Category: Stock Market News

Shares of insurance giant on Monday Travelers Cos. Inc., looked set to weigh on the Dow Jones Industrial Average at the open of trade in the fallout of now-Tropical storm Harvey that has submerged much of Houston area in what is expected to be 50 inches of rain. The insurer was off nearly 3% in premarket action, or about $3.74, translating into a roughly 25-point retreat in the price-weighted Dow industrials , with traders trying to assess liabilities for insurers in the wake of Hurricane Harvey. A $1 move in any of the the Dow equates to a 6.84-point swing in the Dow. Still, the Dow was looking to rise at the open, up 0.2% at 21,852, while the S&P 500 index was looking to open about 0.2% higher, while futures for the Nasdaq-100 were 0.3% higher, hinting at gains for the Nasdaq .

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Yum China Holdings, Inc. has appointed Jacky Lo, a current executive at the company, as chief financial officer, the company said Monday. Lo has worked as interim chief financial officer and treasurer since June 2017. He will take over the CFO position starting Sept. 1. He has also served as controller and principal accounting officer among other positions at the company. Shares of Yum China have fallen 5% in the past three months, while shares of the S&P 500 have gained 1%.

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The Williams Cos. Inc. said Monday it has appointed John Chandler as chief financial officer, effective Sept. 5. Chandler, who has served as CFO of Magellan Midstream Partners L.P. since 2014, will replace Don Chappel, who is retiring. Shares rose 0.5% premarket, but are down 5.6% in 2017, while the S&P 500 has gained 9%.

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The Dow Jones Industrial Average on Monday was set to rise slightly , with shares of Exxon Mobil Corp., and Chevron Corp., turning higher even as Wall Street looked to contend with the fallout of Hurricane Harvey. Shares of Exxon Mobil and Chevron were set to rise at the open, with the Dow components faring relatively well even as the now-Tropical storm has left some 50 inches of rainfall and flooded large swaths of energy-rich Houston area over the weekend. Exxon closed its Baytown refinery, located on the Houston Ship Channel–the second-largest refinery in the country, processing as much as 560,000 barrels. Separately, energy-related industrials giant, Caterpillar Inc. , was slightly higher. Popular energy-focused exchange-traded funds, SPDR Energy Select Sector and United States Oil Fund LP were trading lower in premarket action. U.S. traded crude-oil futures were off 0.5% at $47.42 a barrel. Overall, the stock market looked set to open higher, with futures for the S&P 500 , the technology-heavy Nasdaq-100 and the Dow all up at least 0.1%.

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Analysts at TD Securities say reports that management at Lord & Taylor and Saks Fifth Avenue parent Hudson’s Bay Co. is considering taking the company private could potentially be positive. Hudson’s Bay shares rose roughly 14% Friday afternoon following media reports that management is looking to carry out a review of its options, including possibly privatizing the company. “[Hudson’s Bay] appears to be focused on improving its retail results through further investment in its operations, cost-cutting and organic growth within both Europe and North America,” analyst Brian Morrison wrote in a note to investors. “Clearly, activist investor Jonathan Litt opposes HBC’s current strategy, stating that he may be forced to call a special meeting to remove directors if HBC does not take actions to implement a plan to close the gap between underlying value of its asset base and share price.” Morrison pointed out that Litt recommended that a management-led buyout could be an intriguing proposition. Morrison, who rates Hudson’s Bay a hold, and maintains a C$12.50 12-month price target, said in light of current pressures on retail that he couldn’t rule out a potential privatization transaction by management. “Our fundamental view remains that in the absence of selling or repurposing its Saks flagship, HBC’s current strategy is unlikely to result in the full value of HBC’s real estate being reflected in its share price near-term,” Morrison wrote. Shares of Hudson’s Bay have declined more than 13% in the year to date.

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Procter & Gamble Co. on Monday urged shareholders to vote in favor of its director nominees at its coming annual meeting, and against activist investor Nelson Peltz. “Under the leadership of this board and management team, P&G has undertaken the most significant transformation in the company’s history and is executing a winning strategy that is working,” the board wrote in a letter to shareholders. Peltz does not understand the P&G of today, and is not the right director for its board, said the letter. A board seat is not an entitlement, it said. The company’s “rigorous selection criteria” for adding new directors has created a diverse board designed to oversee the company’s strategy. Peltz does not fit the criteria, it said. Shares were not yet active premarket, but have gained 10% in 2017, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average has gained 10% and the S&P 500 has gained 9%.

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Expedia Inc. Chief Executive Dara Khosrowshahi has been selected as the new CEO of Uber Technologies Inc., according to a report Sunday night by Recode. Earlier in the day, General Electric Chairman Jeff Immelt dropped out of the running. Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co. CEO Meg Whitman spoke to the board Saturday, but maintained publicly that she was not interested in the job. Khosrowshahi was apparently the third, unnamed candidate, Recode said. Uber had yet to confirm the news, nor has Khosrowshahi officially accepted the job, Recode said. “The Board has voted and will announce the decision to the employees first,” a spokesperson said, according to Recode. Uber has been without a CEO since founder Travis Kalanick stepped down in June, following a shareholder revolt over a series of scandals. Khosrowshahi has led Expedia since 2005.

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President Donald Trump has pardoned controversial former Maricopa County, Ariz., Sheriff Joe Arpaio. Trump told Fox News last weekend that he was “seriously considering” a pardon for Arpaio. Arpaio, who was found guilty of criminal contempt for disregarding a court order in a racial profiling case, had been scheduled to be sentenced October 5. Trump has been under fire for blaming “both sides” for a violent white-supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Va. two weeks ago. Arpaio, 85, violated a 2011 order barring him and his office from detaining individuals solely based on suspicions about their legal status. At a campaign-style rally in Phoenix, Trump defended Arpaio, saying he was “just doing his job” and suggested then that a pardon of the ex-law enforcer was imminent.

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President Donald Trump has pardoned controversial former Maricopa County, Ariz., Sheriff Joe Arpaio. Trump told Fox News last weekend that he was “seriously considering” a pardon for Arpaio. Arpaio, who was found guilty of criminal contempt for disregarding a court order in a racial profiling case. His sentencing had been scheduled for October 5. The pardon comes after Trump has been under fire for blaming “both sides” for a violent white-supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Va. two weeks ago.

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North Korea has fired what appears to be several ballistic missiles, according to reports. South Korean military officials described seeing “unidentified projectiles” launched about 150 miles into the air off North Korea’s east coast. If confirmed, it would mark a renewed escalation of tensions between the U.S. and Pyongyang, which had cooled somewhat over the past few weeks. President Donald Trump in an Aug. 8 news conference threatened “fire and fury” at the isolated kingdom if it continues to test ballistic missiles. The U.S. military and South Korea are currently engaged in military training exercises on the Korean Peninsula.

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