Category: Stock Market News

Caterpillar Inc.’s stock dropped 1.8% in premarket trade Friday, after the maker of construction and mining equipment missed first-quarter profit and sales expectations, and lowered its full-year outlook. Earnings fell to $271 million, or 46 cents a share, from $1.25 billion, or $2.03 a share, in the same period a year ago. Excluding one-time restructuring costs, adjusted earnings per share came to 67 cents, missing the FactSet consensus of 68 cents. Revenue fell to $9.46 billion from $12.70 billion, just shy of the FactSet consensus of $9.50 billion, amid “substantial” declines in its construction, oil and gas, mining and rail businesses. For 2016, the company cuts its adjusted EPS outlook to $3.70 from $4.00 and its revenue outlook to $40 billion to $42 billion from $40 billion to $44 billion. “While many of the industries we serve are challenged, we remain focused on what we can control: the quality of our products, our market position, safety in our facilities and continued restructuring and cost reduction,” said Chief Executive Doug Oberhelman. The stock has run up 16% year to date through Thursday, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average has gained 3.2%.

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Consumer goods company Kimberly-Clark Corp. said Friday it had net income of $545 million, or $1.50 a share, in the first quarter, up from $468 million, or $1.27 a share, in the year-earlier period. Adjusted per-share earnings came to $1.53, ahead of the FactSet consensus of $1.51. The maker of Kleenex tissues and Huggies diapers said sales edged down to $4.5 billion from $4.7 billion, but matched the FactSet consensus. Looking ahead, the company said it’s sticking with its forecast of organic sales growth of 3% to 5% for the full year, and EPS of $5.95 to $6.15. The FactSet consensus is for EPS of $6.15. The company said it expects the costs of a restructuring announced last year to come in at the high end of its range of $130 million to $160 million after tax, while pre-tax savings are also expected to be at the high end of its $120 million to $140 million range by the end of 2017. Shares edged down 1.3% in premarket trade, but are up 3.5% in the year so far, while the S&P 500 has gained 2.3%.

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Carnival Corp. said Friday that Cuba-born passengers will be able to travel on its ships headed to Cuba starting May 1. Previously, Cuba-born travelers were allowed to travel back and forth to the island nation by air, but boat travel was restricted. The cruise company announced earlier this week that it might have to delay the launch of cruises to Cuba if an agreement couldn’t be reached with Cuban authorities to change the policy. Carnival’s new Fathom brand of cruises will sail every other week on seven-day voyages visiting Havana, Cienfuegos and Santiago de Cuba. Carnival shares are nearly flat in premarket trading, and down 9.7% for the year so far. The S&P 500 is up 2.3% for the year to date.

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Aeropostale Inc. said Friday that the New York Stock Exchange has suspended trading of its stock with immediate effect, due to an “abnormally low” trading price. The retailer said it will not appeal the delisting. Its shares will instead be traded on the OTCQX Best Market, an over-the-counter market operated by OTC Markets Group Inc. The new ticker is “AROP”.

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Daimler AG said late Thursday it’s launching an internal probe at the request of the U.S. Justice Department into how it certifies emissions standards in its cars. The German carmaker said it is cooperating with authorities, which requested the probe on April 15. “Daimler will consequently investigate possible indications of irregularities and of course take all necessary actions,” the company said in a statement. The probe comes on the heels of Volkswagen’s diesel emissions scandal that broke in September.

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Charles Schwab Corp. said late Thursday its board hiked the company’s quarterly dividend by 17%. The new 7-cents-a-share dividend is payable May 27 to shareholders of record as of May 13. Schwab shares were unchanged at $29.13 after hours.

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Sears Holdings Corp. shares rose in the extended session Thursday after the retailer said it would close dozens of unprofitable stores this summer. Sears shares advanced 5.5% to $19 after hours. The company said it will close 68 Kmart stores and 10 Sears stores, with nearly all the closings occuring in late July, with two of the Kmarts closing in mid-September. “The decision to close stores is a difficult but necessary step as we take aggressive actions to strengthen our company, fund our transformation and restore Sears Holdings to profitability,” said Edward Lampert, Sears chairman and chief executive, in a statement.

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Advanced Micro Devices Inc. shares rallied in the extended session Thursday after the chip maker’s quarterly results and outlook topped Wall Street estimates. AMD shares jumped 20% to $3.13 after hours on heavy volume. The company reported an adjusted loss of 12 cents a share on revenue of $832 million for the first quarter. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had forecast a loss of 13 cents a share on revenue of $818.4 million. For the second quarter, AMD said it expects revenue to rise sequentially by 12% to 18%, which would be $931.8 million to $981.8 million. Analysts had estimated $889.7 million.

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Concordia Healthcare Corp. said Thursday it is forming a special committee to review its strategic options comprised of independent members of the board. “The Company has had discussions, however, there can be no assurance that any transaction will occur,” it said in a statement. Shares were halted in after-hours trade for the dissemination of the news, but are down 25% in the year so far, while the S&P 500 has gained about 2%.

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Visa Inc. on Thursday reported net income of $1.7 billion, or 71 cents a share, in the fiscal second quarter, compared with 63 cents a share in the year-ago period. Adjusting for one-time items, Visa reported net income of $1.6 billion, or 68 cents a share, in the quarter. Sales hit $3.6 billion in the quarter, from $3.1 billion a year ago. The company cited “continued headwinds” of the strong U.S. dollar, lower oil prices, and an “uneven” global economy for driving continued weak cross-border spending, but said U.S. spending continued “at reasonably strong levels.” Analysts polled by FactSet had expected the company to report earnings of 67 cents a share on sales of $3.6 billion. Shares of Visa fell 6% in late trading after ending the regular session down 0.4%.

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