Category: Stock Market News

Nielsen said on Thursday that it is going to start measuring advertisements on YouTube’s mobile app. Nielsen already uses its digital ad ratings service for Alphabet Inc.-owned YouTube’s desktop and mobile web browsers, but will now include data and cross-device measurements of advertising audiences on YouTube’s app as well. It’s a necessary move for Nielsen’s marketing clients as younger viewers increasingly watch content on mobile devices. YouTube’s app is among the top-five free apps in the Apple Inc. App store. Nielsen will provide access to age and gender demographics for users viewing ads on YouTube’s app, as well as reach frequency and gross rating points, which measures the size of an ad campaign. “As more people watch video across digital platforms and devices, Nielsen’s comprehensive measurement of YouTube through digital ad ratings is crucial to provide a complete picture of media consumption,” said David Wong, Nielsen’s senior vice president of digital product leadership, in a statement. Nielsen Holdings Plc. shares have declined more than 11% in the year to date, while shares of Alphabet have gained more than 23% and the S&P 500 index has increased nearly 9%.

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Senate Republicans posted online Thursday their 140-page bill that would repeal and replace Obamacare. The measure, broadly similar to the House bill, will cut Medicaid funding and repeal taxes on the wealthy. The measure would end penalties for people who don’t have insurance. In a speech on the Senate floor, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said legislation was needed because Obamacare “teeters on the edge of total collapse.” Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, a Democrat from New York, said the measure would end Medicaid “as we know it.” The bill would “strip away health care benefits and protections from Americans who need it most in order to give a tax break to Americans who need it least,” Schumer said.

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Data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration Thursday showed that domestic supplies of natural gas rose by 61 billion cubic feet for the week ended June 16. Analysts surveyed by S&P Global Platts forecast a build of 58 billion cubic feet. Total stocks now stand at 2.770 trillion cubic feet, down 324 billion cubic feet from a year ago, but 207 billion cubic feet above the five-year average, the government said. July natural gas up a penny, or 0.4%, from Wednesday’s settlement to $2.903 per million British thermal units. It traded at $2.917 before the data.

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Shares of Altice USA were trading at $32 Thursday morning, above its issue price, as the cable-operator made its debut on the New York Stock Exchange as the second-largest initial public offering of the year. Altice sold 63,943,029 shares at $30 each to raise $1.9 billion, putting it just behind Snap Inc. , which raised $3.9 billion in March. The $30 issue price gave Altice a public market capitalization of more than $20 billion. Altice sold about 12 million of those shares, while the rest were sold by shareholders. BC Partners and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board have granted underwriters a 30-day option to buy 7.78 million additional shares.J.P. Morgan, Morgan Stanley, Citigroup and Goldman Sachs & Co. are the underwriters on the offering.

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A popular fund used to invest in the biotechnology sector on Thursday was on track for its best weekly gain in seven months, according to FactSet data. The iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF was up 1.3% on the day and looking at a 9.3% weekly advance, which would mark its best such gain since the week ended Nov. 11. Gains in the exchange-traded fund were being aided by a 13% climb in shares of XBiotech Inc. and a 8% jump in Sangamo Therapeutics Inc. [: SGMO]. The moves come as the U.S. Senate is soon set to reveal a health-care bill and as President Donald Trump has talked about making changes to drug pricing. Health-care stocks were the best performer in the S&P 500 index in early Thursday trade. The S&P 500 index was trading flat at 2,435, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up less than 0.1% at 21,420. The Nasdaq Composite Index , meanwhile, where biotech is a big component, was little-changed at 6,231.

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If Qatar Airways buys a 10% stake in American Airlines Group Inc. , like it told the air carrier that it plans to do, the company will be tied with Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. as American’s third-largest shareholder. Berkshire owned 49.3 million shares of American, or a 10.0% stake, as of the end of March. That’s behind T. Rowe Price Associates Inc., which owned a 10.9% stake, and Primecap Management Co., which owned a 10.2% stake, according to FactSet. American Airlines’ stock rallied $1.55, or 3.2%, in morning trade, meaning Buffett’s stake could be worth $76.4 million more than it was Wednesday. American’s stock has run up 24% over the past three months, while the NYSE Arca Airline Index has gained 7.0% and the S&P 500 has tacked on 3.7%.

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Stocks edged marginally higher in early action Thursday as investors kept a wary eye on volatile oil prices. The S&P 500 rose 0.1% to 2,437.52, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 3 points. The Nasdaq Composite was up 0.1%. Oil futures bounced higher after hitting a 10-month low on Wednesday. Shares of American Airlines Group Inc. rose 3.8% after Qatar Airways expressed interest in buying a large stake in the carrier.

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Shares of DryShips Inc. changed hands at $3.74 in premarket trade as the reverse stock split took effect, tumbling 12% from the split-adjusted close of $4.25. The stock had closed at 85 cents on Thursday, before the 1-for-5 reverse split took effect. The stock had plunged 51% the past three sessions, after ocean-going cargo vessel company announced the reverse split ahead of Monday’s open. That stock had already lost 99.9% of its value year to date through Wednesday, while the S&P 500 has gained 8.8%.

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Ritz-Carlton, a Marriott International Inc. brand, said Thursday that it’s launching a luxury cruise service with three yachts in the fourth-quarter of 2019. The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s first ship will cruise to places including the Mediterranean, Northern Europe, the Caribbean and Latin America, depending on the season. The ships are small-capacity vessels that accommodate 298 passengers with 149 suites each with a private balcony, and two penthouses. Because of the intimate size of the yachts, ships will be able to call at locations like Capri and Portofino that are inaccessible to large cruise ships. The yachts are also available for private charter. Reservations open in May 2018. Marriott shares are unchanged in premarket trading and up 53.7% for the last year. The S&P 500 index is up 16.8% for the last 12 months.

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Sears Canada Inc. said Thursday that it has applied to the Ontario Superior Court of Justice for creditor protection as it pursues a corporate restructuring. Over the past 18 months, the company has rebuilt its technology platform, revamped its assortment, and rebooted its branding and customer service, the company said. If the creditor protection is granted, Sears Canada says it would like to exit “as soon as possible in 2017.” Sears Canada shares are halted in premarket trading, and are down 84.6% for the last year. Sears Holdings Corp. owns an 11.7% stake in Sears Canada, according to FactSet. Sears Holdings shares are unchanged in premarket trading, and down 53.1% for the past 12 months. The S&P 500 index is up 16.8% for the past year.

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