing sequential volume stabilization and is essentially flat in the quarter to date. The stock has run up 34% year to date through Tuesday, while the Dow Jones Transporation Average has rallied 19% and the S&P 500 has gained 7.9%.

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