35 Fresh Stories That You Should Read To Know How The Financial Markets Are Doing Today

1. U.S. Stock Market:

“U.S. stocks slipped Monday, as declining prices for industrial metals weighed on materials shares. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 15 points, or less than 0.1%, to 20992. The S&P 500 lost 0.2% after briefly touching an intraday record in early trading. The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.2%.”

(Fox Business)

 

“The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq composite notched new all-time highs on Monday despite a narrow trading range as investors digested Emmanuel Macron’s victory over Marine Le Pen in the French presidential election. The two indexes broke above their respective record intraday highs shortly after the open before trading about 0.1 percent lower. The Dow Jones industrial average also fell marginally, with IBM contributing the most losses.”

 (CNBC)

“The U.S. stock market opened nearly flat on Monday following Emmanuel Macron’s closely watched presidential election victory in France on Sunday. A run-up in global stocks leading up to the polls suggested that investors fully priced in Macron victory. Shares of Coach Inc COH, +4.31% jumped after news that it will buy Kate Spade KATE, +8.19% Shares of Kate Spade also rallied. The S&P 500SPX, -0.20% flat at 2,399, near its record close set on Friday. The Nasdaq Composite COMP, -0.28% was unchanged at 6,099 at the open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, -0.09% began the session flat at 21,005.”

(Market Watch)

 

2. U.S. Bond Market:

 

“The U.S. Treasuries gained Monday as investors look forward to a host of speeches from the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) members, scheduled for later today and through the week. Also, 10-year note auction, due to be held on may 10 will provide further direction to the debt market. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury slumped 1-1/2 basis points to 2.33 percent, the super-long 30-year bond yields plunged 2 basis points to 2.97 percent and the yield on short-term 2-year note traded 1/2 basis point lower at 1.31 percent by 12:10GMT.”

(EconoTimes)

“U.S. government debt prices were slightly higher on Monday, as investors digested the latest political news out of France, where centrist Emmanuel Macron secured the presidency. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note moved slightly lower to around 2.345 percent at 8:30 a.m. ET, while the yield on the 30-year Treasury bond was also slightly off at 2.983 percent. Bond yields move inversely to prices.”

(CNBC)

“Markets in the U.S. were turning risk-on Monday morning. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note was down at 2.34% and stock futures were pointing to a lower open.”

(Barron’s)

 

3. FX Markets:

 

“The euro extended losses against the dollar and the yen on Monday as investors took profits after the single currency rallied to multi-month highs overnight in the wake of Emmanuel Macron’s presidential election victory in France. EUR/USD was down 0.45% to 1.0949 by 10.24 GMT after rising as high as 1.1022 overnight, the strongest level since early November. EUR/JPY was down 0.63% at 123.17 after touching one-year peaks of 124.49 overnight. The dollar slid lower against the yen, with USD/JPY down 0.2% to 112.48, off an overnight high of 112.95.”

(Investing.com)

 

“The win for Macron in the French Presidential election failed to provide any support for the Pound Sterling which held below the $1.30 level. The Pound continues to trade within relatively narrow ranges as attention turns to the upcoming meeting of the Bank of England. As reported at 11:24 am (BST) in London, the GBP/USD was trading at $1.2967, down 0.16%; the pair has ranged from $1.2901 to $1.2993 in today’s trading session. The EUR/GBP was down 0.35% to trade at 0.8444 Pence; off the session low of 0.8432 Pence while the peak was set at 0.8490 Pence.”

(Daily Forex)

“The euro dipped against the dollar, having risen in early Asian trade to just above $1.10 when opinion polls signaled the scale of Macron’s victory over anti-euro nationalist Marine Le Pen. In currency markets, the euro rose to a six-month high of $1.1024 in early Asian trade but last stood at $1.0955, down 0.4 percent on the day. The safe-haven Japanese yen, having earlier fallen to a seven-week low against the dollar, also changed course and was last up 0.1 percent at 112.58 per dollar.”

(Reuters)

 

4. Commodities:

 

“Oil prices slipped on Monday, reversing gains made earlier in the session as evidence of rising U.S. drilling offset news that OPEC and other producers may extend their production cuts. Brent crude was down 37 cents on the day at $48.73 a barrel at 1246 GMT (8.46 a.m. ET), having risen to a high of $49.92 earlier in the session. U.S. light crude fell by 30 cents to $45.92 a barrel, down from a intra-day high of $46.98.”

(Reuters)

“Gold prices snapped back on Monday after suffering their largest weekly loss of the year, breaking with the metal’s typically inverse relationship to a firmer dollar as global markets digested Sunday’s French election. Even with political risk subsiding for now, June gold GCM7, +0.27% rose $8.20, or 0.7%, to $1,235.10 an ounce. On Friday, the contract settled at $1,226.90 an ounce, with prices at their lowest level in about seven weeks. Prices finished about 3.3% lower for the week, which was the largest weekly percentage loss since the week ended Nov. 11, according to FactSet data. July silver SIN7, +0.07% rose 11 cents, or 0.7%, to $16.3800. It closed Friday at $16.274 an ounce, its lowest settlement of 2017. It ended roughly 5.7% lower for the week, for its worst weekly decline since the week ended Oct. 7.”

(Market Watch)

“Oil prices surrendered gains on Monday as traders weighed news that an OPEC-led production cut scheduled to end in June could be extended against an ongoing upsurge in U.S. shale production. U.S. crude was down 17 cents, or 0.37%, at $46.05 by 08.07 ET. Brent crude was down 20 cents, or 0.41% to $48.90.”

(Investing.com)

 

5. Market Movers:

Shares of Kate Spade & Co (NYSE:KATE) KATE, +8.16% jumped 9.9% in premarket trade Monday, after the apparel and accessories company agreed to be acquired by Coach Inc (NYSE:COH). COH, +5.81% in a deal valued at $2.4 billion. Under terms of the deal, Coach will pay $18.50 in cash for each Kate Spade share outstanding, which represents a 9.0% premium to Friday’s closing price. Coach said it expects the deal to add to fiscal 2018 adjusted earnings, and expects $50 million in synergies. Coach said the deal, which it believes will close in the third quarter, will be funded by $1.2 billion in excess cash and senior notes and bank term loans.

(Market Watch)

Horizon Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:HZNP) HZNP 30.62% shares are trading lower by $4.73 (30 percent) at $10.85 in Monday’s session. The catalyst for the decline is a Q1 EPS miss of $0.02 along with sales miss of $27 million. The company also lowered FY 2017 guidance for sales to $1.00-$1.04 billion from $1.24-$1.29 billion. After a lower open, Horizon’s stock had a brief $0.02 pop to $11.17 before continuing its move lower. The ensuing decline found support ahead of its October 2014 low ($10.15) at $10.35 and has mounted a nice rebound that has yet to reach the $11.00 handle, with the high of the bounce being $10.93 as of 10:50 a.m. EST.

(Benzinga)

JD stock is up 8% Monday morning as the Chinese e-commerce giant draws new customers with global home products and other brands. JD.Com Inc (ADR) (NASDAQ:JD) announced a strong first quarter of 2017 that saw China’s No. 2 e-commerce operator flip to a profit. As a result, JD stock is up more than 8% in Monday’s premarket trade. JD.com announced that first-quarter 2017 net income from operations was $122.5 million compared to a $126 million loss in the comparable period last year. Earnings were 2 cents per share of JD stock, according to a company announcement.

(InvestorPlace)

Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc (NASDAQ:SBGI), the country’s biggest TV station ownership group, is about to get bigger. Sinclair announced Monday that it will acquire Tribune Media Co. (NYSE:TRCO) — with its 42 TV stations in 33 markets across the U.S. — for $3.9 billion plus the assumption of about $2.7 billion in debt. Tribune shareholders are to receive $35 and 0.23 of a share of Sinclair common stock per share of Tribune stock; based on Friday’s closing price, that’s a total value of $43.50 a share. The deal — which is still subject to approval by the Federal Communications Commission — would give Sinclair a presence in the top three TV markets, with KTLA in Los Angeles, WPIX in New York and WGN in Chicago.

(Los Angeles Times)

 

 

Newell Brands Inc (NYSE:NWL) shares jumped 12.3% in Monday trading after the company reported first-quarter earnings that beat expectations, and raised both its guidance and dividend. Net income was $638.5 million, or $1.31 per share, up from $40.5 million, or 15 cents per share for the same period last year. Earnings benefited from the sale of the company’s tools business and cost synergies from the acquisition of Jarden and other contributions. Adjusted earnings were 34 cents, beating the 29-cent FactSet consensus.

(ForexTV)

Shares of TherapeuticsMD Inc (NYSE:TXMD), a healthcare company that focuses on creating and commercializing products for women, fell more than 11 percent Monday morning after the company announced it has received a Complete Response Letter (CRL) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The letter is in response to the company’s New Drug Application (NDA) for its investigational applicator-free estradiol vaginal softgel capsule called TX-004HR. The therapy is used for the treatment of moderate-to-severe vaginal pain during sexual intercourse.

(Benzinga)

This one is a little complicated. The company is an oncology stock that is developing a drug called sacituzumab govitecan, or more commonly IMMU-132. It’s a breast cancer asset (initially) and its primary indication right now is a type of breast cancer called metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). It’s a dramatically underserved area of oncology and – to date – data from the program suggests that 132 could be a potential game changing option for patients in this population. Immunomedics, Inc. (NASDAQ:IMMU) carried the drug through to phase II and then, earlier this year, put together a license agreement with Seattle Genetics (NASDAQ:SGEN) that saw the latter pick up the rights to 132 for $250 million cash and an additional $1.7 billion in milestones.

(Market Exclusive)

What happened: Shares of Gigamon Inc (NYSE:GIMO) have soared today, up by 17.9% as of 1:23 p.m. EDT, after activist investor Elliott Management disclosed a new stake in the network visibility company. So what: Elliott Management now has a 15.3% stake in Gigamon and makes it clear that it intends to push management toward selling the company. Elliott says that it believes Gigamon shares “are significantly undervalued and represent an attractive investment opportunity,” while it intends to “engage in a dialogue with the [Gigamon] Board of Directors regarding opportunities to maximize shareholder value.”

(The Motley Fool)

Petmed Express Inc (NASDAQ:PETS) is one of the biggest advancers on the Nasdaq, after the pet medication retailer unveiled strong earnings and boosted its quarterly dividend. After hitting a record high of $28.65 earlier, PETS stock was most recently trading up 17.4% at $28.44.

(Schaeffers’ Investment Research)

What happened: Shares of specialty semiconductor foundry Tower Semiconductor Ltd. (USA) (NASDAQ:TSEM) surged on Monday after the company reported its first-quarter results. Tower beat analyst estimates for earnings, posted double-digit revenue growth, and produced record free cash flow, prompting investors to push the stock up 12.5% as of 11:38 a.m. EDT. So what: Tower reported first-quarter revenue of $330 million, up 19% year over year and in line with the average analyst estimate.

(Pantagraph)

Shares of Centurylink Inc (NYSE:CTL) traded up 3.792% on Monday, reaching $24.495. The company had a trading volume of 15,938,576 shares. The company has a market capitalization of $13.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.015 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a 50 day moving average of $24.38 and a 200-day moving average of $24.75. Centurylink Inc has a 52 week low of $22.33 and a 52 week high of $33.45. Centurylink (NYSE:CTL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 3rd. The technology company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $4.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.27 billion.

(Transcript Daily)

Shares of 3D Systems Corporation (NYSE:DDD) are experiencing unusual volume during today’s trading.  While the stock price moved along with the volume change, shares are touching $17.96 at the time of writing.  The day’s total volume of 3557876 this morning is in contrast from the three-month daily average of 2049.00K.  When we divide the current volume by the three-month average volume, we get a relative volume of 3.09. 3D Systems Corporation (NYSE:DDD)‘s market cap, the total dollar value of all of their outstanding shares, is 1997.48m.  Including today’s unusual volume, 3D Systems Corporation‘s stock is performing at 27.99% on the year.  For the week, the stock is performing 7.45%.

(The Hiram Herald)

What happened: Shares of Kite Pharma Inc. (NASDAQ:KITE), a biotech developing cell therapies for the treatment of cancer, are getting beaten up after the company revealed a patient death associated with its lead candidate. As of 10:50 a.m. EDT on Monday, the stock had retreated 11.9% in response to the disclosure. So what: Kite Pharma is one of a handful of companies racing to develop the first CAR-T therapy, a form of treatment that involves removing and then modifying a patient’s own immune cells to recognize and attack cancer cells. Sadly, this type of treatment can be a little too effective, which in turn can lead to fatal brain swelling.

(The Motley Fool)

 

6. Interesting Reads

 

“Google has wrapped up the Android Nougat beta program and says it will launch the Android O beta ‘soon’. Google’s heads-up about the next Android beta comes just 10 days ahead of its I/O developer conference, where it will be showing off new Android features for payments and vehicles, as well as its recently announced Android Things for Raspberry Pi. “The beta for Android Nougat has concluded, and all devices that were opted in have been updated to the current public version. If you are still running a beta version of Nougat you may download the latest full OTA image for your device and sideload it,” Google notes on its Android Beta Program page.”

(ZDNet)

“The iPhone is one of the most desired smartphones out there, and this happens every year with every new model that Apple launches. But the iPhone 8 is probably the most anticipated iPhone release in years, given that Apple is rumored to prepare a massive design overhaul for the iPhone’s 10th birthday. Most rumors say Apple wants to offer buyers a premium iPhone 8 device that will pack a few features that were never before seen on an iPhone, with some of them representing massive breakthroughs for the mobile business. These innovations are widely expected to delay the launch of the phone, according to most recent reports. That’s why the following story is pretty puzzling.”

(BGR.com)

“Family background plays a crucial role in the development of students’ academic motivation and achievement. Previous research suggested that parents’ academic involvement is, on average, associated with better academic outcomes, but the pattern of results was far from being unequivocal and it also remained unclear what kind of help is actually helpful and what is harmful. For example, excessive parental involvement may be perceived by students as controlling behavior. This can have a detrimental effect on their academic confidence and correspondingly on achievement.”

(Science Daily)

“Samsung Electronics is currently developing the Galaxy C10 and Galaxy C10 Plus and is planning to launch both devices later this year, industry sources said on Monday. The Galaxy C10 is said to bear the model number SM-C9100, while the Galaxy C10 Plus is expected to launch as the SM-C9150/SM-C9158, sources state, which doesn’t perfectly corroborate a report from earlier today according to which the Galaxy C10 is meant to carry the model number SM-C9150. Regardless of the specifics, the sheer number of newly emerged rumors on the matter suggest that the South Korean consumer electronics manufacturer is working on new additions to its upper mid-range smartphone lineup.”

(Android Headlines)

“Believe it or not, 38 million Americans suffer from regular migraines, and many don’t even know it. Yes, the debilitating side effects of a migraine can knock sufferers off their feet and leave them pleading for relief, as the pulsing and throbbing continues from several hours up to several days in some of the most severe cases. But for others, the headache pain associated with their migraine is more moderate and may be mistaken for a sinus headache or tension headache.”

(U.S. News)

“We’re living in a golden age for tech, with new innovations and inventions appearing on a regular basis – so we thought we’d take a look at the status of a few inventions you may be familiar with from sci-fi movies but haven’t yet seen while walking down the street. You can actually expect to see a lot of this tech sooner than you think, as artificial intelligence, materials science, and some of the brightest minds in the planet continue to drive progress. In other words, start saving up for that jetpack as soon as you can.”

(T3.com)

“As with any new transportation technology, it’s not as simple as building your first vehicle and expecting the whole world to change. And yet, it appears as if the world is finally cottoning on to this whole electric cars are better and cheaper to run thing. The European Automobile Manufacturers Association has revealed that EV sales in the first quarter of 2017 are spiking. Overall, sales of so-called “Alternative Fuel Vehicles” have increased by an overall 37.6 percent compared to the first quarter of 2016.”

(Engadget)

“The 10 best hotel rewards program for business travelers have been designed with travelers’ preferences in mind, granting them convenience and comfort. Travelling has become a necessary part of life for many, with a large number of people traveling both domestically and internationally for both work and leisure. As such, many hotels and resorts offer reward programs for travelers in order to attract them and build long-term relationships with them. According to a study by Market Metrix, hotel loyalty programs have become one of the most important factors to consider when booking a hotel.”

(Insider Monkey)

“Being a chef, you must have wondered which are the 10 highest paying countries for chefs in the world. Everybody around you is enjoying your specialties? Friends and customers say your skills are superb, and you feel pretty self-satisfied yourself. But every once in a while when the going gets tough, it crosses your mind whether you could be earning more in another restaurant, or, say, in another country perhaps? Well, in that case, we may just have the answer for you. To find the 10 highest paying countries for chefs we have started with the Business Insider‘s list of the richest countries in the world, i.e. with the highest GDP per capita.”

(Insider Monkey)

If you are a Tinder user, then you may find our list of 10 funny Tinder hookup stories hilarious or even very familiar. Needless to say, our dating habits have completely changed during the last decade thanks to the Internet and technology. Instead of taking days, weeks or months to decide whether we want to see or date someone or not, now all it takes are a few seconds. We simply see someone’s picture and then we swipe right if we like what we see or left if we don’t. How much simpler can it get? Indeed, this really is a very simplified way of starting something with someone, be it a relationship or a hookup. It saves a lot of time, but we must say it’s a little shallow, too. How many times have you fallen in love at second or third sight? Sometimes we need more than just a few seconds.

(Insider Monkey)