Category: Stock Market News

The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped on Thursday to record territory, fueled by a rebound in shares of Goldman Sachs, Wednesday’s worst performer, and a rally in UnitedHealth. The Dow components combined to contribute more than 50 points to the blue-chip’s 110-point rally. For Goldman Sachs Group Inc. , the rise marks a comeback for shares that logged Wednesday’s worst performance, among the Dow components, cutting 50 points from the benchmark, and pushing the investment bank’s stock to a six-month low, amid worries about ultralow bond yields [BX: TMUBMUSD10Y] and fretting about a slump in second-quarter trading activity, following warnings from a pair of bank executives. On Thursday, Goldman was adding 27 points, while UnitedHealth Group Inc. was contributing about the same amount to the Dow’s clamber higher. Overall, the stock market was getting a boost from an upbeat private-sector employment rate, ADP, which may augur well for the Labor Department’s closely watched nonfarm-payrolls report due Friday. The Dow’s advance also comes as the S&P 500 index and the Nasdaq Composite Index touched fresh intraday records. For its part, the Dow was on pace to close above its own closing high, up 0.5% at 21,120, which would mark its first record finish since March 1.

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 Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped on Thursday to session highs, fueled by a rebound in shares of Goldman Sachs, Wednesday’s worst performer, and a rally in UnitedHealth. The Dow components combined to contribute nearly 60 points to the blue-chip’s 114-point rally. For Goldman Sachs Group Inc. , the rise marks a comeback for shares that logged Wednesday’s worst performance, among the Dow , cutting 50 points, and pushing the investment bank’s stock to a six-month low, as worries about ultralow bond yields [BX: TMUBMUSD10Y] and fretting about a slump in second-quarter trading activity, following wanrings from a pair of bank executives. On Thursday, Goldman was adding 35 points, while UnitedHealth Group Inc. was contributing about 25 points to the Dow’s clamber higher. Overall, the stock market was getting a boost from an upbeat private-sector employment rate, ADP, which may augur well for the Labor Department’s closely watched nonfarm-payrolls report due Friday. The Dow’s advance also comes as the S&P 500 index and the Nasdaq Composite Index touched fresh intraday records. For its part, the Dow was on pace to close above its own closing high, up 0.6% at 21,127, which would mark its first record finish since March 1.

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

S&P Global Ratings on Thursday cut Illinois’ credit rating by one notch to BBB-minus and warned the nation’s fifth-largest state could sink into “junk” status unless it passes a budget that addresses a gaping structural deficit. With legislative inaction this week, Illinois, already slapped with the lowest credit rating of any U.S. state, on July 1 enters its third fiscal year without a budget. A political impasse between the state’s Republican governor and Democrat-controlled legislature has perennially stalled work toward a fiscal plan, leaving the state to operate under court-ordered spending, stopgap budgets and ongoing appropriations mandated by law. “The rating actions largely reflect the severe deterioration of Illinois’ fiscal condition, a byproduct of its stalemated budget negotiations,” S&P analyst Gabriel Petek said in a statement, adding that “unrelenting political brinkmanship” poses a threat to on-time payments for core state priorities. Unpaid bills have now topped $14 billion. This latest rating downgrade marks the seventh for Illinois since January 2015 by major credit rating agencies.

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

Analysts at Morgan Stanley on Thursday upgraded Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. stock to their equivalent of buy and set their price target on the shares to $52, which corresponds to a 52% upside from the stock Thursday price. “The technological revolution in mobility may drive growth in miles traveled at (two times) historic levels, supporting tire volume and pricing,” the analysts wrote in a note. In the longer term, Goodyear could become a transport-services firm with less cyclical revenue, they said. “We view tires as entering a period of secular growth,” the analysts said. Shares of Goodyear have gained 10% in 2017, which compares to gains around 8% for the S&P 500 Index.

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

Skechers USA Inc. was upgraded to buy from neutral at Citi based on the company’s improved wholesale performance. Analysts raised the price target to $30 from $28. Orders for Skechers merchandise indicate acceleration in the second half of the year, and Citi analysts are seeing improved performance of fresh items across multiple categories. Citi said it recently conducted checks and met with Skechers management. “[P]remium brands appear to be going more head-to-head while Skechers has shifted its focus to new categories and price points in order to capture share from value competitors and consolidation,” analysts wrote in a Thursday note. Citi forecasts more than 20% year-over-year growth internationally, signalling strong momentum. Skechers shares are up more than 5% for the year to date while the S&P 500 index is up 8.1% 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

Data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration released Thursday showed that domestic crude supplies fell by 6.4 million barrels for the week ended May 26. The EIA report, which was issued a day later than usual due to Monday’s Memorial Day holiday, marked an eighth weekly drop in a row. The American Petroleum Institute late Wednesday reported a drop of 8.7 million-barrel, according to sources, while analysts polled by S&P Global Platts forecast a fall of 3.2 million barrels. Gasoline stockpiles fell by 2.9 million barrels, while distillate stockpiles were up 400,000 barrels last week, according to the EIA. July crude traded at $48.50 a barrel, up 16 cents, or 0.3%, on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It traded at $48.56 before the supply 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

CBS Corp. said Thursday it has entered a content licensing agreement with Fox Networks Group Asia to bring its premium cable channel Showtime to South East Asia, Taiwan and Hong Kong. This is the first time CBS’s Showtime brand will be in these markets. Under the agreement, subscribers to Fox Network Group Asia’s new Fox+ app will have access to Showtimes current and future series, as well as on-demand access to a back-log of content. The agreement illustrates the importance of international markets for U.S. media companies. CBS recently inked a similar Showtime deal with Canal+ Group in France and has deals with Sky UK, Germany and Italy and a number of other distributor partnerships around the world. Shares of CBS have dropped more than 3% in the year to date, but are up more than 11% in the trailing 12-month period. By comparison, the S&P 500 index is up nearly 8% in the year and 15% in the last 12 months.

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

Worldwide sales of augmented and virtual reality headsets continued to see significant growth through the first quarter of 2017, with a total of 2.3 million units shipped, according to data from research firm International Data Corporation (IDC). And with new products scheduled to drop in the latter half of the year, IDC is forecasting triple-digit growth for the full year. While growth is certainly a positive for the burgeoning industry, especially as media companies are searching for new ways to engage viewers, data suggests that adoption of certain new products is still slow. More than 98% of the headsets shipped were virtual reality headsets, as opposed to augmented reality. And of those virtual reality headsets, two-thirds were devices that only work when a compatible phone is inserted, such as Samsung Electronics Co.’s Gear VR and Google Inc.’s Daydream View. Other, generally more expensive, headsets often used for gaming, such as the HTC Vive, Facebook Inc.’s Oculus Rift and Sony Corp.’s PlayStation VR, accounted for a third of the market. Still, augmented reality headset shipments saw a 77.4% year-over-year growth. Jitesh Ubrani, senior research analyst at IDC, said one of the problems is the content isn’t meeting up with the hardware. “The VR market is still very young and consumers seem to be taking a cautious approach,” he said. “With plenty of headset options already in the market and even more coming soon, hardware isn’t the issue. The bigger challenge is the slow growth in content that appeals to a mass audience, combined with the confusion associated with a lack of cross-platform support.”

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

Data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration Thursday showed that domestic supplies of natural gas rose by 81 billion cubic feet for the week ended May 26. Analysts surveyed by S&P Global Platts forecast a build of 74 billion cubic feet. The EIA said its figures included a “reclassification” of stocks, which resulted in a decrease of about 4 bcf in one specific region. Total stocks now stand at 2.525 trillion cubic feet, down 370 billion cubic feet from a year ago, but 225 billion cubic feet above the five-year average, the government said. July natural gas fell 3.3 cents, or 1.1%, from Wednesday’s settlement to $3.038 per million British thermal units. It traded at $3.068 before the 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

U.S. stocks opened higher on Thursday, with the main benchmarks recovering some of the losses suffered over the past two sessions. Stocks got a boost from a stronger-than-expected private-sector jobs report. Weekly jobless claims jumped to a five-month high, though layoff levels continue to remain near historic lows. The S&P 500 opened 3.7 points, or 0.2%, higher at 2,415. The Nasdaq Composite was up 17 points, or 0.3%, to 6,215 at the open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average began the session up 20 points, or 0.1%, at 21,025. Among the early gainers, shares of Pinnacle Foods and Conagra Brands, Inc. jumped after reports of a possible merger.

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