Category: Stock Market News

T-Mobile US Inc. said on Tuesday that it added 5.7 million customers in 2017. The company said this is the fourth year in a row that it’s added more than 5 million new members. In the last five years, T-Mobile’s reported customer base has risen by more than 39 million users. FactSet’s consensus on net additions for 2017 was 5.2 million subscribers. T-Mobile said it added 1.9 million subscribers in the most recent fourth quarter, which also saw record low churn for postpaid customers. In the full year churn was down 10 basis points compared with last year. Shares of T-Mobile were up a little more than 1% in premarket trade, and have gained nearly 15% in the last 12 months. By comparison, the S&P 500 index is up more than 21% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up more than 27%.

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Urban Outfitters Inc. shares are down 5.2% in Tuesday premarket trading after the retailer reported same-store sales for the November and December period that fell below expectations. Sales for the period were up 3.6% year over year, and same-store sales for the retail segment were up 2%. Chief Financial Officer Francis Conforti, speaking at the ICR Conference on Monday, noted that the 2% was “slightly below” where the company was at the time it filed a 10-Q in December. “All of that is due to the Urban Outfitters brand in North America, and that’s tech and media,” he said, according to a FactSet transcript. Specifically, the company was not able to make up for the volume over the past couple of years in Crosley cameras and camera film. “We knew it was going to be a challenging category for us in the holiday season, but it was worse than what we had anticipated,” Conforti said. The tech and media category tends to double in December and then is halved the rest of the year, he added. Same-store sales were up 5% at Free People, up 2% at Anthropologie, and up 1% at the Urban Outfitters brand. Urban Outfitters shares are up 47% for the past three months, outpacing the S&P 500 index , which is up 8% for the period.

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Shares of Long Blockchain Corp. rocketed 29% in premarket trade Tuesday, after the company formerly known as Long Island Iced Tea Corp. said it will not proceed with its previously announced public stock-offering plan. The company, which is now focused on developing and investing in blockchain technology solutions, said it still plans to buy 1,000 bitcoin mining machines, which it expects to be shipped this month. “Notwithstanding its intent to close on the proposed acquisition, the company can make no assurances that it will be able to finance the purchase of the mining equipment,” the company said in a statement. The stock had tumbled 24% over the past two sessions, after the company said early Friday that it signed subscription agreements for the public offering of 1.6 million common shares at a price of $5.25 a share. The stock closed Monday at $4.85. The stock has lost 4.9% year to date through Monday, while bitcoin futures has gained 4.6% and the S&P 500 has gained 1.7%.

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Shares of Under Armour Inc. sank 3.7% in premarket trade Tuesday, after the athletic gear and apparel maker was downgraded at Susquehanna Financial, which cited “poor” brand management, worsened by a promotional environment. Analyst Sam Poser cut his rating back to negative, after raising it to neutral two months ago. He kept his stock price target at $11, which is 31% below Monday’s closing price of $15.98. “Despite ongoing evolution within the ranks of [Under Armour’s] senior management, we believe, based on proprietary checks and our industry experience, that Under Armour’s brand position will continue to weaken before it is clear if it can be salvaged,” Poser wrote in a note to clients. “We contend that, in order to reaffirm [Under Armour’s] place as an aspirational sports brand, all Under Armour product must be pulled from Kohl’s, DSW, and Famous Footwear.” He said advertisements for Under Armour products from the “moderate” retailers are causing “better” retailers such as Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc. and Hibbett Sports Inc. to “plan their Under Armour businesses down.” The stock has lost 4.0% over the past three months, while rival Nike Inc. shares have soared 25.3% and the S&P 500 has gained 8.0%.

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Shares of MoviePass majority owner Helios & Matheson Analytics Inc. gained more than 9% in premarket trade on Tuesday after the subscription movie ticket platform said on Twitter it had reached 1.5 million paid subscribers. MoviePass has been growing rapidly, and demand for the service seems to still be high. In late December, the $10-a-month service allowing members to see a movie a day in cinemas said it had hit the 1 million subscriber mark. It took Netflix, which began by mailing out DVDs, three years to reach 1 million subscribers. MoviePass Chief Executive Mitch Lowe has said the demand was more than the company expected. MoviePass had just 20,000 subscribers before dropping the price of its subscription to $10 from as much as $50 back in August. People who have signed up for the service have criticized the company for not sending them the cards necessary to use the service. Shares of Helios & Matheson have gained nearly 116% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 index is up more than 21% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up more than 27%.

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American Eagle Outfitters Inc. shares fell 2.5% in Tuesday premarket trading after the company reiterated its fourth-quarter guidance for earnings per share in the range of 42 cents to 44 cents. Earnings guidance does not include the impact of tax reform, potential asset impairment, and restructuring charges. The FactSet consensus is for EPS of 43 cents. Fourth-quarter same-store sales to date are up 8%, the company said late Monday. American Eagle is expected to announce its earnings on March 8. The company’s shares are up 34.1% for the last three months while the S&P 500 index is up 8% for the period.

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Target Corp. said Tuesday that its raised outlook adjusted earnings per share of $1.30 to $1.40 for the fiscal fourth quarter, that runs through January, includes a 6 cents-to-8 cents benefit from the recently enacted tax legislation. The discount retailer said net EPS, which includes non-recurring items, is expected to be higher than adjusted EPS, given an anticipated one-time change in net deferred tax liabilities as a result of tax reform. “The impact of federal tax reform on the company’s net deferred tax liabilities remains under review and cannot be determined at this time,” Target said in a statement. That said, the company expects tax reform legislation to create additional cash flow that it plans to use for capital investments, dividends and additional share repurchases. The stock rallied 4.1% in premarket trade, putting it on track to open at the highest level since Jan. 17, 2017. It has soared 19.4% over the past three months but has shed 6.0% the past 12 months, while the S&P 500 has rallied 21.1% over the past 12 months.

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Shares of Target Corp. jumped 3.6% toward a one-year high in premarket trade Tuesday, after the discount retailer raised its fiscal fourth-quarter profit outlook, citing stronger-than-expected holiday sales. The company now expects adjusted earnings per share for the quarter through January of $1.30 to $1.40, compared with previous guidance of $1.05 to $1.25. Same-store sales are expected to be up 3.4% from a year ago, in line with sales growth seen during the November-December period, and well above the FactSet consensus of a 1.4% increase. Target said same-store sales rose in all core merchandise categories, and accelerated from third-quarter levels, reflecting strong traffic growth. Digital sales for 2017 are expected to rise more than 25% for the fourth-straight year. Looking ahead, the company expects 2018 adj. EPS of $5.15 to $5.45, above the FactSet consensus of $4.36, and a “low single-digit” increase in same-store sales, compared with expectations of a 1.1% rise. The stock has surged 19.4% over the past three months through Monday, while the SPDR S&P Retail ETF has climbed 13.3% and the S&P 500 has gained 8.0%.

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Shares of Express Inc. dropped 3.5% in premarket trade Tuesday, after the apparel and accessories retailer provided a fiscal fourth-quarter profit and sales outlook that was well below expectations, citing “disappointing” results in the weeks leading up to Christmas. The company said it expects earnings per share for the quarter to January to be 31 cents to 33 cents, below the FactSet consensus of 43 cents. Same-store sales are expected to be down 1% to down 2% from a year ago, compared with the FactSet of up 2.4%. The company said that while e-commerce sales have increased by double-digit percentages, traffic in retail stores was worse than expected. “From a product perspective, dresses and sweaters were the primary drivers of the sales miss relative to our expectations,” said Chief Executive David Kornberg. The stock has run up 38% over the past three months through Monday, while the SPDR S&P Retail ETF has climbed 13% and the S&P 500 has gained 8%.

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Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. founder Jack Ma has promised to seriously “consider” listing the e-commerce giant in Hong Kong, media reports said Tuesday. Ma made the comment in response to an open invitation from Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam, who took part in a discussion with the Alibaba executive chairman at an event in the territory on Monday. “We will definitely consider Hong Kong’s market. We hope we can further invest in Hong Kong and enhance our participation in the city’s economy,” Ma said, according to a South China Morning Post report. In 2014, Alibaba chose New York for its record $15 billion IPO rather than Hong Kong, which had tighter rules on voting rights for shareholders. Ma recently suffered a setback in the U.S., when his Ant Financial Services Group’s bid to acquire Dallas-based MoneyGram International Inc. failed after opposition from a U.S. national security panel.

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