Category: Stock Market News

Taco Bell, the Yum Brands Inc. Mexican chain, plans to add 300 restaurants in urban areas by 2022. New York is seen as the quick-service brand’s largest market opportunity, the company said, with about 50 planned for the city’s five boroughs. Five restaurants will be complete by early 2018. Four of them will be Cantina locations, which serve alcohol, and one will be an “Urban In-line” location that does not. In addition to New York, Chicago, Detroit and Boston are among the areas of focus. About 20 of the locations will be in Chicago, with eight Cantinas planned by the end of 2018. Both Cantina and In-line locations have opened nationwide since 2015. Taco Bell plans to grow to about 9,000 global locations in the next five years from more than 7,000 currently, and it plans to create about 100,000 new jobs. Yum Brands shares are up 19.6% for the year so far while the S&P 500 index is up nearly 12% for the period.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

Steelcase Inc. shares rose in the extended session Monday after the office furniture company topped Wall Street forecasts for the quarter. Steelcase shares rose 5.9% to $15.25 after hours. The company reported second-quarter net income of $36.9 million, or 31 cents a share, compared to $38.2 million, or 31 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Revenue rose to $775.6 million from $758 million in the year-ago period. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had estimated earnings of 23 cents a share on revenue of $757.4 million. For the third quarter, Steelcase estimates earnings of 21 cents to 25 cents a share on increased operating expenses with revenue of $785 million to $810 million. Analysts expect earnings of 28 cents a share on revenue of $798.7 million.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

An exchange-traded fund dedicated to lithium miners and battery producers surged on Monday, advancing to a multiyear high on volume that was many times its daily average. The Global X Lithium & Battery Tech ETF advanced 1.7% to $38.50, hitting its highest level since August 2011, according to FactSet data. More than 1.9 million shares exchanged hands, well above the fund’s 30-day average, which is less than 440,000. Thus far this year, the ETF has advanced more than 58%. It has also seen inflows of $325.6 million year to date, bringing its total assets to $555.2 million. The fund’s largest holding is FMC Corp. , which comprises more than 23% of the portfolio. FMC’s shares rose 2% on Monday. Tesla Inc. , representing about 5.6% of the portfolio, saw its stock gain 1.2%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

Roku Inc. plans to raise at least $200 million for its initial public offering, according to documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The streaming device maker filed an amended S-1 on Monday that says the company is seeking between $12 and $14 a share, which would value the company at just over $1 billion at any price in that range. The company filed its first S-1 document Sept. 1. Roku is selling nine million shares itself which could net the company as much as $126 million. Early investor Menlo Ventures is selling six million shares worth as much as $84 million, and Sky Ventures Limited is selling 668,000 shares for as much as $9 million.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

Adidas AG has overtaken Jordan to become the number two brand of U.S. sport footwear, according to The NPD Group’s August athletic footwear data. “This is an achievement I never thought I would see in my lifetime,” wrote Mike Powell, NPD’s sports industry analyst. “Adidas sport footwear sales grew more than half for the month and share grew by nearly half, to 13%.” Nike Inc. , which is also the parent of the Jordan brand, held on to the top spot. Basketball footwear sales were down 20%, with the category’s decline going into its second year. “Adidas basketball grew more than 40%, while Nike declined in the mid-singles and Brand Jordan lost about a third of its sales. Under Armour basketball was down about half.” Total U.S. athletic footwear sales were $1.86 billion, up slightly from $1.85 billion last year. Nike shares are up 5.3% for the year so far and Adidas shares are up 31.1% for the period. The SPDR S&P Retail ETF is down 7% for 2017 so far while the S&P 500 index is up 11.7%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

The U.S. dollar jumped against its Canadian counterpart, after Bank of Canada deputy governor Timothy Lane said the central bank “will be paying close attention to how the economy responds to both higher interest rates and the stronger Canadian dollar.” Lane also said protectionist sentiment in parts of the world was concerning, adding that “the possibility of a material protectionist shift–particularly regarding the outcome of negotiations on possible changes to the North American Free Trade Agreement–is a key source of uncertainty for Canada’s economic outlook.” Following the remarks, the U.S. dollar bought C$1.2325 on Monday afternoon, compared with C$1.2195 late Friday in New York. The BOC last raised its benchmark interest rates earlier this month.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

Shale crude-oil production from seven major U.S. oil plays is expected to see a monthly climb of 79,000 barrels a day in October to 6.083 million barrels a day, according to a monthly report from the Energy Information Administration released Monday. The report has forecast increases in shale-oil output every month so far this year. Oil output from the Permian Basin, which covers parts of western Texas and southeastern New Mexico, is expected to see the largest climb among the big shale plays, with an increase of 55,000 barrels a day. Oil output at the Eagle Ford shale play in South Texas, however, is expected to decline by 9,000 barrels a day. October West Texas Intermediate oil was up 7 cents, or 0.2%, for the session at $49.96 a barrel, a few minutes before the settlement on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

Gold prices suffered on Monday their fifth decline in six sessions with record highs for benchmark U.S. stock indexes helping to push prices to their lowest level in more than three weeks. December gold fell $14.40, or 1.1%, to settle at $1,310.80 an ounce. That was the lowest finish since Aug. 25, according to FactSet data.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

Dimension Therapeutics Inc. shares surged 38% in early afternoon trade Monday on news that Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc. has proposed to buy all its outstanding common stock for $5.50 per share, or about $138 million. Dimension Therapeutics shares were valued at $4.20 as of Friday’s close and surged to $5.79 after the bid, while Ultragenyx shares declined 1.7% in early afternoon trade. The offer would be offered in cash at close to be effectuated via a tender offer, Ultragenyx said. REGENXBIO Inc. said in late August that it planned to buy Dimension Therapeutics for about $3.41 per share, and that the board of directors of both companies had signed on. But Ultragenyx said that its offer represents “premiums of 24% and 48% over the implied value of the all-stock consideration” offered by REGENXBIO. “As such, the proposal would provide Dimension stockholders with an immediate and certain return on their investment in Dimension and constitutes a superior alternative to the REGENXBIO transaction,” Ultragenyx said. Dimension Therapeutics shares have surged 236% over the last three months, compared with a 2.8% rise in the S&P 500 .

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

The U.S. Justice Department has begun a criminal investigation into sales of stock by Equifax Inc. executives, Bloomberg News reported, citing people familiar with the investigation. The probe will look into the stock sales of its chief financial officer, John Gamble; its president of U.S. information solutions, Joseph Loughran; and its president of workforce solutions, Rodolfo Ploder. The Securities and Exchange Commission is working with the Justice Department on the investigation into whether they violated insider trading laws by selling stock after the company discovered it had been hacked but before disclosing the breach to the public, the report said. The transactions were not disclosed in regulatory filings for pre-scheduled trading activities. Lawmakers, state attorneys general and several regulators are scrutinizing the breach that compromised the privacy of 143 million U.S. consumers, according to Equifax statements. Equifax shares have fallen 35% since the breach was disclosed on Sept. 7 after the market close. The company and the executives didn’t immediately respond to Bloomberg’s requests for comment.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News