MARKET CURRENTS
real-time news and commentary for investors
MARKET CURRENTS
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Today - Wednesday, May 22, 2013
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2:48 PM Petrobras (PBR -3.2%) has $20B in cash reserves and isn't facing cash flow difficulties as suggested by some market rumors, PBR President Maria das Gracas Silva Foster tells a Brazilian lawmakers, adding that a recent $11B bond sale was aimed at more growth and investment, not at meeting pending obligations. [Energy] Comment!
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2:38 PM Varian Medical (VAR -1.5%) says it's received FDA 501(k) clearance for its Nexus DRF Digital X-Ray Imaging System, a diagnostic X-ray imaging processing workstation that combines radio frequency and digital radiography. [Healthcare] Comment!
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2:33 PM Total (TOT -0.7%) approves a €1B project ($1.29B) to modernize its Antwerp refining and petrochemical platform, the company's largest in Europe. TOT says the project is part of its strategy of focusing investment on its large integrated platforms to position them among the most competitive in the industry. [Energy] Comment!
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2:25 PM Highlights from Jamba's (JMBA +4.8%) presentation at the B. Riley Investor Conference: 1) The company is seeing the highest growth rate in the lunch daypart with same store sales up 6% in 2013. 2) The chain's growth runway is long with 1,000 international locations in the pipeline. 3) By 2016, consumer products could generate more than $15M in sales. 4) Store-level margins of 20% and comparable store sales growth of 4% to 6% is part of the company's 2013 guidance. (webcast) [Consumer] Comment!
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2:19 PM SolarWinds' (SWI -13.9%) is downgraded to Sector Perform at Pacific Crest after yesterday's $120M purchase of N-able Technologies. "The customer base, integration of the acquisition and deal size is incongruous with prior acquisitions," the firm writes, adding SWI is spending half of its cash on an "incremental opportunity that pales in comparison to its existing" market. [Tech, M&A, On the Move] Comment!
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2:17 PM Up as high as $1,413 following Bernanke's (at the time) perceived dovish testimony this morning, gold (GLD -0.9%) reverses along with stocks. Markets make opinions, and now the focus on Bernanke is he's prepping the markets for tapering. The just-released FOMC minutes push down gold even further, now at $1,357/oz. [Commodities, On the Move] 1 Comment
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2:14 PM Boston Scientific (BSX -1%) slides in spite of reporting positive results earlier today from a pre-specified analysis of the first 60 patients enrolled in its trial evaluating the performance and safety of the Lotus Valve System in symptomatic patients with severe aortic valve disease considered at high risk for surgical valve replacement. The results showed the trials met primary endpoints in both performance and safety. [Healthcare] Comment!
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2:10 PM Heard during Target's (TGT -4.9%) earnings call: 1) The company justifies its stance that weather had a big impact in Q1 by noting sales in weather-neutral areas such as Florida held up better than the Midwest and East Coast. 2) The number of customers taking advantage of the retailer's price match guarantee hasn't changed materially either in stores or online. 3) "Sales and traffic in our digital channels continued to grow at a robust pace." Backing out sensitive categories, the growth rate was 20% in digital channels. (transcript) [Consumer] Comment!
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2:10 PM Stocks had already shed their Bernanke-testimony gains from this morning and they head even lower following the release of the FOMC minutes showing a "number" willing to begin tapering QE as soon as the next policy meeting. S&P 500 (SPY -0.4%), Nasdaq 100 (QQQ -0.6%). The dollar (UUP +0.4%) moves to a new session-high, and Treasurys (TLT -1.3%) continue to sell off. Comment!
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2:07 PM After an early 5% pop to the upside, Amarin (AMRN -0.9%) reverses course to trade lower after the company said the USPTO published a notification tied to its combination product of Vascepa and Statin Therapy. The application is part of AMRN's expansive portfolio, which includes 23 patent applications either issued or allowed, and over 30 applications pending in the U.S. [Healthcare, On the Move] 1 Comment
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2:04 PM FOMC Minutes: A "number" on the FOMC favored beginning a tapering of QE as early as June, but the committee as a whole decided more progress on the economy is needed first. A few participants expressed concern inflation is under target and say future price developments must be carefully watched. One member wanted to boost asset purchases, while one wanted tapering to begin immediately. [U.S. Economy, Breaking News, Top Stories] 1 Comment
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2:00 PM On the hour: Dow +0.17%. 10-yr -0.52%. Euro -0.36% vs. dollar. Crude -1.59% to $94.65. Gold -1.06% to $1362.95. Comment!
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2:00 PM OpenTable (OPEN -5.1%) slides as investors seem displeased with its Q1 Restaurant Industry Index which shows a 1.4% decline in the number of guests served in reservation-taking establishments in North America during the quarter. Some markets (notably Atlanta, Chicago, Philadelphia, and to a lesser extent Boston) faced "notable headwinds" as Y/Y growth rates swung squarely into negative territory. (PR) [Tech, On the Move] Comment!
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1:50 PM Joy Global (JOY -3.3%) slides today, making it one of the worst laggards in the S&P 500 after Barclay's cut the shares to EqualWeight and lowers its price target from $79 to $66. [On the Move] Comment!
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1:43 PM Google just released a new tool under Google Trends to rank the highest search terms per category. Though it's not quite actionable advice quite yet, a lot of scientific abstracts have been making a solid case that in some industries a correlation between Google searches and stock prices exists. The trick is separating negative searches from positive ones. The most searched fashion brands on Google: 1) Forever 21 2) American Eagle Outfitters (AEO +2.3%) 3) Hennes & Mauritz (HMRZF.PK) 4) Tiffany (TIF +0.2%) 5) Hollister (ANF +1.2%). [Consumer] Comment!
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1:35 PM Citing an FDA warning letter and the company's revised FY13 guidance among other factors, Moody's puts Hospira's (HSP -0.8%) long-term debt rating on review for downgrade. The ratings agency says "cash payouts associated with [HSP's new medical device] strategy, remediation costs, and the potential for lost sales once its branded injectible sedative, Precedex, loses patent protection" could hurt liquidity and tighten credit metrics. [Healthcare] Comment!
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