Category: Stock Market News

Oil futures lost more ground on Wednesday after the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported a 10.4 million-barrel climb in crude-oil supplies for the week ended Feb. 26. That was above the 9.9 million-barrel increase reported by the American Petroleum Institute, and more than four times higher than the rise of 2.5 million barrels expected by analysts polled by Platts. Gasoline supplies fell by 1.5 million barrels, while distillate stockpiles climbed by 2.9 million barrels last week, according to the EIA. April crude was at $33.90 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, down 50 cents, or 1.5%. Prices traded at $34.30 a barrel before the data.

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U.S. stocks opened lower on Wednesday, as a fresh drop in oil prices weighed on the main benchmarks after Tuesday’s strong rally. A report on private-sector hiring that was stronger than economists had expected did not give the market a substantial boost. The S&P 500 lost 4 points, or 0.2%, to 1,974. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 53 points, or 0.3%, to 16,812. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite began the day down 8 points, or 0.2%, to 4,680.

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Delta Air Lines Inc.’s stock dropped 1.6% in premarket trade Wednesday, after the air carrier reported declines in a key performance metrics in February. Passenger revenue per available seat mile (PRASM) for the month fell 5.5% from the same period a year ago. Total system load factor declined to 79.7% from 80.3%, with declines in the U.S. offsetting increases in international. Load factor fell as capacity increased 6%, more than the 5.3% growth in traffic. The stock has gained 1.2% over the past three months through Tuesday, compared with the NYSE Arca Airline Index’s 7.7% decline and the S&P 500 Index’s 3.2% slip.

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McKesson Corp. , a healthcare services and information technology company, has agreed to acquire Rexall Health from Katz Group, a privately-held Canadian company, for $2.2 billion. McKesson will get about 470 retail pharmacies in the deal, with Rexall Health strengthening McKesson’s business in the Ontario and Western Canadian regions, according to a Wednesday release. The deal, which is expected to close in late 2016, will be “modestly accretive” to adjusted earnings in fiscal 2017, and drive “meaningful accretion” to adjusted earnings in fiscal 2018 on a constant currency basis. Going forward, Katz Group will focus on its three other lines of business: real estate, sports and entertainment and public and private investments, said the company’s founder Daryl Katz in a statement. McKesson shares are up 0.1% in premarket trading, but down 31.4% for the past year. The S&P 500 is down 6.6% for the past 12 months.

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McKesson Corp. , a healthcare services and information technology company, has agreed to acquire Rexall Health from Katz Group, a privately-held Canadian company, for $2.2 billion. McKesson will get about 470 retail pharmacies in the deal, with Rexall Health strengthening McKesson’s business in the Ontario and Western Canadian regions, according to a Wednesday release. The deal, which is expected to close in late 2016, will be “modestly accretive” to adjusted earnings in fiscal 2017, and drive “meaningful accretion” to adjusted earnings in fiscal 2018 on a constant currency basis. Going forward, Katz Group will focus on its three other lines of business: real estate, sports and entertainment and public and private investments, said the company’s founder Daryl Katz in a statement. McKesson shares are up 0.1% in premarket trading, but down 31.4% for the past year. The S&P 500 is down 6.6% for the past 12 months.

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Tribune Publishing Co. reported a 2015 fourth-quarter preliminary loss of $77,000, compared with net income of $15.5 million in the year-earlier period. The company reported earnings per share for the quarter were break-even, compared to 60 cents a share last year. Tribune Co. slit its publishing business and TV and entertainment arm, Tribune Media in August 2014. Excluding pre-tax charges, restructuring costs and other items, per-share earnings were $1.34 for the quarter, above the FactSet consensus of 93 cents a share. Revenue for the quarter grew 1% to $462 million, compared with $457 million during the same period a year ago. The FactSet consensus for revenue was $484 million Advertising revenue declined nearly 2%, while revenue from circulation grew 10% in the quarter. Tribune Publishing expects continued pressure on advertising and circulation revenue trends going into 2016.

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Weatherford International Ltd.’s stock dropped 4.7% in very active premarket trade Wednesday, after the oil services company’s large public offering of new shares priced well below current prices. Volume about an hour ahead of the open was already 33.7 million shares, or about double the full-day average over the past 30 days, according to FactSet. The company said late Tuesday that it sold 100 million shares at $5.65 each, which was 8.7% below Tuesday’s closing price of $6.19. Including the option granted to underwriters to buy up to an additional 15 million shares, the share sale would represent 15% of the current number of total shares outstanding, according to FactSet data. Analyst Marc Bianchi at Cowen & Co. wrote in a note to clients that that while the offering raises questions about bankers’ confidence in Weatherford’s free cash flow generation, the offering “shores up the balance sheet and removes and overhang on the stock.” The stock has tumbled 26% year to date through Tuesday, while the S&P 500 has slipped 3.2%.

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CSX Corp. shares jumped in the extended session Tuesday following a report that the railroad operator had been approached by Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. for a takeover offer. CSX shares surged 4.7% to $25.80 after hours. CSX rebuffed the offer but Canadian Pacific would consider trying again, according to Dow Jones Newswires. Separately, Pershing Square Capital Management, the hedge fund helmed by Bill Ackman, reported that it acquired a 9.1% stake in Canadian Pacific, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing late Tuesday.

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Guidewire Software Inc. shares jumped in the extended session Tuesday after the insurance-industry software provider topped Wall Street estimates for the quarter. Guidewire shares rose 8% to $54.55 after hours. The company reported adjusted fiscal second-quarter earnings of 24 cents a share on revenue of $102.1 million. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had forecast earnings of 15 cents a share on revenue of $96.7 million. For the fiscal third quarter, Guidewire expects adjusted earnings of 4 cents to 8 cents a share on revenue of $90.3 million to $94.3 million. Analysts estimate 6 cents a share on revenue of $91.2 million.

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The American Petroleum Institute late Tuesday reported that crude supplies climbed by 9.9 million barrels for the week ended Feb. 26, according to sources who reviewed the report. The Energy Information Administration will release its own data Wednesday. Analysts polled by Platts forecast a climb of 2.5 million barrels. April crude traded at $33.83 a barrel in electronic trading, down from the contract’s settlement of $34.40 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

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