Category: Stock Market News

Worldwide spending on technology products and services is expected to increase 3.5% in 2017 to reach nearly $2.4 trillion, and maintain a similar rate of growth through 2020, according to a new industry report by IDC. Spending is expected to grow at an annual rate of around 3% over the next four years and reach $2.65 trillion by 2020. The growth in IT spending will be led by the banking, investing and insurance industries, as more people manage their finances online and from mobile devices. One surprising drag on the market will be consumer spending on smartphones and PCs. While consumer tech is expected to comprise more than 20% of all technology revenues, spending on those products will be nearly flat through the forecast period. This comes as smartphones makers such as Apple Inc. , Samsung Electronics and Alphabet Inc. have all suffered relatively tepid growth in recent years, as the between upgrade cycles for next-generation devices continues to lengthen. Apple nevertheless topped earnings expectations in its most recent quarter. Its shares have increased 18% in the past three months, outperforming a 7% increase for the S&P 500 .

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Theater chain AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. saw shares fall nearly 5% in premarket trade on Wednesday after the company said late Tuesday it was selling more than 19 million shares of the its class A common stock at $31.50 per share. AMC also granted the underwriters a 30-day option to buy up to an additional 2.9 million shares at the same price. AMC, which is owned by Chinese conglomerate Dalian Wanda Group, said it expects to make $579 million on the public offering, which the theater operator plans to use to repay loans incurred from its acquisitions of Carmike Cinemas and Nordic Cinema Group Holding AB. Citigroup, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Barclays and Credit Suisse will serve as bookrunners for the offering. AMC shares are up more than 60% in the trailing 12-month period, outperforming the S&P 500 Index , up nearly 24%.

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Intuit Inc. , owner of TurboTax, said Wednesday that revenue, earnings per share and operating income for its second fiscal quarter were lower than expected as tax season is kicking off more slowly than is usual. The company is now expecting consumer tax revenue to shift to its third fiscal quarter, which allowed it to reiterate its full-year guidance. The company is now expecting second-quarter revenue of $1.01 billion to $1.02 billion, compared with a current FactSet consensus of $1.06 billion. The company is expected adjusted per-share earnings of 24 cents to 25 cents, compared with a FactSet consensus of 36 cents.”Data points to the tax category forming slowly for all prep methods,” said Dan Wernikoff, executive vice president and general manager of Intuit’s TurboTax business. The company is expecting its full-year earnings to meet its guidance. It is planning to announce second-quarter earnings on Feb. 23 along with the first of two season-to-date unit updates for its consumer tax products and services. Shares were halted premarket, but have gained 27% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 has gained 23%.

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Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company reported a fourth-quarter profit beat and revenue miss early Wednesday. Earnings for the latest quarter were $561 million, or $2.14 per share. The company had a loss of $380 million, or a loss of $1.42 per share, in the year-earlier period. Adjusted earnings per share were 95 cents, compared with the FactSet consensus of 87 cents. Revenue sank to $3.7 billion from $4.1 billion, compared with the FactSet consensus of $3.9 billion. The latest results include the deconsolidation of the company’s subsidiary in Venezuela. The company expects to meet 2020 targets and increased its share buyback authorization by $1 billion. Goodyear shares have risen 13.4% over the last three months, compared with a 7.2% rise in the S&P 500 .

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Shares of Twitter Inc. rose 3% in premarket trade Wednesday after the stock was upgraded to buy from neutral at BTIG. The analysts said their upgrade was based on the belief that Twitter’s daily active user growth is accelerating as Twitter has taken center stage following the U.S. presidential election. Still, the analysts say they do not expect that increase to be immediately reflected in the company’s financial results as Twitter still has to overcome Twitter’s user growth issues in 2015 and 2016. Twitter reports fourth-quarter earnings Thursday before the market opens. Shares of Twitter have fallen 1% in the past three months, while the S&P 500 has gained 7%.

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Time Warner Inc. reported fourth-quarter earnings that came in above Wall Street expectations. Net income for the quarter was $293 million, or 40 cents per share, compared with $857 million, or $1.06 per share during the same period a year ago. Adjusted earnings per share were $1.25, which was above FactSet’s $1.19 consensus. Revenue for the quarter improved to $7.89 billion, compared with last year’s $7.08 billion during the same quarter. FactSet’s revenue consensus was for $7.73 billion. Each of Time Warner’s major business segments saw revenue growth year over year. At Warner Bros. revenue grew 17% to $3.87 billion, While Turner revenue increased nearly 7% to $2.84 billion and revenue at HBO rose more than 5% to $1.49 billion. In a statement, Chief Executive Jeff Bewkes commented on its proposed acquisition by AT&T Inc. , saying it will accelerate the company’s efforts to spur innovation in the industry and that Time Warner is on track to close the deal later this year. Time Warner shares were inactive in premarket trade, but are up 43% in the trailing 12-month period, outperforming the S&P 500 Index , up 24%.

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Shares of Allergan PLC surged 1.8% in premarket trade Wednesday, after the biopharmaceutical company reported fourth-quarter adjusted profit and sales that beat expectations. For the quarter to Dec. 31, the net loss was $70.2 million, or 20 cents a share, compared with a loss of $700.5 million, or $1.78 a share, in the same period a year ago. Excluding non-recurring items, such as research and development-related charges and impairment, adjusted earnings per share came to $3.90, above the FactSet consensus of $3.75. Revenue rose to $3.86 billion from $3.61 billion, beating the FactSet consensus of $3.77 billion. “2016 was a year of transformation for Allergan. We are now a branded biopharmaceutical leader, focused on delivering sustainable revenue growth, advancing our pipeline, maintaining industry leading margins and allocating capital to maximize shareholder return,” said Chief Executive Brent Saunders. Looking ahead, Allergan expects first-quarter revenue of about $3.50 billion, below the FactSet consensus of $3.61 billion, but expects 2017 revenue in the range of $15.50 billion to $15.80 billion, above expectations of $15.32 billion. The stock has dropped 13% over the past 12 months through Tuesday, while the S&P 500 has climbed 24%.

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Humana Inc. reported Wednesday a fourth-quarter loss of $486 million, or $2.86 a share, compared with a profit of $246 million, or 67 cents a share, in the same period a year ago. Excluding non-recurring items, such as $505 million for reserve strengthening of its long-term care insurance business, adjusted earnings per share game to $2.09, above the FactSet consensus of $2.05. Revenue fell to $12.88 billion from $13.36 billion. Adjusted revenue, which excludes a write off of risk corridor receivables, was $13.46 billion, just shy of the FactSet consensus of $13.51 billion. The health care company said chief operating officer James Murray will retire effective March 31, and the company doesn’t expect to fill the COO role. Humana is currently working to address regulatory concerns about its merger deal with Aetna Inc. s[: aet]. The stock, which was still inactive in premarket trade, has surged 24% over the past 12 months, while the S&P 500 has climbed 24%.

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3M Co. on Tuesday raised its quarterly dividend to $1.175 from $1.11 a share. The dividend will be paid on March 12 to shareholders of record at close of business on Feb. 17. 3M shares were unchanged in the extended session after rising 0.4% to close at $175.76.

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Zillow Group Inc. shares fell in the extended session Tuesday after the real-estate website forecast a wider loss for the year than Wall Street had expected. Zillow shares fell 6% to $34.65 after hours. The company forecast a full-year net loss of between $20.2 million to $40.2 million on revenue of $1.03 billion to $1.05 billion. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had forecast a full-year loss of $600,000 on revenue of $1.04 billion. For the fourth quarter, Zillow reported adjusted earnings of 14 cents a share on revenue of $227.6 million, while analysts had forecast 11 cents a share on revenue of $222.2 million.

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