Category: Stock Market News

U.S. stocks edged up in early trading on Friday, as investors enjoyed a rare respite from dramatic news coming out of Washington, although major indexes were set for their second straight weekly decline. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 31 points, or 0.2%, to 20,691. The S&P 500 added 3.8 points to 2,370, a rise of 0.2%. The Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 19 points, or 0.3%, to 6,075. For the week, all three indexes are set for a decline of about 1%. Much of the weakness came in Wednesday’s massive selloff, when concerns spiked over whether President Donald Trump could get his economic agenda passed, something analysts say is necessary to justify market valuations. Among the major movers, Deere & Co. surged 6.3% after it reported earnings and sales that beat expectations. Dynegy Inc. spiked 26% on reports it had received a buyout offer from Vistra Energy .

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Cree, Inc. Chief Executive Chuck Swoboda will step down after 16 years in the position, the provider of LEDS and other lighting products said Friday. Swoboda will remain at the company until a new CEO is named and will be available as a consultant to the company following that. “My decision to change my work-life balance follows a recent medical issue, which was resolved, and which caused me to reevaluate my priorities,” Swoboda said. The company reaffirmed its fourth-quarter business outlook for revenue of $340 million to $360 million and adjusted earnings per share between 2 cents and 7 cents. Shares of Cree have fallen 18% in the past three months, while the S&P 500 has gained 1%.

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Ford Motor Co. said Friday it will invest $350 million in its Livonia Transmission Plant in Michigan, which will “create or retain” 800 hourly jobs. The investment will support production of a new fuel-efficient transmission. The auto maker said it expects to begin adding jobs in late 2017, with most of any new jobs coming in 2018 and 2019. The announcement comes two days after Ford confirmed with MarketWatch plans to cut 1,400 salaried positions in North America and Asia Pacific. Ford’s stock, which gained 0.5% in premarket trade, has shed 11% year to date through Thursday. In comparison, shares of rival General Motors Co. has lost 6.8% and S&P 500 has advanced 5.7%.

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Shares of Dynegy Inc. shot up 24% toward a three-month high in premarket trade Friday, after The Wall Street Journal reported that the power company was approached by rival Vistra Energy Corp. regarding a potential takeover. Analyst Ali Agha at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey said his analysis derives a $14-per-share net asset value for Dynegy, which would be 93% above Thursday’s closing price of $7.26, and would give the company a market capitalization of about $1.84 billion. Agha Vistra buying Dynegy “would make strategic sense” because it would allow Vistra to diversify out of the Texas power market; Dynegy has a relatively small exposure in Texas, implying market power concerns would not be an issue; and because Vistra Chief Executive Curt Morgan used to work at Energy Capital Partners, which is Dynegy’s largest shareholder. Dynegy’s stock traded at $8.99 about 45 minutes before open, the highest level seen during regular session hours since Feb. 24. The stock had tumbled 14% year to date through Thursday, while Vistra shares had lost 4.5% and the S&P 500 has gained 5.7%.

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Shares of Vince Holding Corp. shot up 36% in premarket trade Friday, to 45 cents, after the luxury apparel maker said it received a $30 million rights offering commitment letter from Sun Capital Partners V L.P. The letter indicates that Sun Capital will provide Vince with cash proceeds of $30 million in the event that Vince conducts a rights offering of its common stock. Vince shares have plunged amid concerns over a potential bankruptcy filing, after the company said earlier this month that it has “substantial doubt” about its ability to continue as a going concern. The stock, which has traded below $1 since April 28, had lost 92% of its value through Thursday, while the SPDR S&P Retail ETF has shed 7.0% and the S&P 500 has gained 5.7%.

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Foot Locker Inc. shares tumbled 8% in premarket trade Friday, after the sporting goods retailer posted weaker-than-expected earnings for the first quarter. Foot Locker said it had net income of $180 million, or $1.36 a share, in the first quarter, down from $191 million, or 1.39 a share, in the year-earlier period. The sports goods retailer said sales rose 0.7% to $2.00 billion. The FactSet consensus was for EPS of $1.38 and sales of $2.02 billion. Same-store sales rose 0.5%, also below the FactSet consensus of up 1.4%. “The first quarter was one of our most profitable quarters ever, but it did fall short of our original expectations,” Chief Executive Richard Johnson said in a statement. “The slow start we experienced in February, which we believe was largely due to the delay in income tax refunds, was unfortunately not fully offset by much stronger sales in March and April.” Shares were down 0.6% in 2017 through Thursday, while the S&P 500 has gained 5%.

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Shares of Campbell Soup were up 1% in premarket trade Friday after Campbell reported third-quarter net income of $176 million, or 58 cents per share, down from $185 million, or 60 cents per share, in the year-earlier period. It reported adjusted earnings per share of 59 cents, below the FactSet consensus of 64 cents. It reported sales of $1.85 billion, below the FactSet consensus of $1.87 billion and below $1.87 billion in the year-earlier period. Campbell revised its guidance, saying it expects sales to fall by 1% to 0%, which was previously a gain of 0% to 1%, and adjusted earnings per share to increase by 3% to 5%. Shares of Campbell have fallen 2.6% in the past three months, compared to the S&P 500’s gain of 0.6%.

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Shares of Deere & Co. surged 6.5% in premarket trade Friday after the agriculture and construction machinery company reported fiscal second-quarter results that were well above expectations and provided an upbeat outlook. Net income for the quarter to April 30 rose to $802.4 million, or $2.49 a share, from $495.4 million, or $1.56 a share, in the same period a year ago. The FactSet consensus for earnings per share was $1.63. Total revenue increased to $8.29 billion from $7.88 billion, beating the FactSet consensus of $8.02 billion, as financial and other revenue were better than expected while agriculture and turf and construction and forestry revenue were in line with forecasts. For 2017, Deere now expects company equipment sales to increase 9%, compared with previous guidance of 4% growth. “This resilience illustrates our success driving improved operating efficiencies and developing a wider range of revenue sources. It also shows the impact of the company’s consistent investments in advanced technology, new products and additional markets,” said Chief Executive Samuel Allen. The stock has rallied 9.4% year to date through Thursday, while the S&P 500 has gained 5.7%.

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Foot Locker Inc. said Friday it had net income of $180 million, or $1.36 a share, in the first quarter, down from $191 million, or 1.39 a share, in the year-earlier period. The sports goods retailer said sales rose 0.7% to $2.00 billion. The FactSet consensus was for EPS of $1.38 and sales of $2.02 billion. Same-store sales rose 0.5%, also below the FactSet consensus of up 1.4%. “The first quarter was one of our most profitable quarters ever, but it did fall short of our original expectations,” Chief Executive Richard Johnson said in a statement. “The slow start we experienced in February, which we believe was largely due to the delay in income tax refunds, was unfortunately not fully offset by much stronger sales in March and April.” Shares were not yet active premarket, but are down 0.6% in 2017, while the S&P 500 has gained 5%.

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Swedish prosecutors said Friday they’ve dropped a preliminary investigation of rape allegations against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. The 45-year-old has lived in the Ecuadorian embassy in London since 2012 to avoid facing charges in Sweden. But London’s Metropolitan Police in a statement said it would have to arrest Assange if he leaves the embassy because he failed to surrender to the Westminster Magistrates’ Court in June 2012. Assange has said that if he went to Sweden for questioning in the sexual assault investigation, he feared he would be extradited to the U.S., where the U.S. Justice Department had been considering filing criminal charges against him.

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