Headline-Making Stocks of the Day: Zynga, Fox, Metlife, More

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Weight Watchers Enjoys the “Oprah Effect”

Weight Watchers International, Inc. (NYSE:WTW)’s stock is more than 3.5% in the green today after the company reported a loss of $0.17 per share, better than the estimated loss of $0.18 per share. The weight management services company’s revenue came in at $306.9 million for the quarter, narrowly missing the consensus of $308.9 million. Memberships grew by 4.8% to 3.1 million in the quarter. For the full year, the company now expects EPS in the range of $0.80-to-$1.05. Analysts think that the company’s partnership with Oprah Winfrey has indeed boded well for the company as evidenced by the solid membership growth in a challenging environment. Ms. Winfrey bought a 10% stake in the company in October.

There were 24 hedge funds in our database with positions in Weight Watchers International at the end of 2015. Adam Usdan‘s Trellus Management added a new stake of 30,500 shares of Weight Watchers to its portfolio during the first quarter.

Twenty-First Century Fox Beats Estimates

Shares of Twenty-First Century Fox Inc (NASDAQ:FOX) have gained 0.27% today after the media company posted solid results for its third quarter of fiscal year 2016, thanks to strong affiliate fees, ads revenue, and the success of the movie ‘Deadpool’, which was released in February. The media company posted EPS of $0.47, in-line with estimates. Revenue increased by 5.7% year-over-year to $7.2 billion during the fiscal quarter, topping estimates of $7.1 billion. Revenue from the cable business, which accounts for half of the company’s revenue, grew by 10% to $3.94 billion. In an earnings call, Fox’s CEO, James Murdoch, confirmed that the company is in talks with Hulu regarding a new online TV service partnership.

Overall, 31 hedge funds in our database had positions in Fox as of the end of last year.

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Becton Dickinson Rising on Medical Unit Sales

Becton Dickinson and Co (NYSE:BDX)’s stock has gained more than 2% today after the company reported EPS of $2.18 for the second quarter of fiscal year 2016, beating analysts’ consensus estimate of $2.02. Quarterly revenue increased by 5% year-over-year to $3.07 billion, meeting analysts’ expectations. The New Jersey-based medical technology company reported that sales in its medical unit skyrocketed by 93% to $2.13 billion. For the full year, the company expects EPS in the range of $8.50 to $8.57, better than its previous EPS guidance range of $8.37 to $8.44.

First Eagle Investment Management holds more than 1.39 million shares of the company as of March 31, having inched its position up by 2% during the first quarter.

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Disclosure: None

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