Jira Pliankharom
Stock futures edged up on Wednesday amid rate cut uncertainty following some strong economic data.
Here are some of Wednesday's biggest stock movers:
Biggest stock gainers
Shares of Cal-Maine Foods (CALM) surged more than 6% following upbeat FQ3 results, with sales volume up by 3.2% Y/Y. The company emphasized that it has a strong balance sheet that provides the company with the ability to finance growth initiatives, including potential acquisitions.
Vanda Pharmaceuticals' (VNDA) shares jumped over 47% after FDA approved Fanapt (iloperidone) tablets for the acute treatment of manic or mixed episodes associated with bipolar I disorder in adults. The approval was based on a study involving approximately 400 patients. Fanapt is an atypical antipsychotic agent that has been used as an acute treatment for patients with schizophrenia since its FDA approval in 2009.
Despite falling short of consensus in Q4, Dave & Buster’s Entertainment (PLAY) rose about 12% as the company renewed its commitment to achieve $1B in adjusted EBITDA in the coming years. “Fiscal 2024 is set-up to be a transformative year for our company with the anticipated opening of an additional 15 new domestic stores, the opening of up to four new international D&B units, our continued focus on cost efficiency, and adjusted EBITDA margin improvement," said CEO Chris Morris. "Despite the uncertain macroeconomic backdrop, everything we have seen and learned in the last several months has only strengthened our resolve and confidence in our ability to achieve the $1 billion adjusted EBITDA target in the coming years."
Signet Jewelers (SIG) shares soared 9% after the company and Leonard Green & Partners amended the terms of the Series A convertible preference shares to a net share settlement and repurchased half of the preferred shares. The preferred shares, which were converted into 8.2M Signet common shares, will be repurchased for $414M in cash. This will reduce Signet's diluted share count by 7.6%, and the company expects a reduction to GAAP net income attributable to common shareholders of about $83M as a deemed dividend during 1Q25. As a result, the company increased its non-GAAP diluted EPS outlook to a range of $9.90 to $11.52 per diluted share from its prior view of $9.08 to $10.48.
Biggest stock losers
Intel's (INTC) stock fell over 6.5% after the semiconductor giant revealed an operating loss of $7B on revenues of $18.9B for its Foundry business in 2023, which is wider than the loss of $5.2B recorded in 2022 on $27.5B of sales. The company stated that its Foundry's operating losses are expected to increase in FY2024 and then breakeven between the current quarter and 2030.It targets 40% non-GAAP gross margins and 30% non-GAAP operating margins sometime between now and 2030.
Shares of Wolfspeed (WOLF) slipped 4% after Wells Fargo downgraded the company to Equal Weight and cut its price target to $30 from $55, citing its exposure to the electric vehicle market. Wells Fargo analyst Gary Mobley said that Tesla could see a decline in volume this year, and a lack of offset from other electric vehicle companies could lead to a fall in demand for silicon carbide. Other electric vehicle companies, such as BYD, Mercedes-Benz, and Hyundai, may not pick up the slack. Tesla reported weaker-than-expected first-quarter deliveries earlier this week and accounts for roughly 55% of the silicon carbide market. The downgrade is specific to Wolfspeed due to its pure exposure to the market and lack of profitability.
More on related stocks:
- Dave & Buster's Q4 Earnings: Ready To Move Higher, 4x EBITDA
- Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc. (PLAY) Q4 2023 Earnings Call Transcript
- Intel Corporation (INTC) New Segment Reporting Webinar (Transcript)
- Dave & Buster's misses Q4 estimates but renews commitment to $1B EBITDA
- Intel Foundry, 'built for the AI era,' hopes to achieve break-even margins before 2030