Category: Stock Market News

The Securities and Exchange Commission said Thursday its chief accountant of its division of corporate finance, Mark Kronforst, plans to leave in early January after four years in the role, and 13 years with the SEC. Kronforst currently oversees the SEC’s reporting rules for public companies’ disclosure of financial information to investors. Kyle Moffatt, currently associate director in disclosure operations, will become the division’s chief accountant. Moffatt had joined the SEC’s division of corporation finance in 2000. MarketWatch has reported extensively about how some companies have skirted the SEC’s May 2016 guidelines for non-standard accounting metrics and the new revenue recognition rules that go into effect next year.

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The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported Thursday that domestic supplies of natural gas fell by 33 billion cubic feet for the week ended Nov. 24. Analysts surveyed by S&P Global Platts forecast a decrease of 38 billion. Total stocks now stand at 3.693 trillion cubic feet, down 309 billion cubic feet from a year ago, and 107 billion cubic feet below the five-year average, the government said. January natural gas fell 11 cents, or 3.5%, to $3.069 per million British thermal units, down from $3.074 before the data.

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Members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and other major oil producers agreed in principle to keep their production-cut agreement in place through the end of 2018, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. OPEC, however, had yet to hash out a final agreement with non-OPEC Russia, the report said. January West Texas Intermediate crude was down 3 cents at $57.27 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after trading closer to $58 at its session high. January Brent crude [:s uk:lcof8] rose 49 cents, or 0.8%, to $63.60 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe. “The apparent agreement of [a] nine-month extension, with quarterly reviews, is broadly positive with the only better outcome being no reviews, which would make no sense,” said Brian Youngberg, senior energy analyst at Edward Jones.

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Apple Inc. shares are up 0.8% in Thursday morning trading following a pair of upbeat reports from analysts. Morgan Stanley’s Katy Huberty is optimistic about Apple’s prospects in China, where sales rose 12% in the latest quarter after posting a decline in the prior quarter. She thinks Apple is “just turning the corner in China” and predicts that the company will “meaningfully accelerate” growth there in the next few quarters. “We believe that a larger base of aged iPhones and accelerating switchers, combined with the recent launch of iPhone 8/X, means the iPhone’s best days in China are still ahead,” she wrote. Chinese consumers are increasingly opting for large-screen iPhones, according to Morgan Stanley. Piper Jaffray analyst Michael Olson also expressed optimism about Apple’s trajectory in a note to clients on Thursday, suggesting that the company was on track for a “super-long cycle” of device upgrades. Apple’s stock is up 47% so far in 2017, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average has gained 22%.

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Shares of troubled department store chain Sears Holdings Corp. jumped 13% in early trade Thursday, after the company said its third-quarter loss narrowed from a year ago, but not everyone was impressed.
“Sears has meaningful upcoming maturities in fiscal 2018 which must be met as its unencumbered asset base continues to decline and its business turnaround remains elusive despite its achievement of $1.25 billion in cost savings,” said Moody’s vice president and senior analyst, Christina Boni. Sears has $303 million of 6.625% notes that mature in October of 2018, according to its last regulatory filing. The notes were trading at 80.50 cents on the dollar Thursday to yield 34.543%, according to MarketAxess. Shares have fallen 50% in 2017, while the S&P 500 has gained about 18%.

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The White House is developing a plan to push out Secretary of State Rex Tillerson after just a year on the job, replacing him with CIA director Mike Pompeo, according to the New York Times. Pompeo has a good relationship with President Trump, who has soured on the former head of Exxon Mobil. Tillerson earlier this year reportedly referred to the president as a “moron” and the two men have disagreed on key issues, such as treatment of Iran and North Korea. Pompeo himself would be replaced at CIA by Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton. The Times said Cotton has agreed to make the move under a broader shakeup on Trump’s foreign-policy team that could take place near the end of the year.

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CostCo Wholesale Corp. shares rose 2.7% Thursday, after the company “turned in a month for the ages” with its November sales, according to Retail Metrics analyst Ken Perkins. CostCo said same-store sales rose 10.8% in November, while net sales climbed 13% to $11.26 billion from $9.95 billion in the same period a year ago. E-commerce sales rose 39% in the month. “This was the Issaquah, Washington-based club’s biggest monthly comp in over 6 years dating back to September 2011 when it posted a 12% gain,” said Perkins. Growth was spread across most categories, with hardline comps up in the low teens, mid-teens gains in appliances, tablets and computers, and strength in auto, tires, sporting goods and office. Shares have gained 14% in 2017, while the S&P 500 has gained 17%.

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The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded above 24,000 for the first time, while the S&P 500 set a fresh all-time high. All three main indexes were on track to end November with solid gains. On a total return basis, this is the 13th straight month of gains. The S&P 500 opened 9 points, or 0.3%, higher at 2,635. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 107 points, or 0.5%, to 24,0049. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index advanced 27 points, or 0.4%, to 6,851, recouping some of the sharp losses from the previous session. Among the best performers on Wall Street, Kroger Co. jumped 11% after better-than-expected earnings.

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Fitbit Inc. and China-based Xiaomi Inc. led the pack in terms of wearables shipments for the latest quarter, according to research firm IDC, knocking Apple Inc. down to third place from second. Both Fitbit and Xiaomi shipped 3.6 million devices in the quarter, IDC said, while overall shipments rose 7.3%, to 26.3 million units. Fitbit released its first full-fledged smartwatch, the Ionic, earlier this fall, and hopes the device will reinvigorate its fortunes as consumers gravitate away from simple fitness tracking bands. Fitbit’s shares have lost two thirds of their value since the company’s 2015 IPO, and its shipments for the third quarter declined 33% relative to a year earlier, according to IDC. The firm wrote that Apple’s shipments of 2.7 million devices reflect the fact that the company launched its new cellular-enabled Apple Watch 3 late in the quarter. “The introduction of a cellular-connected version should spur interest from would-be purchasers going forward,” IDC said in a release. Fitbit shares have fallen 8% so far this year through Wednesday, while Apple’s stock is up 46%. The S&P 500 has gained 17% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average has climbed 21%.

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TravelCenters of America LLC said Chief Executive Thomas O’Brien has resigned, effective Dec. 31, after nearly 11 years in the role. The travel centers operator appointed current Chief Financial Officer Andrew Rebholz as its new CEO. Rebholz has been CFO since November 2007. Chief Accounting Officer William Myers will be the new CFO. Separately, Executive Vice President Barry Richards will be chief operating officer. The stock, which was still inactive in premarket trade, has rallied 46% over the past three months, but was still down 33% year to date. In comparison, the S&P 500 has gained 17% so far this year.

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