Category: Stock Market News

Shares of Twilio Inc. were up 3% in premarket trade Tuesday after the company updated its follow-on filing to say the company itself will offer 642,921 class A common shares. In addition, selling shareholders will offer 6.36 million shares. Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan are the lead underwriters for the offering. Shares of Twilio have fallen 31% month-to-date, compared to the S&P 500’s drop of 2%.

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Shares of Apple Inc. ticked slightly higher in pre-market trade Tuesday after Stifel analyst Aaron Rakers raised his price target on the stock to $130 from $120, saying he expects iPhone shipments to be ahead of expectations in the next two quarters. The brokerage is now modeling fiscal fourth-quarter iPhone shipments of 47 million, compared the consensus view of 45 million, and fiscal first-quarter shipments, which includes the busy holiday shopping season, of 76.6 million, versus the Street view of 76 million. Rakers also reiterated a buy rating on the stock. Shares of Apple, which is expected to report fourth-quarter earnings next Tuesday, traded around $118.35 early Tuesday. They’ve risen nearly 18% in the past three months, outperforming the Dow Jones Industrial Average , down 2.5%. The company’s sales in recent months have benefited from the launch of the iPhone 7 and Samsung Electronics’ massive recall for the Galaxy Note 7.

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WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) – Americans who get Social Security can expect a 0.3% increase in their monthly checks in 2017, based on government data released Wednesday. Annual increases in Social Security are made every year based on changes in a component of the consumer price index known as CPI-W. Inflation has been quite low for several years largely owing to a plunge in oil prices. Grocery prices have also fallen in the past year. The extra benefits kick in on Jan. 1. Social Security recipients got no cost-of-living adjustment in 2016 because inflation was even lower. Benefits rose 1.7% in 2015, 1.5% in 2014 and 1.7% in 2013.

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Secretary General of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries Mohammad Barkindo on Tuesday dismissed fears Russia will derail the highly anticipated plan to limit oil production, saying the country has been very active in trying to stabilize the struggling oil market . Speaking at the sidelines of the “Oil & Money” conference in London, the cartel chief said he’ll meet with Russia’s Energy Minister Alexander Novak on Monday to discuss the details in how to cut oil output. “Russia is a very important player. And Russia has been very active in building this consensus [to limit production]. They have played a key role since Doha, after Doha, before Algiers and in Algiers,” Barkindo said. “We heard from Russian president [Vladimir Putin] in Istanbul, making a very firm commitment of their contribution in the effort to restore the market balance,” he added. Putin last week said he was ready to join OPEC in curbing oil production, but Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin later said he wouldn’t support a deal. Rosneft accounts for 40% of Russia’s oil production. The internal disagreements cast doubt over whether OPEC’s plan to stabilize the oil market would come to fruition – a concern Barkindo brushed off at the London conference. “The issue of them pulling out does not arise, because they have been at the forefront together with our member countries in the run up to Algiers. They have endorsed the decision in Algiers. As a matter of fact, Russia is sending a very high level official to the high level committee on the 29th of this month,” he said. OPEC members are meeting in Vienna on Oct. 28-29 to discuss how to implement its output accord agreed in Algiers. The details are expected to get the final signoff at OPEC’s meeting in November.

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Del Taco Restaurants Inc. shares are up 8.9% in Tuesday premarket trading after the company announced third-quarter earnings that beat earnings and sales expectations. The Mexican fast-food chain said late Monday it had net income of $4.9 million, or 13 cents per share, compared with a loss of $2.2 million, or 6 cents per share, during the same period last year. Sales for the quarter totaled $104.4 million, up from $82.0 million last year, and exceeding the FactSet consensus of $102.0 million. Same-restaurant sales system-wide grew 6.7% while company-operated same-restaurant sales were up 7.1%. For fiscal year 2016, Del Taco now expects revenue between $446 million and $449 million, up from the previous forecast between $439 million and $449 million. Earnings per share are expected to be 53 cents to 56 cents, and same-restaurant sales are expected to grow in the 2.5% to 4.5% range. Del Taco shares are up 18.6% for the year so far while the S&P 500 Index is up 4% for the same period.

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American International Group Inc. said Tuesday it has agreed to sell Latin American, Central and East European operations to property and casualty insurer Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd., in a deal valued at $240 million. AIG will sell its local commercial and consumer insurance operations in Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Uruguay, Venezuela, and Turkey. Fairfax will also acquire renewal rights for the local business written by AIG’s operations in Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Slovakia, and assume AIG’s CEE operating assets and employees. AIG shares were flat premarket, but are down 2.7% in the year so far, while the S&P 500 has gained 4%.

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Philip Morris International Inc. shares are up 1.1% in Tuesday premarket trading after it reported third-quarter earnings that beat estimates and raised its quarterly dividend by 2%. The tobacco company reported net income of $1.94 billion, or $1.25 per share, flat with 2015. Adjusted earnings were also $1.25 per share, beating the $1.24 per share FactSet consensus. Sales for the quarter excluding excise taxes were $6.98 billion, up from $6.92 billion, and just below the $6.99 billion FactSet consensus. Shipments of Marlboro and Parliament cigarettes decreased 1.1% and 0.7% respectively, while shipments of Chesterfield cigarettes rose 14.4% for the quarter. The company raised the dividend to an annualized rate of $4.16 per common share. Philip Morris reaffirmed its full-year 2016 forecast for earnings per share in the range of $4.53 to $4.58. Philip Morris shares are up 8.7% for the year to date while the S&P 500 Index is up 4% for the same period.

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Altria Group Inc. said Tuesday that it has become a significant shareholder in Anheuser-Busch InBev S.A. , following the completion of Anheuser-Busch’s merger with SABMiller PLC . Altria received 185.1 million shares, or 9.6% of the shares outstanding, of Anheuser-Busch, and about $5.3 billion in cash. The smoking and wine company said it will record a gain of $13.7 billion, or $4.55 a share, mostly in the fourth quarter, as a result of the merger. As a result of the how the gain will be accounted for, Altria trimmed its 2016 adjusted earnings-per-share outlook to $2.98 to $3.04 from $3.01 to $3.07. Separately, Altria said it was expanding its share buyback program to $3 billion from $1 billion, to be completed by the end of the second quarter of 2018. The stock, which was still inactive in premarket trade, has climbed 7.3% year to date, while the S&P 500 has gained 4%.

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Harley-Davidson Inc. said Tuesday it had net income of $114.1 million, or 64 cents a share, in the third quarter, down from net income of $140.3 million, or 69 cents a share, in the year-earlier period. Revenue fell to $1.27 billion from $1.32 billion. The FactSet consensus was for EPS of 64 cents and revenue of $1.09 billion. The company said worldwide motorcycle sales fell 4.5% in the quarter, mostly due to weakness in the U.S. “We continue to effectively navigate a fiercely competitive environment and an ongoing weak U.S. industry,” Chief Executive Matt Levatich said in a statement. The company is planning to streamline operations in the fourth quarter and will book a $20 million to $25 million charge to cover separation and restructuring costs. It now expects to ship 264,000 to 269,000 motorcycles in 2016, down 1% to up 1% versus the year earlier. Shares were not yet active premarket, but are p 9.5% in the year so far, while the S&P 500 has gained 4%.

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Johnson & Johnson reported Tuesday third-quarter earnings that rose to $4.27 billion, or $1.53 a share, from $3.36 billion, or $1.20 a share, in the same period a year ago. Excluding non-recurring items, adjusted earnings per share came to $1.68, beating the FactSet consensus of $1.65. Revenue increased 4.2% to $17.82 billion, above the FactSet consensus of $17.74 billion, as bigger-than-expected increases in pharmaceutical and medical devices sales offset less-than-expected consumer sales. Looking ahead, the drug and consumer products giant lifted its EPS outlook to $6.68 to $6.73 from $6.63 to $6.73, and kept its revenue outlook at $71.5 billion to $72.2 billion. “With a number of regulatory approvals, several new drug application submissions and new breakthrough therapy designations from the FDA, we are increasingly confident in our pipeline expectation of filing 10 new pharmaceutical products between 2015 and 2019, each with revenue potential over $1 billion,” said Chief Executive Alex Gorsky. The stock, which was indicated about 1% higher in premarket trade, has climbed 15% year to date through Monday, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average has gained 3.8%.

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