Category: Stock Market News

3M Co. said Tuesday it had net income of $1.155 billion, or $1.88 a share, in the fourth quarter, up from $1.038 billion, or $1.66 a share, in the year-earlier period. Sales edged up to $7.329 billion from $7.298 billion. The FactSet consensus was for EPS of $1.87 and sales of $7.338 billion. The maker of post-it notes and industrial goods said it still expects 2017 earnings to rage from $8.45 to $8.80 a share. The current FactSet consensus is for 2017 EPS of $8.64. Shares were flat in premarket trade, but have gained 28% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 has gained about 19%.

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

Lockheed Martin Corp.’s stock shed 1.4% in premarket trade, after the aerospace and defense contractor beat fourth-quarter profit and sales expectations but provided a downbeat profit outlook. Earnings rose to $988 million, or $3.35 a share, from $933 million, or $3.01 a share, in the same period a year ago. Excluding non-recurring items, adjusted earnings per share came to $3.25, above the FactSet consensus of $3.05. Revenue grew to $13.75 billion from $11.52 billion, beating the FactSet consensus of $13.03 billion, as better-than-expected aeronautics and space systems sales helped offset a slight miss in missiles and fire control sales. For 2017, Lockheed expects EPS of $12.25 to $12.55, below the FactSet consensus of $12.88. Revenue is projected to be in the range of $49.4 billion to $50.6 billion, compared with the FactSet consensus of $49.5 billion. Separately, the company said it expects to report a material weakness in internal control over financial reporting at its Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., which was acquired in November 2015. The stock has rallied 21% over the past 12 months through Monday, while the S&P 500 has gained 19%.

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

Kimberly-Clark Corp. reported fourth-quarter net income of $505 million, or $1.40 per share, up from $333 million, or 91 cents per share, for the same period last year. Adjusted EPS of $1.45 beat the FactSet consensus of $1.42. Sales for the quarter totaled $4.54 billion, unchanged from last year and below the $4.55 billion FactSet consensus. The company has raised the quarterly dividend by 5.4% to 97 cents per share from 92 cents per share. The dividend will be payable on April 4, 2017 for all shareholders of record as of March 10, 2017. Sales in 2017 are expected to be similar to 2016, which were $18.2 billion. The FactSet consensus is $18.5 billion. And the company sees 2017 EPS of $6.20 to $6.35. The FactSet consensus is $6.27. Kimberly-Clark shares are unchanged in premarket trading, and down 7.7% for the last 12 months. The S&P 500 index is up 18.8% for the past year.

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

Verizon Communication Inc. shares fell 2.7% in premarket trade on Tuesday after the mobile phone and cable TV provider reported fourth-quarter profit that was below Wall Street expectations. Net income for the quarter was $4.6 billion, or $1.10 per share, compared with $5.5 billion, or $1.32 per share, during the same quarter a year ago. Adjusted earnings per share were 86 cents, below the FactSet consensus of 89 cents. Revenue in the quarter hit $32.3 billion, compared with $34.3 billion during the same quarter the previous year. FactSet had forecast revenue of $32.1 billion. Verizon said it added 591,000 wireless customers during the quarter and tacked on 21,000 Fios video additions as well. The company expects full-year 2017 consolidated revenues to be “fairly consistent” with 2016 and 2017 consolidated adjusted earnings per share to be similar to revenue trends. Revenue for the full year 2016 was $126.0 billion and per-share earnings were $3.22 for the year. Verizon shares have gained more than 11% in the trailing 12-months, while the S&P 500 Index is up nearly 19%.

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 Turkish lira slumped against the dollar Tuesday after the country’s central bank left a benchmark rate at 8%. A hike that would have supported the battered lira had been widely expected. The dollar was buying 3.7890 lira, a gain of roughly 1% from late Monday. The central bank has disappointed economists before. At its December meeting, the bank left interest rates unchanged, while an increase had been anticipated.

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 pound was sent on a rollercoaster ride in Tuesday morning trade after the U.K.’s Supreme Court ruled that the government can’t trigger the Article 50 that starts the Brexit process without approval from parliament. The court also said Prime Minister Theresa May won’t have to ask the devolved governments — Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales — before kicking off the exit negotiations. Sterling initially rose to $1.2534 after the decision was announced, but quickly turned lower to trade at $1.2475. The pound exchanged hands at $1.2536 late Monday in New York. “We have seen the initial move for sterling mainly towards the upside, but as the dust settled, we have seen the sterling giving up all those gains,” said Naeem Aslam, chief market analyst at ThinkForex, in a note. “This is mainly because the market believes that Brexit will move forward now. Moreover GBP was pricing in regionalized government being consulted and the Supreme Court has said that they do not need to be involved in,” he added.

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

Silicon Motion Technology Corp. shares fell in the extended session Monday after the flash memory component maker forecast revenue below Wall Street views. Silicon Motion shares declined 7.5% to $40.10 after hours. The company forecast revenue of $121 million to $128 million for the first quarter. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had estimated $135.2 million for the first quarter. For the fourth quarter, the company reported adjusted earnings of 95 cents a share on revenue of $144.2 million. Analysts had expected 90 cents a share on revenue of $141.9 million.

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

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co. has agreed to acquire Cloud Cruiser, the second startup HPE has agreed to purchase in less than a week. Cloud Cruiser — which was founded in 2010 and had raised roughly $20 million in venture financing, according to Crunchbase — helps companies track and control the use of public and private cloud computing. Last week, HPE announced the $650 million acquisition of SimpliVity, which focuses on hyperconverged infrastructure and rivals Nutanix Inc. The dual acquisitions show HPE’s focus on hybrid IT models that leverage on-premises and cloud computing power. “Cloud Cruiser’s consumption analytics offerings enable enterprises such as Accenture, KPN, and TD Bank to measure, analyze, optimize and control their usage and spend in private, public and hybrid cloud environments,” HPE executive Scott Weller wrote in a blog post announcing the acquisition. HPE did not disclose the price it paid for Cloud Cruiser nor provide a target date for closing the deal, though it said Cloud Cruiser co-founder and CEO David Zabrowski, a former HP executive, will remain with the company and report to Weller.

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

Shares of Mercury Systems Inc. jumped 7% late Monday after the aerospace and defense company beat revenue and earnings expectations for the fiscal second quarter. Mercury said it earned $5.2 million, or 13 cents a share, in the quarter, up from $5 million, or 15 cents a share, in the same quarter last year. Sales reached $98 million, compared with $60 million in the same quarter a year ago. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected Mercury to report earnings of 10 cents a share on sales of $93.2 million. The stock had ended the regular trading day up 1%, which compares with gains of 0.3% 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

Shares of Yahoo Inc. rose nearly 2% late Monday after the internet company reported fourth-quarter adjusted earnings and sales above expectations. Yahoo also said the sale of its core business to Verizon is now expected to close in the second quarter instead of in the first quarter “given work required to meet closing conditions,” it said in a statement. Yahoo said it earned $162 million in the quarter, or 17 cents a share, versus a loss of $4.43 billion, or $4.70 a share, in the year-ago quarter. Adjusted for one-time items, Yahoo earned 25 cents a share in the quarter, up from 13 cents a share a year ago. Revenue reached $1.47 billion, up from $1.27 billion a year ago. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected the company to report adjusted earnings of 21 cents a share on sales of $907 million in the quarter. Shares ended the regular trading day up 0.8%, which compares with a loss of 0.3% 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