Tag: stock market

Sears Holdings Corp. will replace its associate discount program with a new associates points program that will award points and other perks through the company’s Shop Your Way loyalty program, effective Jan. 29. With the current system, a discount is taken on items at the time of purchase. Under the new points program, associates will receive 20% back in points on softlines categories, such as clothing, and 15% back on hardlines purchases, such as home furnishings and appliances, according to company spokesperson, Howard Riefs. Points can be used toward future purchases. “All of our company initiatives support the company’s transformation from a traditional retailer to a member-centric integrated platform leveraging Shop Your Way,” said Riefs. Sears shares are unchanged in Thursday premarket trading, and down 47.3% for the last year. The S&P 500 index is up 20.8% for the past 12 months.

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Shares of Netflix Inc. soared 8.2% toward a record high in premarket trade Thursday, in the wake of a strong fourth-quarter report, which would add about $4.66 billion to video streaming company’s market value. Based on Wednesday’s closing prices, that would push Netflix up eight spots in the S&P 500’s market-cap rankings to 78th, according to FactSet data. The stock’s rally means Chief Executive Reed Hastings’s Netflix stake, which at 5.86 million shares ranks him 13th among shareholders, according to FactSet, could be worth $63.7 million more. The stock has run up 24% over the past 12 months through Wednesday, while the SPDR Technology Sector Sector ETF has climbed 26% and the S&P 500 has gained 21%.

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Target Corp. will be the official partner of Major League Soccer, marking its largest push into team sports, the company said Thursday. The multi-year partnership includes airtime during broadcasts and in-stadium experiences. Additionally, Target said it will become a partner of the Minnesota United soccer team and will have its logo on the team’s official jersey. Target will also support youth soccer programs. “There are so many things that drew us to soccer — it’s multicultural, watched and played by families and is growing immensely in popularity,” said Rick Gomez, a senior vice president at Target, in the press release. Shares of Target were down 1% in premarket trade Thursday. Shares of Target have fallen 3.4% in the past 12 months, compared to the S&P 500’s gain of 21%.

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Rescuers were working Thursday to help people caught in an avalanche in the mountains of central Italy, as media reports suggested many had died and up to 30 people buried under snow. “There are many deaths,” said Antonio Crocetta, the head of a mountain rescue team, according to a BBC report. “Around 30 people are unaccounted for, between guests and workers at the Hotel Rigopiano in Farindola,” said Fabrizio Curcio, head of Italy’s civil protection department, according to a Reuters report. The avalanche hit the hotel close to the Gran Sasso mountain in the Abruzzo region after a series of strong earthquakes in the area Wednesday, reports said.

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Shares of Toshiba Corp. tanked Thursday after reports that losses in its nuclear business may be worse than expected. Japan’s Nikkei business daily reported Thursday that Toshiba was facing a 500-billion-yen ($4.4 billion) loss in its U.S. nuclear power subsidiary. In a statement, Toshiba said it was still calculating those costs. Japan’s NHK also reported that the conglomerate will seek to sell additional assets to raise about 300 billion yen. On Wednesday, Toshiba said it was exploring the spinoff of its core semiconductor business. By midday Thursday, Tokyo time, Toshiba was down more than 22%. Its stock has tumbled more than 50% in the past month.

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CSX Corp. shares rallied in the extended session Wednesday after reports that departing Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. CEO Hunter Harrison will partner with activist investors to target CSX. CSX shares jumped 11% to $41 a share after hours, following a 3.2% decline in the regular session whenearnings missed Wall Street targets late Tuesday. Last year, CSX turned down Canadian Pacific’s $20 billion offer to acquire the railroad.

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Tim Raines, Jeff Bagwell and Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez were elected into the National Baseball Hall of Fame on Wednesday, while Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens received the most votes of their candidacies to date, suggesting that the taint of baseball’s steroid era is washing away and that they could eventually be voted in. Bagwell, who hit 448 home runs over a 15-year career, led the voting and was named on 86.2% of ballots. Raines, who stole 808 bases in his career, was elected in his 10th and final year of eligibility, receiving 86%. 13-time Gold Glove catcher Rodriguez got 76% in his first time on the ballot. Candidates needed 75% to be inducted. Relief pitcher Trevor Hoffman fell just short, with 74%, as did outfielder Vladimir Guerrero, who got 71.7%. Clemens and Bonds received 54.1% and 53.8%, respectively, the first time either got more than 50%. The three inductees will enter the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., on July 30.

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Analysts at UBS late Wednesday downgraded energy giant Exxon Mobil Corp. to sell, saying the company is likely to underperform relative to its global peers on production growth for “several years.” The analysts cut their price target on the shares to $77, from $86. Exxon also offers a lower dividend yield and trades at a premium to peers, the analysts said. In separate reports Wednesday, the UBS analysts also downgraded shares of EP Energy Corp. and upgraded the stocks of Devon Energy Corp. and Southwestern Energy Co. to neutral, saying they favor exploration and production companies that are lower cost and offer better valuations. Energy stocks on the S&P 500 collectively fell 0.3% Wednesday, whereas the S&P 500 index gained 0.2% for the day. Shares of Exxon were down 0.3% in late trading, after ending the regular session down 1.2%.

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The American Petroleum Institute late Wednesday reported a drop of 5 million barrels in U.S. crude supplies for the week ended Jan. 13, according to sources. Analysts polled by S&P Global Platts forecast a decline of 900,000 barrels. The API data also showed a jump of 9.8 million barrels in gasoline supplies and a rise of 1.2 million barrels in distillates, sources said. Supply data from the Energy Information Administration will be released Thursday morning, a day later than usual because of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. February crude was at $51.38 a barrel in electronic trading, up fromthe contract’s settlement of $51.08 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

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Netflix Inc. shares were up more than 7% in after hours trade on Wednesday following the company’s fourth-quarter earnings report. Netflix added 7.05 million subscribers in the quarter, much improved from the 3.57 million it added during the third quarter. Net income for the quarter was $66.7, million or 15 cents per share, compared with $43.2 million, or 10 cents per share, during the same quarter a year ago. FactSet’s EPS consensus was 13 cents. Revenue for the quarter hit $2.48 billion, compared with $1.82 billion a year ago and just above FactSet’s $2.47 billion revenue consensus. Shares of Netflix have gained 28% in the trailing 12-month period, outperforming the S&P 500 Index , which is up nearly 21% during the same time frame.

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