Tag: stock market

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she was skeptical of the option of a minority government on Monday, following the collapse of coalition talks between her Christian Democrats, the Green Party and the Free Democrats. Merkel said she would prefer new elections if she couldn’t form a majority coalition in an TV interview, adding that she would run as chancellor candidate again. Merkel’s CDU was unable to secure an outright majority in a September election. Negotiations to form a coalition collapsed when the FDP walked out of talks late Sunday. The euro , which had been under pressure all day, slipped further, last changing hands at $1.1743, down from $1.1793 late Friday. The DAX stock benchmark was up 0.5%.

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The New York Times Co. said on Monday that it has suspended reporter Glenn Thrush after the star White House correspondent was accused of sexual harassment and inappropriate behavior against young female journalists. Vox published a report Monday morning detailing instances in which Thrush drunkenly made sexual advances. Thrush apologized in a statement given to Vox, saying that any behavior that makes a woman feel disrespected or uncomfortable is unacceptable. The New York Times said that Thrush plans to enter a substance abuse program, though the length of his suspension was not mentioned. “The ​alleged ​behavior is very concerning and not in keeping with the standards and values of The New York Times,” the paper said in a statement. “We intend to fully investigate and while we do, Glenn will be suspended. We support his decision to enter a substance abuse program. In the meantime, we will not be commenting further.”

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Cardinal Health Inc. shares declined 3.4% in premarket trade Monday and McKesson Corporation shares declined 2.4% after Morgan Stanley said they were two of the companies most at risk if Amazon expands into health care. Cardinal Health would face the most risk if Amazon gets into medical supply distribution, followed by McKesson “to lesser degree,” the Morgan Stanley report said. Walgreens and CVS Health Corp. would be most at risk if Amazon gets into pharmacy, the report found, company shares declined 1.6% and 0.8% respectively on Monday. In the case of an Amazon expansion into tools and diagnostics distribution, Thermo Fisher Scientific’s Fisher division , Henry Schein and Patterson would be most at risk, according to Morgan Stanley; shares of the companies rose 0.5% and declined 2% and 2.6% respectively on Monday. Cardinal Health’s earnings exposure risk is about 22% to McKesson’s 9%, the Morgan Stanley report said. “Optically, revenue exposure is limited, but the fixed cost nature of the distribution model creates a greater headwind to earnings than appreciated,” the report said. Cardinal Health shares have dropped 13.6% over the last three months, compared with a 6.4% rise in the S&P 500 and a 7.8% rise in the Dow Jones Industrial Average .

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Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. rallied 2.3% in morning trade into record territory Monday, but the China-based ecommerce giant was beaten to the $500 billion value mark by Hong Kong-based videogame and WeChat operator Tencent Holdings Ltd. . With about 2.56 billion shares outstanding, and with a stock price of $189.44, which is above Nov. 7 record close of $188.51, Alibaba has a market capitalization $484.19 billion. Tencent’s stock rose had run up 4.1% to a record 420.00 Hong Kong dollars, in the aftermath of last week’s third-quarter results. Based on 9.50 billion shares outstanding, and an currency exchange rate of HKD7.8125 per USD, Tencent has a market cap of $510.66 billion. In comparison, five S&P 500 components have market caps above $500 billion: Apple Inc. at $872.42 billion, Google parent Alphabet Inc. at $715.24 billion, Microsoft Corp. at $635.87 billion, Amazon.com Inc. at $543.19 billion and Facebook Inc. at $520.35 billion.

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Wall Street posted small gains Monday as investors shrugged off political turmoil in Germany and returned their focus to U.S. tax legislation and corporate earnings. U.S. trade is expected to thin out ahead of Thursday’s Thanksgiving Day holiday and an abbreviated Friday session. The S&P 500 was up 0.1% at 2,581, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 32 points, or 0.1%, to 23,390. The Nasdaq Composite rose 0.1%.

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Amazon.com Inc. said on Monday that its anthology series adaptation of “Philip K. Dick’s Electric Dreams” will premiere on the Amazon Prime video platform on Friday, Jan 12. The series, based on various writings from Dick, stars big-name stars such as Steve Buscemi, Bryan Cranston, Anna Paquin, Terrence Howard and Janelle Monae, to name a few. “While the stories may be worlds apart, central to each is the poignant and warm exploration of the importance and significance of humanity,” the company said in a news release. Another one of Dick’s works, “The Man in the High Castle,” has been an Emmy award-winning show for Amazon, and is the streamer’s most-watched scripted series in Amazon Prime’s history. That show returns for a third season in 2018. Amazon has reportedly made it a company-wide mission to find and produce the next huge “Game of Thrones”-like TV show. Last week, Amazon bought the rights for J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings” for a reported $250 million. Shares of Amazon have gained nearly 51% in the year to date, while the S&P 500 index is up more than 15% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up more than 18%.

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German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier urged parties to return to the negotiating table and cooperate, rather than calling new elections, after coalition talks led by Chancellor Angela Merkel collapsed. Late Sunday, the Free Democrats walked out on coalition negotiations with Merkel’s Christian Democrats and the Green Party. The response of the markets was muted, as the euro bought $1.1772, down from $1.1793 late Friday in New York, and the German DAX equity benchmark was 0.2% up.

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Instinet on Monday raised its stock price target for Amazon.com Inc. to $1,360, making it the highest price target of analysts polled by FactSet. “We view AMZN’s ability to perpetually grow SG&A (sales, general and administrative costs) as dependent on GM (gross margin) rate expansion and with product costs unlikely to ease, mix shift to higher margin segments is key to GM expansion, which is key to SG&A reinvestment,” analysts wrote in a note. “To this end, we took a deep dive into AMZN’s margin structure, & backing into segment GMs, we believe that mix shift alone could drive 1000+bps of long-term GM lift, powering a $160bn investment into deepening AMZN’s moat.” The $1,360 stock price target is 20% above the stock’s current trading level. Instinet maintained its buy rating on the stock, which has gained 51% in 2017, while the S&P 500 has gained 15%.

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Acorda Therapeutics Inc. shares dropped 2.5% in premarket trade Monday after the company said it will discontinue its Parkinson’s disease drug tozadenant. The company said last Wednesday that several patients had died during tozadenant clinical trials and others had experienced serious blood-related complications. Acorda decided to discontinue the therapy based on new information obtained from the drug’s late-stage clinical trial “related to previously disclosed agranulocytosis and associated serious adverse events,” the company said. “After analyzing this additional information, the Company concluded that it could not be confident that weekly white blood cell count screening would sufficiently ensure patient safety.” Tozadenant was the most advanced product of four total drugs acquired in Acorda’s about $363 million acquisition of biotech Biotie Therapies Corp. in 2016, and Acorda emphasized its value in announcing the deal. Acorda still plans to release results from the late-stage trial and a safety study in the first quarter of 2018. Acorda shares have dropped 18.7% year-to-date, compared with a 6.3% rise in the S&P 500 and a 7.8% rise in the Dow Jones Industrial Average .

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Shares of Cavium Inc. surged 7.2% in premarket trade Monday, after the chip maker agreed to be acquired by fellow chip maker Marvell Technology Group Ltd. in a deal valued at about $6 billion. Under terms of the deal, Marvell will exchange $40 in cash and 2.1757 shares of its stock for each Cavium share outstanding, which based on Nov. 3 “undisturbed” prices equates to about $80 a share. Shares of Cavium and Marvell had soared on Nov. 6 after reports of a possible deal. At $80 a share, Cavium’s market capitalization would be $5.53 billion. The deal, which is expected to close in mid-2018, is expected to generate annual synergies of $150 million to $175 million. Marvell plans to fund the acquisition with cash on hand from the combined companies and $1.75 billion in debt. The deal confirms a report in The Wall Street Journal over the weekend that a deal was near. Marvell shares edged up 0.1% ahead of the open. Year to date, Cavium’s stock has rallied 21.4%, Marvell shares have run up 46.3%, PHLX Semiconductor Index has climbed 44.2% and the S&P 500 has gained 15.2%.

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