Category: Stock Market News

Boeing Co. announced a larger dividend and share-repurchase authorization Monday afternoon, sending shares 1% higher in late trading. Boeing said it would increase its quarterly dividend 20% to $1.71 per share, payable March 2, 2018, to shareholders of record as of Feb. 9. The company replaced a share-repurchase authorization of $14 billion, established in December 2016, with one for $18 billion. Boeing said it expects to make the repurchases in the next 24 to 30 months, and repurchased $9.2 billion in shares under the previous authorization. Boeing stock added 1% in immediate after-hours action following the announcement; shares closed at their second highest price on record, $283.16, after falling 1% from Friday’s record closing high.

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Bluebird Bio Inc.’s soaring stock price hit a bit of turbulence Monday afternoon, after the company said it planned to sell $600 million in fresh shares amid a run to record prices. Bluebird shares have more than tripled this year, and received a big boost in the past few sessions after presenting new research on cancer treatments last week. Shares added 17.9% Monday after a big price target boost and closed higher than $200 for the first time, but Bluebird said just after the session ended that it planned to sell $600 million in fresh shares, with the possibility of increasing the size by up to 15%. In immediate late trading after the announcement, Bluebird shares fell more than 2.5%.

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Netflix Inc. on Monday broke with a long tradition by revealing the shows that viewers binge-watched in 2017. The streaming giant listed the shows that were most popular based on the average daily viewing hours per member between Nov. 1, 2016 and Nov. 1, 2017. The shows that were devoured — watched for more than two hours per day — were led by “American Vandal,” followed by “3%,” “13 Reasons Why,” “Anne with an E,” “Riverdale”, “Ingobernable,” “Travelers,” “The Keepers,” “The OA,” and “The Confession Tapes.” Netflix shares were down 1.3% in late trade, but have gained 50% in 2017, while the S&P 500 has gained 19%.

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Eli Lilly and Co. said Monday its board approved an 8% hike in its quarterly dividend. The drugmaker said it will pay a 56.25 cents a share dividend in the first quarter to shareholders of record as of Feb. 15 on March 9. Eli Lilly shares rose 0.2% to $86.64 in recent trading.

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Tesla Inc.’s stock rallied 3.7% in afternoon trade Monday, putting it on track to close above its widely-followed 200-day moving average for the first time in six weeks, and above its 50-day moving average for the first time in nine weeks. The 200-day MA is viewed by many chart watchers as a dividing line between short- and long-term trends, while the 50-day MA is seen by many as a short-term trend tracker. The stock’s move Monday likely comes a day before the 50-day MA crosses below the 200-day MA, a bearish technical event referred to as a “death cross.” The 50-day MA was last at $325.59, down from $325.86 on Friday, while the 200-day has climbed to $325.36 from $324.95 on Friday, according to FactSet. The last death cross appeared on Oct. 5, 2016 when the stock closed at $208.46; it fell another 13% before bottoming at $181.47 on Dec. 2, 2016. Tesla’s stock has lost 10.2% over the past three months, while the S&P 500 has climbed 6.8%. Tesla’s stock fallen from its Sept. 18 record of $385.00 amid production concerns, but has rallied over the last month amid apparent strong demand for its new Semi big rig.

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Oil prices climbed Monday, with Brent crude, the global benchmark, logging its highest settlement in more than two years after the reported shutdown of a major North Sea oil pipeline that could last for weeks. Meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate crude, the U.S. benchmark, settled at a more than one-week high, rebounding from a 1.7% decline last week as recent upbeat U.S. economic data fed expectations for crude demand. February Brent added $1.29, or 2%, to end at $64.69 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe. January WTI crude rose 63 cents, or 1.1%, to settle at $57.99 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

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General Electric Co.’s stock erased early gains to fall 0.7% in afternoon trade Monday, putting it on pace to close at a six-year low. After rising 0.3% on Thursday and closing unchanged on Friday, GE’s stock was up as much as 0.5% at its intraday high of $17.79, which put it on track for the first three-session streak without a decline since the four-day win streak ended Sept. 25. The stock was now headed for the lowest close since Dec. 20, 2011. It has shed 3.8% so far this month, which puts the stock in danger of a 10th-straight monthly decline, which is the longest such streak since there is available data going back to 1972. The shares have shed 25.8% over the past three months, amid disappointment over the company’s third-quarter results and turnaround plan, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average has climbed 10.5%.

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Snap Inc. shares have risen 5% to $15.91 in afternoon trading after a positive note from Monness, Crespi, Hardt & Co. analyst James Cakmak to clients Monday. In the report, Cakmak wrote that the stock has reached as a turning point because the company is in a position to beat Wall Street estimates, executives were “candid” about the company’s challenges in the third-quarter earnings call, and has a strong relationship with Chinese tech giant Tencent Holdings Ltd. Cakmak also wrote that the company will likely grow its advertiser base and develop additional ad inventory. The analyst wrote that Snap has about 175 million daily active users, or about 50 million more than what he estimates for Twitter Inc. . Snap stock has dropped 25% since its March initial public offering, as the S&P 500 index has gained 8.7%.

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Gold fell on Monday, as strength in bitcoin and U.S. stocks continued to dull the investment appeal of the yellow metal, keeping prices for gold at their lowest finish in nearly five months. February gold lost $1.50, or 0.1%, to settle at $1,246.90 an ounce. That was the lowest settlement since July 20, according to FactSet data.

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Apple Inc. shares gained 1.9% in midday trading Monday after the company confirmed that it had acquired music-recognition app Shazam. “Apple Music and Shazam are a natural fit, sharing a passion for music discovery and delivering great music experiences to our users,” Apple said in a statement. “We have exciting plans in store, and we look forward to combining with Shazam upon approval of today’s agreement.” Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed, but a report from Tech Crunch last week pegged the value at approximately $400 million, below the $1 billion valuation Shazam fetched in a 2015 funding round. Apple shares have gained 49% so far in 2017, compared with a 23% rise for the Dow Jones Industrial Average .

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