Foreclosures | Mortgages | Financing
After five consecutive months of increases, pending home sales slipped in June but remained near May’s level, which was the highest in over nine years, according to the National Association of REALTORS®. Modest gains in the Northeast and West were offset by larger declines in the Midwest and South. The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking […] …read more
From:: Real Estate News
The U.S. is not at risk of breaching the debt ceiling before Oct. 30, Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew said Wednesday, in a new estimate sent to Congressional leaders. Treasury has been using so-called extraordinary measures since mid-March. Lew told the lawmakers that those measures will now last through the end of October. The Treasury Secretary urged Congress to raise the debt limit as soon as possible. The debt limit caps how much the government can borrow. It used to be raised routinely but has recently become the source of a bitter political tug-of-war.
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.
From:: Stock Market News
Whole Foods Market Inc. shares dropped Wednesday after the upscale natural and organic food market missed on fiscal third-quarter earnings and issued a weak outlook. Shares of Whole Foods fell 10% to $36.60 on heavy volume. The company reported third-quarter earnings of 43 cents a share on revenue of $3.63 billion. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had estimated 45 cents a share on revenue of $3.69 billion. Whole Foods forecast fiscal fourth-quarter earnings of between 34 cents to 35 cents a share, while analysts had estimated 38 cents a share.
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.
From:: Stock Market News
AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. said Wednesday it earned $43.9 million, or 45 cents a share, compared with 32 cents a share a year ago. Revenue hit $821.1 million, up from $727 million, the company said. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected AMC to report earnings of 47 cents a share on sales of $810 million. The movie-theater chain said its average ticket price rose to $9.91 from $9.55 a year ago, and its food and beverage revenues per movie-goer rose 10% to $4.65, the highest ever for the company. Shares of AMC fell 1.6% in late trading Wednesday, after ending the regular session up 1.7%.
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.
From:: Stock Market News
Skechers USA Inc. shares rallied about 10% in after-hours trade Wednesday, after the casual footwear company blew past second-quarter profit and sales estimates. The company said it had net profit of $79.8 million, or $1.55, in the quarter, up from $34.8 million, or 68 cents a share, in the year-earlier period. Sales climbed to $800.5 million from $587.1 million. The FactSet consensus was for EPS of $1.01 and sales of $736 million. “Driving this growth were double-digit increases in our three main business channels: domestic wholesale with an average price per pair increase of 9.0 percent; international wholesale, which includes 665 third-party-owned Skechers retail stores; and Company-owned Skechers domestic and international retail stores with a total comp store sales increase of 12.9 percent for the quarter,” Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer David Weinberg said in a statement. The company is ‘comfortable’ with consensus estimates for the second half, he said. Shares have gained 132% in the year so far, while the s&P 500 is up 2.4%.
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.
From:: Stock Market News
Tesla Motors Inc. on Wednesday unveiled a referral program to give $1,000 to new car buyers who use a referral link from a previous buyer. The current Model S owner would get $1,000 off a new car, services, or accessories, Chief Executive Elon Musk said in a conference call. It costs Tesla about $2,000 to sell a car through its stores, and if the company can “amplify word of mouth, then we don’t need to open as many new stores in the future,” the company said in a statement. During the call, Musk said the company would still open new stores, although depending on the success of the program perhaps not as many. Each Tesla owner can give friends up to 10 $1,000 discounts. Owners with five referrals will be invited to tour Tesla’s “gigafactory” outside Reno, Nev., and attend the grand opening party. At 10 orders, customers will get the right to purchase a Founder Series Model X, which is not available to the public, with all options free. The first customer to reach 10 referrals will get the entire car for free. Shares of Tesla rose 0.2% at last check, slightly lower than before the start of the call.
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From:: Stock Market News
The dollar strengthened against its main rivals Wednesday after an updated monetary policy statement from the Fed didn’t rule out an interest-rate hike in September. The euro fell to $1.1010 shortly after the statement’s release, from $1.1060 beforehand. The dollar rose to 123.90 yen, from 123. 75. The pound was little-changed at $1.5620.
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From:: Stock Market News
Shake Shack Inc.’s stock rocketed 20% in active, afternoon trade Wednesday, putting it on track to post the biggest one-day price and percentage gain in its 6-month history. Volume of over 930,000 shares was nearly double the full-day average. The burger chain didn’t release any news, and a company spokesperson was not immediately available for comment. Shake Shack went public 180 days ago, meaning the lock-up agreements for the underwriters, which restricted them from selling any of the shares, have now expired. The jump in Shake Shack’s stock is likely a combination of the company’s expiring lock up period, investors’ confidence in the company’s growth and short-sellers trying to cover their position, Peter Cohan, a venture capitalist and president of Peter S. Cohan and Associates, told MarketWatch. Short interest, or bearish bets in the stock was about 2.3 million shares as of mid-July, or more than triple what it was five months ago.
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From:: Stock Market News
Gold futures settled lower Wednesday then climbed in electronic trading after the Federal Reserve voted to keep a key U.S. interest rate unchanged and implied that a September rate hike hasn’t been ruled out. Nymex oil futures pared some of its gains following the statement. August gold traded at $1,096.60 an ounce in electronic trading on Globex, after settling at $1,092.60 on Comex, down $3.60, or 0.3%, before the Fed news. September oil added 83 cents, or 1.7%, to $48.88 a barrel ahead of the Nymex close, compared with $48.97 before the news.
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From:: Stock Market News
U.S. stocks shot higher immediately after the Fed released a statement leaving interest rates unchanged, but pared those gains within 10 minutes of trade. The decision to leave rates unchanged was unanimous. The S&P 500 was up 8 points, or 0.4%, to 2,101. The Nasdaq Composite was flat at 5,088. The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded 74 points, or 0.4%, higher at 17,707.
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.
From:: Stock Market News