Tag: stock market

Fast-food chain Wendy’s Co. said Monday that it has launched its first-ever mobile offering with three digital deals available via the Wendy’s app. Currently, the deals are a buy-one-get-one free for a Dave’s Single hamburger, a buy-one-get-one-free for a spicy chicken sandwich, and $2 off any full-sized salad. Wendy’s is also bringing back its Double Stack double cheeseburger to the 4 for $4 menu. Wendy’s shares are down 1.2% in Monday trading, but up 5.5% for the past year. The S&P 500 index is up 17.6% for the last 12 months.

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Square Inc.’s stock dropped more than 6% Monday morning after BTIG Research downgraded the stock on fears that a recent run-up that occurred after the company began testing the ability to transfer bitcoin has made shares too expensive. Square’s stock has more than tripled this year and had gained about 22% since launching a test earlier this month in its Square Cash app that allowed users to buy and sell the cryptocurrency bitcoin, which has had its own wild ride of late. Those gains put prices far above BTIG’s 12-month price target of $30, and analysts downgraded the stock in a note Monday morning. “[W]e believe [Square’s] valuation already reflects emphatic and unimpeded growth while failing to factor in competitive, credit-related and macro risks that did not go away when some investors suddenly viewed its shares as a play on a trendy cryptocurrency,” they wrote. They added that it is “not optimal” for Square “to have its fortunes tied to those of a cryptocurrency that has frequently displayed extreme volatility.” Square’s stock closed at an all-time high of $48.86 Friday, at which point it had gained 258.8% in 2017, while the S&P 500 index had gained 16%.

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Sen. Rand Paul said in a Fox News op-ed that he will vote for Republicans’ tax bill, despite some reservations with it. The Kentucky Republican, whose vote wasn’t assured earlier, said he would prefer “more permanence” for individuals but that “I plan to vote for this bill as it stands right now.” A vote on the bill could come as early as Thursday in the Senate, and if it passes it would need to be reconciled with a House version.

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Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. shares rose 4% in Monday morning trade after the company announced a major reorganization and several top leadership changes. Cheap generic drug prices have put significant pressure on the generic drugmaker in recent months, and the changes — under new Chief Executive Kare Schultz — were described as a way to take “decisive and immediate action to address external pressures and internal inefficiencies,” according to a statement by Schultz. Teva, which previously organized its generics and specialty drug businesses in two separate units, will now instead operate through three regions — North America, Europe and Growth Markets — that will manage all Teva drugs “with full end-to-end P&L accountability,” the company said. Some of Teva’s previous business units will be retained, but not all, Teva said. Leadership changes include the retirement of Michael Hayden, president of global research and development, Rob Koremans, president and chief executive of global specialty medicines, and Dipankar Bhattacharjee, president and chief executive officer of the global generic medicines group, at the end of the year. The company’s new management team includes now-Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President Michael McClellan, Executive Vice President, Global R&D Hafrun Fridriksdottir, Executive Vice President, North America Commercial Brendan O’Grady, Executive Vice President, European Commercial Richard Daniell, Executive Vice President, Growth Markets Commercial Gianfranco Nazzi and Executive Vice President, Global Marketing & Portfolio Sven Dethlefs. Teva shares have dropped 13% over the last three months and 61% year-to-date, compared with a 6.5% rise in the S&P 500 over the last three months and a 8% rise in the Dow Jones Industrial Average .

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U.S. stocks opened marginally higher on Monday with the main indexes trading near record levels as investors returned from the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. Retailers were in focus amid Cyber Monday shopping. The S&P 500 opened nearly unchanged at 2,602. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was flat at 23,556. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index was little changed at to 6,886. Among the best performers on Wall Street were retailers. Shares of Gap Inc. jumped 2.6%, while Macy’s Inc and Target Corp rose about 1%.

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Shares of Barracuda Networks Inc. surged 16% in premarket trade Monday, after the company said it has agreed to be acquired by private-equity firm Thoma Bravo in an all-cash deal valued at $1.6 billion. Thoma Bravo will pay $27.55 per Barracuda share, equal to a premium of 22.5% over the company’s 10-day average stock price before Nov. 28. The deal is expected to close before the end of the company’s fiscal year end of Feb. 28, 2018. Barracuda will operate a privately held company with a focus on email security, network and application security and data protection. Shares have gained 11% in 2017 through Friday, while the S&P 500 has gained 16%.

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Shares of beleaguered magazine publisher Time Inc. were up more than 9% in premarket trade on Monday after Meredith Corp. , which publishes “Better Homes & Gardens,” proposed a deal over the weekend to buy Time in an acquisition valued at $2.8 billion. Shares of Meredith Corp. were up more than 8% in premarket trade. The deal, which has financial backing from the Koch brothers, comes amid a shift at Time to focus more on video as the company’s print business continues to suffer. Time has said it plans to target more than $400 million in cost savings as it sells off assets and focuses on its core brands. Shares of Time Inc. are down more than 5% in the year to date, while Meredith Corp. shares are up more than 3%. By comparison, the S&P 500 index is up more than 16% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up more than 19% during the same time frame.

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Alkermes PLC shares rose 5.8% in premarket trade Monday on news of the company’s partnership with Biogen Inc. on the multiple sclerosis drug ALKS 8700. Biogen shares were not active in premarket trade. Under the agreement, Alkermes will receive $28 million upfront — which represents Biogen’s share of development costs in 2017 — and is eligible for up to $200 million in clinical and regulatory achievements. Biogen will pay for ALKS 8700 development expenses starting in 2018 and will be responsible for the therapy’s commercialization. The company also expects to register an initial milestone payment of $50 million as an expense this year, according to the agreement. ALKS 8700 is in late-stage clinical development to treat relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis. Alkermes shares have risen 1.3% over the last three months and Biogen shares have risen 8.4%, compared with a 6.5% rise in the S&P 500 .

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Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. shares declined 2% in premarket trade Monday after the company said that results from two phase 2 trials studying its combination therapy did not support advancing the program into phase 3 trials. The two trials studied the combination of eye medication Eylea and nesvacumab in diabetic macular edema and wet age-related macular degeneration, both serious eye diseases. Both studies aimed to find out if the combination — which is being jointly developed by Regeneron and Bayer worked better than Eylea on its own, but the results “did not provide sufficient differentiation to warrant Phase 3 development,” Regeneron said. Regeneron shares have dropped 19.5% to $384.85 over the last three months, compared with a 6.5% rise in the S&P 500 and an 8% rise in the Dow Jones Industrial Average .

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Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. said Monday it is raising its quarterly dividend to 8.50 cents a share from 7.50 cents. The new dividend will be paid Jan. 31, 2018 to shareholders of record as of Jan. 3. Shares were not yet active premarket, but have gained 22% in 2017, while the S&P 500 has gained 16%.

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