Category: Stock Market News

Oil futures edged lower in electronic trading Tuesday after the American Petroleum Institute reported a 942,000-barrel rise in U.S. crude supplies for the week ended August 26, according to sources. Analysts polled by S&P Global Platts forecast a weekly increase of 600,000 barrels. The API also reported that distillate supplies rose by 3 million barrels, sources said. Analysts expected them to be unchanged, according to the S&P Global Platts survey. The closely watched Energy Information Administration report will be released Wednesday. October crude was at $46.27 a barrel in electronic trading, down from the contract’s settlement of $46.35 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

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H&R Block Inc. shares fell in the extended session Tuesday after the accounting services provider missed Wall Street targets for quarterly results. H&R Block shares fell 6.4% to $22.65 after hours. The company reported a loss of 55 cents a share on revenue of $125.2 million. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had forecast a loss of 53 cents a share on revenue of $132.9 million.

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Palo Alto Networks Inc. reported quarterly revenue of more than $400 million for the first time Tuesday, and said it plans to buy back $500 million in stock. The security-software company reported a net loss of $54.5 million, or 61 cents a share, on revenue of $400.8 million, a 41% gain from the same quarter a year ago. After adjustments for share-based compensation and other factors, Palo Alto Networks reported profit of 50 cents a share. Analysts expected on average for Palo Alto Networks to report adjusted earnings of 50 cents a share on revenue of $390 million, according to FactSet. The company also said its billings, an important metric for cloud-software firms representing deferred revenue, were $572.4 million; analysts polled by FactSet expected billings of $561.8 million. Palo Alto Networks, which went public in 2012, also announced a $500 million share repurchase plan was approved by the board of directors. The stock, which closed with a 1.4% gain at $143.45, moved about 2% higher in late trading.

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U.S. stocks on Tuesday finished in negative territory, following more comments from Federal Reserve policy makers that emphasized the central bank’s intention to raise interest rates sooner rather than later. A drop in oil prices along with a stronger dollar also weighed on the main equity benchmarks. The S&P 500 index ended down 4 points, or 0.2%, at 2,176. Among the S&P 500’s 10 sectors, the only one ending higher was the financial sector, which tends to benefit from heightened prospects of higher interest rates. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 49 points, or 0.3%, at 18,454. Shares of banks, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. led the gains, while shares of Boeing Co. topped blue-chip decliners. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite Index lost 9 points, or 0.2%, to end at 5,223. Among high-profile stock movers, shares of Apple Inc. fell 0.8% after European Union antitrust officials ordered the Irish government to recover as much as 13 billion euros ($14.5 billion) in taxes from the Cupertino, Calif.-based iPhone maker.

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Gold futures still have room to climb this year even as the Federal Reserve seesaws between a dovish and hawkish stance on monetary policy. Prices for the yellow metal may make “another try” at the $1,400-an-ounce level later this year, George Milling-Stanley, head of gold investment strategy at State Street Global Advisors, said in a TV interview with CNBC. He said he can’t guarantee a rate increase at all, with the Fed appearing to be “dovish one day and hawish another” day. He expects gold to see muted trading for the rest of the year but despite that, prices may still see another $50, $60 or $70 rise. Also on CNBC, Tom McClellan, editor of The McClellan Market Report, said next year and 2018 should be “hugely bullish” for gold. On Tuesday, December gold fell $10.60, or 0.8%, to settle at $1,316.50 an ounce-a two-month low.

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Gold futures suffered a sharp loss Tuesday, as a climb in U.S. consumer confidence in August helped to raise the prospects of a Federal Reserve interest-rate increase which, in turn, fed strength in the U.S. dollar. Gold for December delivery lost $10.60, or 0.8%, to settle at $1,316.50 an ounce. That was the lowest settlement for the contract since June 23, according to FactSet data.

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Uber has hired Jeff Jones, chief marketing officer at Target , as president of ridesharing, the company said Tuesday. His appointment will unseat Ryan Graves, the co-founder of Uber, as head of global operations, and he will move to head UberEats, UberRush and other initiatives. “Ryan is the progenitor of everything Uber Operations-setting the gold standard for what it means to run a truly great operations team in the on-demand world. But as we grow, marketing is becoming more and more of a thing, and it was clear we needed a real infusion of talent on that front,” Chief Executive Travis Kalanick wrote. Jones previously worked at Leo Burnett, as well as Coca-Cola and Gap

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Worldwide shipments of tablets are expected to plunge by 11.5% year-over-year in 2016 – the worst decline in the product category’s six-year history, according to tech-industry tracker IDC. The industry is expected to ship 183.4 million units this year, with tablets running on Alphabet Inc.’s Android and Apple Inc.’s iOS accounting for nearly 90% of all shipments. Positive growth is expected to return in 2018 as Microsoft Corp. Windows tablets gain share, according to IDC. Meanwhile, larger-screen tablets with detachable keyboards, such as the 12.9-inch iPad Pro, are expected to continue gaining share over traditional slate tablets. Shares of Apple fell 0.8% to $105.97 in morning trade, though they remain up 5.5% in the past three months. Google’s fell 0.5% to $791.60, though they’re still up roughly 6% in three months. Microsoft’s declined by 0.5% to $57.78 on Tuesday, but have risen 10.5% in three months. The S&P 500 fell 0.3% Tuesday and is up 3.5% in the past three months.

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Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. said Tuesday that kids will eat free each Sunday in September with the purchase of an entree. Kids meal include a build-your-own option and a quesadilla. The news comes a day after Chipotle announced a free drink promotion for high school and college students during September to coincide with back-to-school. Both promotions will count towards Chipotle’s loyalty program, Chiptopia. Chipotle shares are down 0.8% in Tuesday trading, and down 42% for the past year. The S&P 500 Index is up 9.7% for the last 12 months.

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Under Armour Inc. announced plans on Tuesday to open a 1.3 million-square-foot e-commerce distribution center in Baltimore County that will provide 1,000 jobs. This is the second Under Armour facility in Maryland. Under Armour also has a facility in Rialto, Calif. and Mount Juliet, Tenn. Under Armour shares are down 1.7% in Tuesday trading, and down 16.9% for the past year. The S&P 500 Index is up 9.6% for the last 12 months.

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