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Saks Fifth Avenue parent Hudson’s Bay Co. said Wednesday it has received an offer for its German business from Signa Holding GmbH, the owner of its main German rival, confirming market speculation. The Canadian company said the unsolicited offer “is subject to many assumptions, conditions and contingencies,” and said it has no evidence of financing. “Consistent with its fiduciary responsibility, the Board intends to review the offer in due course,” the company said in a short statement. It added that its European business is a key part of its strategy and that it will not comment further unless required by law. Shares were halted for the news, but are down 7% in 2017, while the S&P 500 has gained 15%.

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.

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Shares of Argentine cement and concrete maker Loma Negra Compania Industrial Argentina surged 14% in their first minutes of trade Wednesday, after the company priced its IPO at the high end of its price range. Loma Negra is the second Argentine IPO this year and the fifth since 2001, according to market intelligence firm Ipreo. The company sold 50.2 million American Depositary Shares at $19 a pop, raising $954 million, and is listing on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “LOMA.” The stock was last up $2.80 at $21.80. The S&P 500 was up 0.3%.

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.

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Shares of 3D Systems Corp. slid 25% on Wednesday, as analysts weighed in on an earnings miss and the company’s news that it was withdrawing guidance. J.P. Morgan said the 3-D printing company is still grappling with the fallout from an acquisition spree carried out by former management, and listed the issues raised by the company, which included a weak quarter, the writedown of inventory and the need for the flexibility necessary to turn the business back to profitable growth. “Though many of the challenges are under the firm’s control, DDD is also subject to increasingly intense competition that is likely weighing on pricing and market share,” analysts led by Paul Coster wrote in a note. While the company is planning new products shortly, “we think investors should anticipate a U-shaped return to profitable growth,” said the note. J.P. Morgan has a neutral rating on the stock and lowered its price target to $11 from $13. Stifel analysts reiterated a hold rating, citing low visibility and their expectation that margins would be pressured and operating costs elevated in the medium term. They slashed their stock price target to $11 from $15. Shares are down 30.3% in 2017, while the S&P 500 has gained 15%.

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.

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Shares of Altair Engineering Inc. , a product design and development, engineering software and cloud computing software company, surged 30% in their first minutes of trade Wednesday, after the company priced its IPO at $13, the top end of its price range. Troy, Mich.-based Altair sold 12 million shares to raise $156 million. The stock is trading on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “ALTR.” It was last up $4 at $17, while the S&P 500 was up 0.3%.

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.

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Data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration Wednesday showed that domestic crude supplies fell by 2.4 million barrels for the week ended Oct. 27. That was bigger than the forecast for a decline of 1.4 million barrels from analysts surveyed by S&P Global Platts. The American Petroleum Institute on Tuesday reported a 5.1 million-barrel decline. Gasoline stockpiles dropped by 4 million barrels for the week, while distillate stockpiles fell 300,000 barrels, according to the EIA. The S&P Global Platts survey forecast drops of 1.7 million barrels for gasoline and nearly 2.5 million barrels for distillates. December crude was up 34 cents, or 0.6%, from Tuesday to $54.72 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was still set to finish at a more than two-year high, but traded below the $55 level it was at before the supply data.

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.

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Shares of Tesla Inc. fell 2.4% in early trading Wednesday, their worst performance in six sessions, as the Silicon Valley car maker geared up to report third-quarter results after the bell. Analysts polled by FactSet expect Tesla to report a loss of $2.31 a share on sales of $2.95 billion. Tesla has scheduled a call with analysts at 2:30 p.m. Pacific to go over the results and Wall Street will be parsing out any comments about Model 3 production ramp and demand for the mass-market sedan as well as demand for Tesla’s luxury vehicles. MarketWatch will be live-blogging the conference call.

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.

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Groupon Inc. shares jumped 3% in Wednesday trading after the company reported third-quarter earnings that were above estimates. Net income totaled $59.0 million, or breakeven on a per share basis, compared with a loss of $38.0 million, or 7 cents per share, for the same period last year. Adjusted EPS was 1 cent, ahead of the breakeven FactSet consensus. Revenue totaled $634.5 million, down from $686.6 million last year and below the $643.0 million FactSet estimate. The company said its focus is to “maximize gross profit, which may come at the expense of revenue” with a shift to the “more differentiated” Local category and away from the Goods category. North American revenue fell 14% in the third-quarter, driven by a 30% decline in the Goods category. Groupon shares are up nearly 48% for the year so far while the S&P 500 index is up 15.5% for the period.

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.

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U.S. stocks opened higher on Wednesday, with major indexes pushing into record territory on the back of strong corporate results. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 100 points, or 0.4%, to 23,480. The S&P 500 was up 8.5 points to 2,584, a rise of 0.3%. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 32 points, or 0.5%, to 6,759. Both the S&P and the Nasdaq hit intraday records in early trading. Among the market’s biggest movers, U.S. Steel Corp. gained 11% a day after it reported results that came in above analyst forecasts. Allergan Plc. fell 1.9% despite results that also came in ahead of expectations. Markets have been buoyed by a rebound in private-sector employment last month as employers added 235,000 jobs. An upbeat set of manufacturing data from China, as well as a rally in oil prices, which continued to push above a two-year high supported global equity markets.

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.

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Shares of Ford Motor Co. rallied 1.2% in premarket trade Wednesday, after the automaker reported October U.S. sales that rose 6.2%. The company said truck sales rose 11.4%, while SUV sales increased 5.3% and car sales fell 2.4%. Within Ford-branded trucks, F-Series sales jumped 15.9% while E-Series sales fell 7.1%. In Ford SUVs, Explorer sales rose 5.0%, Escape sales declined 1.9% and Expedition sales fell 46.7%. In Ford cars, Focus sales rose 7.8% while Fusion sales dropped 6.2%. Lincoln brand vehicle sales declined 1.8% during the month. Ford’s stock has rallied 12.1% over the past three months through Tuesday, while rival General Motors Co. shares have run up 23.7% and the S&P 500 has gained 4.0%.

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.

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Shares of Sturm Ruger & Co. tumbled 7.7% in premarket trade Wednesday, putting them on track to suffer a fifth-straight loss, after the gun maker reported disappointing third-quarter results. The company reported late Tuesday earnings and revenue that missed expectations for a second-straight quarter. A fifth-straight decline for the stock would be the longest such streak since the six-session losing streak ending July 27, 2017. The company’s results weighed on the shares of Smith & Wesson parent American Outdoor Brands Corp. , which shed 2.3% ahead of the open. Shares of gun makers have fallen since President Trump has been elected, as fears of tighter regulations have faded. From Nov. 8, 2016 through Tuesday, Sturm Ruger’s stock had tumbled 23%, American Outdoor shares had plunged 50% and Vista Outdoor Inc. shares had plummeted 46%, while the S&P 500 had rallied 20%.

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.

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