The biggest risers in the S&P 500 on Thursday

6 minutes ago

Rejecting

• Shares of Moderna (MRNA) lost 6.5%, the weakest performer on the S&P 500 on Thursday. The decline coincided with the approval of Moderna’s vaccine to protect against new strains of COVID-19. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommends an updated shot for everyone over 6 months of age, and Moderna expects the new version to be available within days. However, in early August, the company lowered its full-year revenue forecast, citing weak vaccine demand in Europe.
• Intel (INTC) shares fell 6.1% after reports emerged questioning the semiconductor giant’s progress in building two new chip factories in Germany. The company received a government subsidy of around $11 billion to build the facilities, with the goal of bringing them online and producing chips by 2027. However, that timeline now appears uncertain. Some investors have expressed concern that Intel may decide not to move forward with plans in Germany given the significant cost cuts it is seeking.

• Tesla (TSLA) Vice President Sreela Venkataratnam announced she would be the latest in a series of executives leaving the company, and shares of the electric vehicle (EV) maker fell 5.7%. In her 11-year tenure at Tesla, Venkataratnam was involved in building factories, accelerating vehicle production and expanding the energy business.

Advanced

• Investment manager shares Franklin Resources (BEN) rose 4.6%, the best performer of any stock in the S&P 500. Thursday’s gains erased some of the previous session’s heavy losses after the company announced that the co-chief investment officer (CIO) of its Western Asset Management unit is taking a leave of absence. The manager’s departure came amid internal and regulatory investigations into certain past trading assignments made by the division.
• Nordson (NDSN), a provider of coating and adhesive systems for various industries, reported better-than-expected revenue and earnings for the fiscal third quarter, and its shares rose 3.3%. Momentum in the company’s Industrial Precision Solutions segment as well as sales growth in Asia Pacific and Europe contributed to the strong performance.
• Shares of State road (STT) rose 2.2% after the financial services firm announced a partnership with Swiss digital asset platform Taurus. The deal will help State Street deliver reliable digital asset capabilities to its clients by leveraging Taurus’ custody, tokenization and node management solutions.

–Michael Bromberg

What can we expect from Powell on Friday?

25 minutes ago

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell will deliver a speech on Friday morning that investors are eagerly awaiting for clues about the timeline for interest rate cuts.

While Powell and other Fed officials have said a rate cut is possible at the Fed’s next meeting in September, the central bank chief is unlikely to provide details on the timing or extent of monetary easing.

Powell is likely to reiterate that the Fed will monitor data through the September meeting, with a particular focus on labor market data as inflation continues to ease.

Read the full preview here.

–Colin Laidley

Advance Auto Parts falls to 2024 low

2 hrs 51 mins ago

Advance Auto Parts (AAP) shares plunged after the company reported quarterly results that were well below expectations and revised down its full-year guidance. The earnings news overshadowed the sale of its wholesale business.

The retailer reported diluted earnings per share (EPS) of 75 cents, down from $1.32 a year ago and missing analysts’ expectations of 92 cents. Net sales were roughly flat at $2.68 billion, slightly above expectations.

Advance Auto Parts has cut its full-year revenue forecast to $11.15 billion to $11.25 billion, while diluted earnings per share are estimated at $2 billion to $2.50. The company cited a “difficult demand environment” and noted that the current quarter is off to a weak start.

The company’s shares lost 16 percent in recent trading. They fell as much as 22 percent in early trading, trading at their lowest level since last October.

Advance Auto also announced the sale of its wholesale distribution unit Worldpac for $1.5 billion. The unit was bought by funds managed by the Carlyle Group (CG), the company said Wednesday.

–Andrew Kessel

BJ’s Wholesale crashes due to weak forecast

4 hrs 55 mins ago

BJ’s Wholesale Club (BJ) shares fell after the retailer issued cautious guidance as it plans to invest more money in the business. The guidance overshadowed better-than-expected quarterly results.

BJ’s Chief Financial Officer Laura Felice said full-year adjusted earnings per share could be at the low end of the $3.75 to $4 forecast due to long-term investments. Analysts had expected $3.88, according to estimates from Visible Alpha.

BJ’s reported adjusted earnings per share of $1.09 in the second quarter, with revenue rising 4.5% year over year to $5.21 billion. Net sales rose 4.4% to $5.09 billion and membership fees rose 8.9% to $113.1 million. All of these numbers were above analyst estimates.

BJ’s Wholesale shares fell 6% in recent trading, hitting a three-month low.

–Bill McColl

Urban Outfitters share price falls as retailer complains of declining sales

6 hrs 16 mins ago

Urban Outfitters (URBN) shares fell to a multi-month low on Thursday as investors focused on the retailer’s revenue outlook rather than its second-quarter results, which beat estimates.

The company behind retail brands such as Anthropologie and Free People, as well as the stores of the same name, reported total revenue of $1.35 billion and net income of $117.5 million, beating analysts’ expectations.

Comparable sales increased 6.7% year-over-year at Anthropologie and 7.1% at Free People. However, at Urban Outfitters, sales decreased 9.3% year-over-year, more than expected.

In Wednesday’s conference call, Chief Operating Officer Frank Conforti said the retailer saw a “slight decline” in sales in late July and the first few weeks of August.

Analysts at JPMorgan said this could point to a weaker third quarter. The analysts maintained their neutral rating on the stock and cut their price target to $42 from $43 in response to signs of weaker sales trends.

Urban Outfitters shares fell 9% in recent trading.

–Aaron McDade

Snowflake shares plunge after earnings report

8 hrs 53 mins ago

Shares of cloud data warehouse software company Snowflake (SNOW) fell more than 10% in premarket trading after a widening net loss and rising costs overshadowed quarterly results that came in above expectations. In addition, despite raising its annual revenue forecast, the company left its gross margin guidance unchanged.

The stock price broke out of a falling wedge formation earlier this month, but that move appears to be being tested following the stock’s expected post-earnings decline.

Snowflake shares could attract buying interest at key price levels such as $123, $108, and $95 on the chart.

Read the full technical analysis here.

–Timothy Smith

Futures point to higher opening for major indices

9 hrs 44 mins ago

Futures linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.1 percent.

S&P 500 futures rose 0.2%.

Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.4%.