Oil pares gains with Iran said to be unwilling to cut output

Oil futures pared some of its earlier gains on Friday following news that Iran will not participate in any plan for coordinated output cuts with other members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. An Iranian oil official said Tehran won’t consider a reduction until its exports have increased by 1.5 million barrels a day over current levels, according to a report from Dow Jones. Following an agreement regarding Iran’s nuclear program, sanctions on the country were lifted earlier this month. March oil rose 34 cents, or 1%, to $33.56 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after tapping a high of $34.40.

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From:: Stock Market News

Super Bowl spending to reach record high this year, says NRF

The National Retail Federation is expecting the average spend for viewers and partygoers enjoying Super Bowl 50 will be $82.19, up from $77.88 last year and the highest amount in survey history. That includes food, decor, team paraphernalia, and more. The NRF forecasts total spending to reach $15.5 billion. An estimated 188.9 million people are expected to tune in, up from 183.7 million. More than 43 million people are planning to throw a Super Bowl party. About the same number of people say the commercials are the most important part of the day, with 78.6% of Americans saying the commercials are entertainment versus 17.5% who say it makes them aware of the advertising brands. More than a third (34.7%) say the actual game is the most important part. The NRF polled 7,293 consumers for its Super Bowl Spending Survey. Super Bowl 50 will be broadcast on Feb. 7.

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From:: Stock Market News

Moody’s may downgrade Xerox on plan to split in two

Moody’s Investors Service on Friday placed Xerox Corp.’s Baa2 senior unsecured debt rating on review for a possible downgrade, and said the decision to split in two will create smaller companies with less business diversity and profitability than the current one. The move comes after Xerox said it will create an $11 billion document technology company and a $7 billion business process outsourcing company by the end of 2016. “Xerox has not announced capitalization plans for DT or the BPO units post-spinoff, nor how much of its $1.4 billion in cash will be allocated between the two companies,” Moody’s acknowledged in a statement. It said its review will focus on the post-split capital structure, liquidity profile, shareholder return policies, future strategy, competitive positioning and growth prospects for each business. It will also evaluate the impact of the $2.4 billion in cost cuts the company plans over the next three years. Moody’s Baa2 rating is just two notches above speculative, or junk status. Xerox shares were up 5.3% in early trade, but have fallen 28% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 has lost 5%.

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From:: Stock Market News

Orlando’s falling foreclosure rate signals stronger housing market

By Megan Ribbens

Foreclosure rates for the Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford area was 2.09 percent for November 2015, according to new CoreLogic data released Jan. 29.

The region’s foreclosure rate fell 1.5 percentage points in November compared to the year-ago period when the rate was 3.59 percent. The foreclosure rate measures the percentage of loans in some stage of the foreclosure process. Orlando’s declining foreclosure rate is a positive sign for the region, as fewer bank repossessions indicate a stronger homeowner… …read more

From:: biz journal foreclosures

Without Trump, debate got second-lowest ratings for Republicans this cycle

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — The Republican presidential debate on Fox News was the second least watched of the 2016 election cycle, according to preliminary Nielsen estimates cited in several news reports. The debate garnered an 8.4 household rating, which translates into approximately 11 million to 13 million viewers. The first Republican debate on Fox in August drew 24 million viewers.

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From:: Stock Market News

Macy’s revises earnings guidance down after Brooklyn real estate transaction closes

Macy’s Inc. has made a downward revision to its fourth-quarter guidance after a timing change on the completion of its Brooklyn real estate transaction with Tishman Speyer. Macy’s will receive $270 million in cash and will use $100 million for renovations. The retailer will record about $86 million in gains during the fourth quarter, with the remaining $164 million booked in fiscal 2016 and 2017. The retailer said it previously assumed the entire gain would apply to the fourth quarter of 2015. Now fourth-quarter earnings are expected to range between $1.85 to $1.90 compared with a previous range of $2.18 to $2.23. Full-year earnings are now forecast between $3.54 and $3.59 from $3.85 to $3.90. This full-year guidance excludes expenses related to previously announced cost efficiences and asset impairment charges largely tied to spring 2016 store closures. Macy’s announced that it had sold the upper floors of its nine-story Brooklyn store in October. It will continue to own and operate the first four floors and the lower level. Macy’s shares are up 1.1% in morning trading and down 39% for the past 12 months. The S&P is down 5.9% for the past year.

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From:: Stock Market News

U.S. stocks open higher, on track to finish week lower

U.S. stocks opened slightly higher on Friday but the main indexes were still looking to book modest weekly losses. The S&P 500 was up 8 points, or 0.4%, at 1,901. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 96 points, or 0.6%, to 16,162. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite began the day up 8 points, or 0.2%, at 4,515.

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From:: Stock Market News

BlackBerry’s stock after receiving OK to buy back more shares

BlackBerry Ltd.’s stock ran up 3.1% in premarket trade Friday, after the smartphone maker said it received regulatory approval to more than double the number of shares it can repurchase. The company said it can now buy back 27 million shares, or 5.8% of the public float, up from 12 million shares, or 2.5% of the float. Under Toronto Stock Exchange rules for normal course issuer bids, BlackBerry is allowed to buy back a maximum of 578,619 shares, or 25% of the average daily trading volume. The stock has plunged 26% so far this year, and 3.5% over the past three months, while the S&P 500 has lost 7.4% year to date and 9.4% in three months.

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From:: Stock Market News

Darden Restaurants downgraded at Raymond James amid greater caution about the restaurant sector

Darden Restaurants Inc. , the company that owns Olive Garden, The Capital Grille, Longhorn Steakhouse, and other chains, was downgraded to underperform from market perform at Raymond James. Analysts have grown more cautious about the restaurant stocks they follow on concerns that sales could turn negative in the coming weeks on tough same-store sales comparisons, they wrote in a note published Friday. Raymond James also sees risk in the stock market volatility, a slowing in retail sales (excluding autos, gas, foodservice and building materials) and the possibility of a recession following weakness in the U.S. industrial sector. The bank also downgraded Mexican restaurant chain Chuy Holdings Inc. to market perform from outperform. It maintains its strong buy rating on Fiesta Restaurant Group Inc. , Red Robin Gourmet Burgers Inc. and Carrols Restaurant Group Inc. , which operates more than 700 Burger King restaurants. Darden shares are inactive in premarket trading, but are up 13.6% for the past 12 months. The S&P is down 6.3% for the same period.

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From:: Stock Market News

Dollar rises after Q4 GDP report

The dollar strengthened against its main rivals Friday after official data showed U.S. gross domestic product rising in line with economists’ expectations in the fourth quarter. The dollar strengthened to 121.26 yen after the data, from 121.03 yen shortly before. The euro fell to $1.0891, from $1.0916 beforehand. The pound fell to $1.4256, from $1.4294. “Traders are a little bit relieved that the pressure on price levels wasn’t worse,” said Matt Weller, a senior technical analyst at Forex.com. “It’s not a great report, but it’s not as bad as some expected.” Investors’ anxiety surrounding the GDP report intensified this week after a spate of surprisingly weak reports on manufacturing and consumer spending hinted that growth might’ve shrank in the fourth quarter.

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From:: Stock Market News