Tag: stock market

Pandora Media Inc. shares rose 1.4% in premarket trading Wednesday after the company announced its acquisition of ad-tech firm AdsWizz. Pandora will pay $145 million in cash and stock for the company, with a minimum of 50% of that to be paid in cash, according to the company’s release. “With our scale in audio advertising and AdsWizz’s tech expertise, we will create the largest digital audio advertising ecosystem, better serving global publishers and advertisers – while improving Pandora’s own monetization capabilities,” CEO Roger Lynch said in the release. Lynch took over the CEO role at Pandora last fall and has been trying to bulk up the company’s ad technology to better compete with the titans of digital advertising. Pandora shares are down 59% over the past 12 months, compared with a 16% gain for the S&P 500 .

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Stadium Goods, a sneaker and streetwear marketplace, said Wednesday that it has partnered with Nordstrom Inc. to bring rare sneakers and top brands like Air Max 1s and Yeezy Boosts to the floor of the retailer’s new Manhattan men’s store. “Sneakers are the fastest growing category in men’s footwear,” according to a statement from Kristin Frossmo, executive vice president and general merchandise manager for shoes at Nordstrom. “Sneakers have disrupted fashion and are now being mixed with everyday looks from desk to dinner,” Frossmo said. Nordstrom shares are down 2.7% in premarket trading after news that the company ended talks to go private. Shares are up 18% for the past year while the S&P 500 index is up 16% for the period.

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Philip Morris International Inc. said Wednesday it has ceased all cigarette production at the facility of its Greek affiliate Papastratos, which will now only produce HEETS, the tobacco units used with its smoke-free product IQOS. This follows the company’s announcement a year ago that it was investing 300 million euro, which at the time was the equivalent of about $323.7 million, to convert the facility to a plant that can make tobacco sticks for IQOS. The company said it expects the facility to be fully operational by the end of 2018. “Papastratos is the first of our factories to end cigarette production and fully shift to manufacturing our smoke-free alternatives,” said Chief Executive Andre Calantzopoulos. “We will continue to convert existing sites and invest in new facilities to answer global adult smoker demand for better alternatives to cigarettes.” The stock slipped 0.3% in premarket trade. It has shed 12.6% over the past 12 months through Tuesday, while the S&P 500 has gained 15.9%.

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WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) – The U.S. current-account deficit, a measures of the nation’s debt to other countries, widened 26% in the fourth quarter. The deficit widened to $128.2 billion from a revised $101.5 billion in the third quarter. The U.S. recorded a larger deficit in goods such as oil and a smaller surplus in primary income. The current account reveals if a country is a net lender or debtor. The current account deficit was 2.6% of GDP in the fourth quarter. That’s up from 2.1% in the third quarter and well below a peak of 6.3% in 2005.

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Pivotal Research Group analyst Brian Wieser reiterated his negative view of Facebook Inc. Wednesday, writing that the social-networking giant is “exhibiting signs of systemic mismanagement” following a series of security and public-relations issues involving user data, content moderation, and political advertising. Facebook shares are down 0.8% in premarket trading Wednesday, after falling 9.2% so far this week. “Investors have to consider whether or not the company will conclude that it has grown in a manner that has proven to be untenable or whether it needs to significantly improve how it is managed,” he wrote. That leads to the possibility that Facebook could “depress the size of the company” or introduce personnel changes, both of which Wieser said present new risks to investors. Wieser is one of two analysts who rates Facebook at sell, and he has a $152 price target on the stock. The stock closed Tuesday at $166.31. Facebook shares are up 21% over the past 12 months, while the S&P 500 is up 16%.

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Shares of Match Group Inc. are down 1.2% in premarket trading Wednesday after an analyst at Guggenheim downgraded the stock to neutral. Guggenheim’s Jake Fuller wrote that while Tinder Gold, a paid feature launched late last year, brought in a big wave of new paying members, he believes Match will see a “lull” until it introduces its next big paid Tinder feature. “In our experience, multiples for sub-based models can come under pressure in periods of slowing growth,” Fuller wrote. He’s also concerned about Match Group’s valuation, with shares up 40% since the company reported results Feb. 7, compared with a 4% gain for the Nasdaq Composite Index in that time. Fuller prefers IAC/InterActiveCorp , which owns more than 80% of Match Group shares. “While we cannot isolate the discount embedded in IAC for Match, IAC’s current market value does imply a discount of ~16% to the combined value of the Match and ANGI [Homeservices Inc.] stakes,” he wrote.

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General Mills Inc. said Wednesday it had net income of $941 million, or $1.62 a share, in its fiscal third quarter to Feb. 25, up from $357.8 million, or 61 cents a share, in the year-earlier period, boosted by a tax benefit from the December revamp. Adjusted per-share earnings came to 79 cents, a penny ahead of the FactSet consensus of 78 cents. Sales rose 2% to $3.88 billion, also ahead of the FactSet consensus of $3.87 billion. The company, which recently announced the proposed acquisition of Blue Buffalo Pet Products Inc., said it will continue to pursue a consumer first strategy aimed at boosting profitability. It is also planning actions to offset rising freight costs, further cost cuts and actions aimed at increasing revenue. Chief Executive Jeff Harmening said he was disappointed with the the company’s bottom-line results. “Our third-quarter operating profit fell well short of our expectations, and cost pressures are impacting our full-year outlook,” he wrote. “Like the broader industry, we’re seeing sharp increases in input costs, including inflation in freight and commodities. Because of our improved volume performance, we’re also incurring higher operational costs.” Shares fell almost 4% premarket and are down 16% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 has gained 16%.

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Troubled department-store chain Sears Holdings Corp. said Wednesday it has completed previously announced private offers to exchange some of its older bonds for fresh debt and reached agreement to amend the terms of other borrowings. The company, which has used a series of measures in recent years to reduce its debt burden, said about $214 million of old senior unsecured notes and about $180 million of old senior secured notes have been cancelled and replaced by convertible PIK (payment-in-kind) notes, which can be converted into stock. Interest on those notes can be paid in kind, meaning Sears has the option to repay them with fresh notes. The company has also agreed to amend the terms of other bonds and loans. The actions are expected to reduce its quarterly cash interest expenses by about $15 million. The company’s most active bonds, the 8.00% notes due in December of 2019, last traded at 33 cents on the dollar, according to MarketAxess. Shares were not active premarket, but have fallen 75% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 has gained 15%.

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Shares of Winnebago Industries Inc. surged 3% in premarket trade Wednesday, after the recreational vehicle maker beat fiscal second-quarter revenue expectations, amid strength in its towable business. Net income for the quarter to Feb. 24 rose to $22.1 million, or 69 cents a share, from $15.3 million, or 48 cents a share, in the same period a year ago. The company said recent tax legislation resulted in an earnings benefit of 7 cents per share. The FactSet EPS consensus was 64 cents. Revenue rose to $468.4 million from $370.5 million, above the FactSet consensus of $444.3 million. Motorized revenue increased 1.5% to $202.0 million, above the FactSet consensus of $200.4 million, while towable revenue jumped 55% to $266.4 million, beating expectations of $242.5 million. The company said it was “committed” to passing a portion of the tax savings from recent tax legislation to its employees, in the form of a bonus and other wage adjustments, a charitable donation and accelerating facility improvements. The stock has tumbled 22% over the past three months, while the S&P 500 has gained 1.2%.

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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General Mills Inc. said Wednesday it had net income of $941 million, or $1.62 a share, in its fiscal third quarter to Feb. 25, up from $357.8 million, or 61 cents a share, in the year-earlier period, boosted by a tax benefit from the December revamp. Adjusted per-share earnings came to 79 cents, a penny ahead of the FactSet consensus of 78 cents. Sales rose 2% to $3.88 billion, also ahead of the FactSet consensus of $3.87 billion. The company, which recently announced the proposed acquisition of Blue Buffalo Pet Products Inc., said it will continue to pursue a consumer first strategy aimed at boosting profitability. It is also planning actions to offset rising freight costs, further cost cuts and actions aimed at increasing revenue. Chief Executive Jeff Harmening said he was disappointed with the the company’s bottom-line results. “Our third-quarter operating profit fell well short of our expectations, and cost pressures are impacting our full-year outlook,” he wrote. “Like the broader industry, we’re seeing sharp increases in input costs, including inflation in freight and commodities. Because of our improved volume performance, we’re also incurring higher operational costs.” Shares fell almost 4% premarket and are down 16% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 has gained 16%.

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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