Indicators
Wake Up Call
- Hello ! US stock futures were little changed as traders awaited a reading on jobless claims on the eve of the US payrolls report. Treasury 10-year yields rose three basis points to 4.31%.
- ECB - Officials led by President Christine Lagarde lowered the key deposit rate by a quarter-point to 3.75% on Thursday, as expected. Having kept it at 4% for nine months, they said the inflation outlook has improved “markedly,” though also raised projections for prices.
Wall Street Movers
- COUCHBASE +2% 1Q adj loss/sh 10c (est loss 15c). Rev $51.3m (est 48.6m). Sees 2Q total rev $50.6m to $51.4m (est 51m). Sees FY25 total rev $204.5m to $208.5m, saw $203.0m to $207m (est 206m).
- FIVE BELOW -15% 1Q net sales $811.9m (est $836.2m) hurt by the overstocking of Squishmallows stuffed toys. Cut FY25 et sales $3.79b to $3.87b (est $4.03b). EPS $4.97 to $5.37 (est $6.03)
- LULULEMON +10% sees 2Q net rev 4cst $2.4b to $2.42b (est $2.46b). EPS $2.92 to $2.97 (est $3.04). 1Q EPS $2.54 (est $2.39). Co. approved a $1b increase in its stock repurchase program. It has already repurchased 0.8m shares of its common stock for a cost of $296.9m during 1Q.
- NOVAVAX +18% said it expects to be ready for the commercial delivery of a protein-based JN.1 Covid-19 vaccine in the US in September, pending authorization.
- NVIDIA +1% became the first computer-chip company ever to hit $3t in market capitalization, overtaking Apple.
- ROBINHOOD +3% agreed to buy global cryptocurrency exchange Bitstamp and said it expects the final deal consideration to be approximately $200m in cash. The deal is expected to end H1 of 2025.
- VICTORIA’S SECRET -2.8% 1Q stores only comp sales -8% in challenging and competitive environment. Adj EPS 12c (est 9.8c). Sees FY25 adj operating income $250m to $275m (est $267.1m).
- VISTA OUTDOOR +6.7% received an increased all-cash proposal from MNC Capital Partners for all of Co.’s for $39.50/shr, or over $3b.
At A Glance
- BOEING CEO Dave Calhoun will face a bipartisan inquiry into the planemaker’s safety practices and culture when he testifies before the US Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, congressional leaders said yesterday.
- CIGNA maintains FY adj operating EPS at least $28.40. Co is also on track to buyback $5b of stock in H1 of 2024.
- CORE SCIENTIFIC rejects $5.75/sh proposal from CoreWeave ; Says proposal undervalues Co.
- ELI LILLY’s hefty investment in expanding production capacity for its popular weight-loss and diabetes drugs is starting to pay off in Japan, allowing the company to lift shipment controls it imposed in the country last year.
- GIII APPAREL maintains FY25 net sales 4cst $3.20bs (est $3.19b). Raises adj EPS view $3.58 to $3.68 (est $3.58). 1Q adj EPS 12c (est loss/shr 3.5c). Co. enters a partnership w/ ALL WE WEAR for an ownership stake of approximately 12%.
- GOOGLE Gideon Yu, former CFO of YouTube and Facebook, is leading an effort to raise about $500m for a fund affiliated with Alphabet’s moonshot lab, X. This fund would be independent but closely affiliated with the lab.
- HALOZYME sees FY revenue $935m to $1.02b (est $953.1m) / sees FY adj EPS $3.65 to $4.05 (est $3.53).
- INTEL and its 14 partner companies in Japan will conduct chip production R&D at Sharp’s underused LCD plants, Nikkei reports without attribution.
- JM SMUCKER sees FY25 adj EPS 4cst $9.80 to $10.20 (est $10.18). Positive net sales +9.5% to +10.5% reflecting a FY of net sales from the Hostess Brands acquisition. 4Q adj EPS $2.66 (est $2.33). Net sales $2.21b (est $2.24b).
- MICROSOFT The US FTC is investigating whether a deal Microsoft struck with AI startup Inflection may have been structured to avoid regulatory scrutiny, the WSJ reported. Separately, the NYT said regulators reached a deal that allows them to proceed with antitrust probes into the roles played by Microsoft, OpenAI and Nvidia in the AI industry.
- NEWMONT said its plan to raise $2b is on track as its asset sales attract bidders.
- SMARTSHEET raises FY25 adj EPS $1.22 to $1.29 (est $1.11). Sees rev $1.12b to $1.12b (est $1.12b). 1Q adj EPS 32c (est 26c)
- SPRINKLR cut FY rev $779m to $781m (est $805.1m) and subscription rev $714m to $716m (est $736.8m). 1Q Rev $196.0m (est $194.5m). Analysts pointed to a difficult backdrop for the company and the broader software industry, with Morgan Stanley saying that “more patience is required by investors” as the company works through a revamp.
- VANDA PHARMA Cycle Pharmaceuticals confirms it made a proposal to buy Vanda Pharmaceuticals for $8 per share in cash or $466mn.
Broker Moves
UPGRADES
- AMERICAN ELECTRIC POWER upgraded to neutral at Ladenburg Thalmann.
- STONECO upgraded to overweight at JPMorgan.
- UNITED AIRLINES raised to buy at Redburn; pt $70.
DOWNGRADES
- BOEING, CATERPILLAR, TAKE-TWO cut from Jefferies franchise list.
- DOLLAR TREE cut to neutral at Citi; PT $120.
- ZIM downgraded to sell at Citi.
INITIATIONS
- CARVANA added to Evercore ISI positive tactical trading list.
- CONOCOPHILLIPS, WESTERN ALLIANCE, INSULET, DRAFTKINGS, EATON added to Jefferies franchise picks.
- LULULEMON added to JPMorgan analyst focus list.
Today's Key Events (UK Time)
13:30 US Initial Jobless Claims & Continuing Claims, Nonfarm Productivity, Trade Balance, Labor Costs
Game Of Corporate Actions
DIV EX DATE
- Today : Kimco Realty ($0.24); Kraft Heinz ($0.4); Mosaic ($0.21)
- Tomorrrow : Arthur J Gallagher ($0.6); Bank of America ($0.24); Bath & Body Works ($0.2); BlackRock ($5.1); Booking ($8.75); Brown-Forman ($0.2178); CH Robinson Worldwide ($0.61); CME ($1.15); General Motors ($0.12); Genuine Parts ($1); Kimberly-Clark ($1.22); Molson Coors ($0.44); Northern Trust ($0.75); PepsiCo ($1.355); Public Service Enterprise ($0.6); Simon Property ($2); Tapestry ($0.35); Trane Technologies ($0.84); Waste Management ($0.75); Williams ($0.475