Category: Stock Market News

Ford Motor Co. Chief Financial Officer Robert Shanks told investors in a conference call that he expects Brexit-related headwinds of $200 million this year. He breaks that down to $60 million related to the selloff in the British pound, and the rest as a result of a weaker U.K. auto industry, according to a transcript of the conference call provided by FactSet. Shanks also anticipates an Brexit impact in the range of $400 million to $500 million in 2017 and 2018, related to currency exposure and a weaker U.K. industry. Last week, rival General Motors Co. said it expected a $400 million Brexit impact on results for the second half of this year. Ford’s stock tumbled 8.5% in morning trade after reporting second-quarter earnings that missed expectations. The stock has dropped 10% year to date, while GM’s stock has shed 8.8% and the S&P 500 has gained 6%.

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The global smartphone market struggled to grow in the second quarter. Vendors shipped 343.3 million smartphones, a 0.3% increase from 342.4 million in the year-earlier period, according to IDC. That was the second straight quarter of stagnant volumes. Samsung Electronics maintained its lead in the market, nabbing a 22.4% global share, versus 21.3% last year. Apple Inc.’s share declined slightly, to 11.8% from 13.9%, while smaller Asian vendors such as Huawei, OPPO and Vivo continued to steal a larger part of the pie. Anthony Scarsella, a research manager in IDC’s mobile phones unit, said most vendors found success with their more affordable models, including Apple with its iPhone SE. Shares of Apple rose 0.4% to $103.34 in Thursday morning trade. Its shares have risen 9% over the last three months, with most of those gains coming this week in the wake of the company’s fiscal third-quarter earnings report. The stock has outperformed both the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 , which are up 3.3% and 4.2%, respectively.

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U.S. stocks opened unchanged Thursday, as disappointing earnings from companies like Ford and ConocoPhillips and mixed data kept confidence at bay. The S&P 500 index was off 1 pointat 2,165. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 30 points, 0.2% to 18,445, while the Nasdaq Composite Index ended was up 8 points, or 0.2%, at 5,148.

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Shares of The New York Times Co. slid just under 1% in premarket trade on Wednesday after reporting a loss and revenue below Wall Street expectations for the second quarter. The media company posted a net loss of $211,000 and broke even on earnings per share, after reporting income of $16.4 million, or 10 cents during the same quarter a year ago. Adjusted earnings per share were 11 cents, in line with the FactSet EPS consensus. Revenue for the quarter hit $372,630, compared with $382,886 in the year earlier period, and just below the $376,000 FactSet revenue consensus. The New York Times Chief Executive Mark Thompson said the company gained 51,000 new paid digital subscribers during the quarter and 22% growth year-over-year. Advertising revenue for the quarter was down 11.7%, compared with last year. While digital advertising growth in mobile, video and virtual reality was strong, Thompson said that couldn’t offset declines in traditional web display or on the print side. “However, we expect that situation to improve in the second half of the year; in fact, we are already seeing a marked turnaround in July,” Thompson said in a statement. “We expect to deliver strong revenue growth from both digital advertising and our digital consumer business in Q3.” Shares of The New York Times are down 4.7% in the year to date, underperforming the S&P 500 Index , which is up 6.0%.

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HCA Holdings Inc. reported Thursday second-quarter earnings of $658 million, or $1.65 a share, up from $507 million, or $1.18 a share, in the same period a year ago. The results include a gain of 1 cent a share from the sale of facilities and legal claim costs of 2 cents a share. The FactSet EPS consensus was $1.56. Total revenue rose to $10.3 billion from $9.9 billion, just shy of the FactSet consensus of $10.5 billion. Provision for doubtful accounts declined to $762 million from $1.04 billion. Looking ahead, the health care services company expects adjusted EPS of $6.40 to $6.70, surrounding the FactSet consensus of $6.51. Revenue is expected to be $41.0 billion to $42.0 billion, compared with the FactSet consensus of $42.1 billion. The stock, which fell 1.3% in light premarket trade, has climbed 15% year to date through Wednesday, while the S&P 500 gained 6%.

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Pinnacle Foods Inc. shares rose 1% in Thursday premarket trading after second-quarter results beat estimates and the food company raised full-year earnings guidance. The company reported net income of $45.8 million, or 39 cents per share, up from $43.7 million, or 37 cents per share, for the same period last year. Adjusted earnings were 42 cents per share, exceeding the FactSet consensus of 39 cents per share. Revenue for the quarter totaled $756.4 million, up from $631.7 million last year and exceeding the FactSet consensus of $756 million. Pinnacle’s Boulder Brands business beat estimates, according to Chief Executive Mark Clouse, contributing $123 million for the quarter. Pinnacle Foods raised its full-year 2016 adjusted EPS outlook to a range of $2.10 to $2.15 from a previous range of $2.08 to $2.13. The company now expects Boulder Brands to contribute about 7 cents to 8 cents versus a previous guidance of about 5 cents. Pinnacle Foods shares are up 12% for the year so far while the S&P 500 Index is up 6% for the year to date.

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Oracle said Thursday that it has agreed to acquire NetSuite [S:N], a cloud company, in a deal valued at $9.3 billion. Oracle is paying $109 a share. “Oracle and NetSuite cloud applications are complementary, and will coexist in the marketplace forever,” Mark Hurd, chief executive officer of Oracle said in the press release. “We intend to invest heavily in both products — engineering and distribution.” The deal is expected to close in 2016, subject to regulatory approval and NetSuite stockholders “tendering a majority of NetSuite’s outstanding shares” in a tender offer. Oracle expects the acquisition to be “immediately accretive” to earnings on a non-GAAP basis in the year after the deal closes. Shares of Oracle were up less than 1% Thursday in premarket trade.

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Shares of MasterCard Inc. climbed 2.1% in premarket trade Thursday, after the payments processing and credit card company beat second-quarter profit and revenue expectations. For the quarter ended June 30, earnings rose to $983 million, or 89 cents a share, from $921 million, or 81 cents a share, in the same period a year ago. Excluding non-recurring items, adjusted earnings per share came to 96 cents, above the FactSet consensus of 90 cents. Revenue rose 13% to $2.69 billion from $2.39 billion, beating the FactSet consensus of $2.59 billion, as processed transaction increased 14% to 13.7 billion and gross dollar volume rose 11% to $1.2 trillion. “With last week’s VocaLink announcement, we will expand our capabilities beyond core card-based solutions into a broader set of transactions and payments,” said Chief Executive Ajay Banga. The company said on July 21 that it was buying 92.4% of the bank-owned technology company for $920 million. MasterCard’s stock has lost 3.7% year to date through Wednesday, while the S&P 500 has gained 6%.

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CBS Corp. said on Thursday its board of directors has approved an increase in its share buyback program to $6 billion. The board also voted to raise its quarterly dividend 20% to 18 cents per share from 15 cents. The company said the new rate takes effect for the next scheduled payment on Oct. 1, to shareholders of record as of Sept. 9. CBS shares have gained 2.6% in the last 12 months and are up 14.8% in the year to date, outperforming the S&P 500 Index , which is up 6.0%

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Harley-Davidson Inc. beat on second-quarter earnings and revenue Tuesday but lowered its 2016 motorcycle shipment guidance in a “precautionary step,” given lower U.S. sales this quarter. Earnings came to $280.4 million, or $1.55 per share, compared with $299.8 million, or $1.44 per share, in the same period a year ago. The FactSet consensus was $1.53. Revenue rose to $1.86 billion from $1.82 billion, above the FactSet consensus of $1.66 billion. The company said total motorcycle sales worldwide decreased 1.9%, which included a 5.2% drop in U.S. motorcycle sales. For 2016, the company lowered its full-year motorcycle shipment guidance from 269,000-274,000 to 264,000 to 269,000, citing “market softness in the U.S., the continued competitive environment and global economic uncertainty.” Harley-Davidson shares rose 5.4% over the last three months, compared with a 4.37% rise in the S&P 500 .

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