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J.P. Morgan upgraded on Tuesday the technology sector to neutral, citing strong earnings growth and potential increased shareholder payouts. The SPDR Technology Select Sector ETF is little changed in morning trade, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 was up less than 0.1% and the S&P 500 eased 0.1%. U.S. equity strategist Dubravko Lakos-Bujas said the tech sector should continue to deliver year-over-year double-digit percentage growth in earnings, and should benefit from strong demand globally, a weaker U.S. dollar and more favorable chart patterns. Lakos-Bujas said the sector holds a total of about $765 billion in cash overseas, “which we believe will be increasingly used for shareholder payouts,” especially during market selloffs. He said the rating remains neutral (not bullish), because government policy, such as lower taxes, deregulation and potential infrastructure spending, is more favorable for domestic companies. Over the past three months, the tech-sector ETF has gained 4.0%, while the Nasdaq 100 has tacked on 5.0% and the S&P 500 has slipped 0.9%.

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Exchange-traded funds that track the home-building sector fell on Tuesday, following the most recent data on home prices. The SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF fell 0.4% while the iShares U.S. Home Construction ETF was down 0.6%. The PowerShares Dynamic Building & Construction Portfolio slid 0.6%. The S&P/Case-Shiller national index rose a seasonally adjusted 0.5% in the three-month period ending in January, and was up 6.2% compared with a year before. Among specific companies, D.R. Horton Inc. fell 0.9% while Toll Brothers Inc. was off 0.2%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped less than 0.1% while the S&P 500 was down 0.1% and the Nasdaq Composite Index was unchanged.

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Allegheny Technologies Inc. , the Pittsburgh-based maker of materials and components for the aerospace and defense industry, said it filed for an exclusion from steel tariffs on behalf of its recently formed joint venture with China-based Tsingshan Holding. Allegheny said the Allegheny & Tsingshan Stainless JV imports stainless slap products from Indonesia which are currently subject to 25% tariffs. “This innovative JV is a great example of a capital efficient, globally competitive supply chain–one that leverages ATI’s world class Hot Rolling and Processing Facility (HRPF) located in Brackenridge, Penn., the JV’s Direct Roll Anneal and Pickle (DRAP) Facility in Midland, Penn. and Tsingshan’s extensive Indonesian resources and capabilities,” said ATI Chief Executive Rich Harshman. ATI’s stock was little changed in morning trade. It has lost 3.9% over the past three months, while the S&P 500 has slipped 0.7%.

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Starbucks Corp.’s latest limited-time drink offer, the Crystal Ball Frappuccino, may have fallen short on social media mentions, according to Stifel analysts. The Crystal Ball Frappuccino, which was offered in the U.S., Canada and Mexico from March 22 through March 26, was creme based, made with peach flavor and turquoise sparkles. The colorful beverage drove about an incremental 0.4% of the social media mentions for the quarter, compared with an incremental 6.5% of social media mentions for the Unicorn Frappuccino during the third quarter of 2017.”Inclement weather in several U.S. cities likely contributed to some of the softness, but limited-time offer frappuccinos appear to be losing some of their appeal as well,” analysts led by Chris O’Cull wrote in a note. “The chilly reception of the Crustal Ball demonstrates the need for hte company to revamp the frappuccino happy hour promotion.” Stifel rates Starbucks shares hold with a $58 price target. Starbucks shares are up 1% for the past year while the S&P 500 index is up 13.5% for the period.

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U.S. equity markets opened slightly higher on Tuesday, extending sharp gains from the previous session, as concerns about global trade policy continued to fade. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 54 points, or 0.2%, to 24,260. The S&P 500 index gained 5 points, or 0.2% to 2,663. Meanwhile the Nasdaq Composite advanced 25 points, or 0.3% to 7,244. Among the best performers on the S&P 500, Red Hat Inc.’s stock jumped after the software company posted better-than-expected quarterly results late Monday.

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Aetna Inc. will automatically pass along drug rebates to a portion its members starting in 2019, benefiting an estimated three million individuals, the company said on Tuesday. The policy, which will be applied to Aetna’s commercial fully insured plan members, follows a similar move by UnitedHealth Group Inc. earlier this month. Aetna said it had previously passed “the majority of rebates” to plan sponsors and their employees through lower premiums, but is making the change in the hope that “additional transparency will encourage [drug] companies to rationalize their prices and end the practice of annual double-digit price increases,” Chief Executive Mark Bertolini said. Drug rebates have become a focus of criticism in light of reports and research showing that health insurers and pharmacy middlemen don’t always pass those savings along to consumers, especially consumers with high-deductible health plans. Aetna shares rose 0.5% in premarket trade Tuesday. Shares have dropped 5.6% over the last three months, compared with a 0.9% decline in the S&P 500 .

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Herc Holdings Inc. said Tuesday Chief Financial Officer Barbara Brasier will retire, effective April 30, for personal reasons, after about 2 1/2 years with the company. The equipment rental company said Chief Accounting Officer Mark Humphrey will serve as interim CFO until a replacement is found. Brasier joined Herc in November 2015 from Mondelez International Inc. . Herc shares, which were still inactive in premarket trade, have rallied 5.7% over the past three months while the S&P 500 has lost 0.9%.

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JA Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. said Chief Financial Officer Herman Zhao has resigned, effective Tuesday, to pursue other interests. The Beijing-based solar power products maker said there are not issues involving financial statement, internal controls or reporting procedures that led to Zhao’s departure. Zhao was appointed CFO in December 2013. “We respect his decision and wish him the very best in his future endeavors,” said Chief Executive Baofang Jin. The stock, which was still inactive in premarket trade, has lost 7.7% over the past three months, while the S&P 500 has slipped 0.9%.

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Francesca’s Holdings Corp. shares sank 5.8% in Tuesday premarket trading after it reported a 15% fourth-quarter same-store sales decline and gave weak guidance. Net income totaled $3.7 million, or 10 cents per share, down from $14.6 million, or 39 cents per share, for the same period last year. Adjusted EPS was 20 cents. Revenue totaled $138.5 million, down from $146.3 million last year. Same-store sales dropped 15% for the quarter, which the company blamed on traffic declines and the merchandise’s failure to resonate with customers. The FactSet consensus was for EPS of 19 cents, sales of $138.0 million, and a same-store sales decline of 5.5%. The apparel and accessories retailer expects first-quarter sales in the range of $100 million to $103 million, a same-store sales decrease of 13% to 15% and a loss per share in the range of 10 cents to 13 cents. The FactSet consensus is for sales of $111.1 million, a same-store sales decline of 5%, and EPS of 14 cents. Francesca’s shares are down nearly 70% for the past year while the S&P 500 index is up 13.5% for the period.

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Shares of Lam Research Corp. are up 2.1% in premarket trading Tuesday after Mizuho analyst Vijay Rakesh initiated coverage of the stock with a buy rating and a $250 price target. “The best is probably yet to come as we believe 2019 could see multiple new mega-fabs and potential China spend,” Rakesh wrote. He has an upbeat outlook on growth in wafer fabrication equipment (WFE) given heightened memory spending. Lam is “benefitting from increasing capital intensity in NAND and DRAM and increased 10nm logic spend,” Rakesh wrote. Shares of Lam Research closed up 6.1% in Monday’s session and are up 68% over the past 12 months, compared with a 14% gain for the S&P 500 .

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