What you need to know before Micron Technology reports earnings
14 minutes ago
Micron Technology (MU) is scheduled to report its fiscal third-quarter 2024 results after the close of trading on Wednesday, and investors will likely be keeping an eye on updates on how the company stands to benefit from growing demand for artificial intelligence (AI) and its partnership with AI darling Nvidia (NVDA).
Analysts expect Micron’s third-quarter fiscal 2024 revenue to be $6.7 billion, up from the previous quarter and the same period last year, according to estimates compiled by Visible Alpha.
Net income is expected to be $399.39 million, down from a loss of $1.9 billion in the third quarter of fiscal 2023. Diluted earnings per share (EPS) could be 30 cents, up from a loss of $1.73 per share in the year-ago period.
Find out what analysts are expecting from Micron’s earnings release and conference call here.
-Naomi Buchanan
Amazon becomes fifth U.S. company to reach $2 trillion market capitalization
54 minutes ago
Amazon (AMZN) shares rose more than 4% in intraday trading on Wednesday, helping the company’s market capitalization surpass $2 trillion, making it just the fifth U.S. company to reach that milestone.
Amazon has been buoyed by a recent surge in spending on artificial intelligence and cloud computing, where it has a large market share alongside Microsoft (MSFT) and Alphabet (GOOGL). Expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates later this year have boosted tech stocks in recent days, while its e-commerce business has held up despite pressures from high inflation and interest rates.
Amazon became the fourth U.S. company to surpass $1 trillion in market capitalization for the first time in February 2020. The journey to the $2 trillion mark has been a slow one for the e-commerce giant, at least compared to other large companies.
If Amazon were to close above $2 trillion, it would have taken the company 1,104 business days, or more than four years, to reach the $2 trillion mark. By comparison, it took Alphabet 1,075 days to do so. The first companies to reach the $2 trillion mark, Apple (AAPL) and Microsoft, both took 516 days. And they’re dwarfed by Nvidia (NVDA), which rocketed from $1 trillion to $2 trillion in just 180 days.
What’s next for Chipotle after its 50-for-1 stock split?
1 hour 34 minutes ago
Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) completed a 50-for-1 stock split and began split-adjusted trading on Wednesday. The restaurant chain is looking forward to reporting earnings next month and its long-term plans to continue opening new locations.
Stocks were little changed on Wednesday, but stocks that have undergone stock splits tend to see higher trading volume and “are likely to rise 25% a year later, compared with a 12% rise for the broader index,” Bank of America analysts said.
When announcing the stock split, management said its main goal was to make the shares more accessible, especially to employees.
Buyers of Chipotle stock stand to benefit when the company reports its second-quarter results after the market closes on July 24. The stock surged in April after the company reported better-than-expected first-quarter revenue and profits, and Wedbush analysts said in a recent report that Chipotle is “well-positioned to sustain its rapid market share gains” going forward.
Chipotle shares were up 0.2% to $65.79 on Wednesday afternoon.
-Aaron McDaid
Whirlpool shares surge on Bosch acquisition news
2 hours 41 minutes ago
The company’s shares surged in intraday trading on Wednesday after reports that German rival Robert Bosch was considering buying U.S. appliance maker Whirlpool (WHR).
Reuters Bosch is in talks with potential advisers about making a takeover bid for Whirlpool that would expand its presence in the home appliances market, the news site reported, adding that it was unclear whether a bid would be made.
In emailed statements to Investopedia, both Whirlpool and Bosch explained that as a matter of practice they “do not comment on market rumours.”
Whirlpool shares were up about 15% as of Wednesday afternoon. Still, their 2024 forecast is still down more than 20%.
-Bill McCall
Rivian shares soar after securing $5 billion investment from Volkswagen
3 hours 36 minutes ago
Rivian (RIVN) shares soared 20% in intraday trading on Tuesday on news that German automaker Volkswagen (VWAGY) plans to invest $5 billion in the electric vehicle (EV) startup as part of a joint venture to develop industry-leading vehicle software.
Volkswagen will invest $1 billion initially in the EV maker and plan to inject another $4 billion by 2026, the two automakers said in a joint statement late Tuesday.
“We expect this partnership will not only bring our software and associated zone architecture to a broader market through the Volkswagen Group’s global reach, but also secure the capital needed for significant growth,” Rivian founder and CEO RJ Scaringe said in a statement.
The joint venture comes after Ford (F) divested itself of a majority stake in the EV company last year and backed away from initial plans to co-develop plug-in vehicles with California-based Rivian.
More information on upcoming pricing tiers can be found here.
-Timothy Smith
General Mills’ sales plummet amid tough business environment
4 hours 33 minutes ago
Shares of General Mills (GIS) fell sharply on Wednesday after the consumer foods giant reported weaker-than-expected earnings and offered a weak outlook for price and volume cuts.
The maker of Cheerios cereal, Betty Crocker cake mix and Blue Buffalo pet food reported fourth-quarter fiscal 2024 sales of $4.71 billion, down 6.3% from a year ago and below the $4.85 billion consensus estimate of analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha. Adjusted earnings per share (EPS) were $1.01, beating estimates by 2 cents.
North American retail sales fell 6.9% to $2.85 billion. Pet sales fell 8.1% to $602.1 million, and international sales fell 10.4% to $667.5 million. The only positive growth was in the North American foodservice division, where revenues increased 4.4% to $589 million.
Total volume decreased 2 percentage points as North American retail volume and pet volume declined 6 and 7 percentage points, respectively.
General Mills shares were down more than 4% as of midday Wednesday, putting the company in negative territory for the year.
-Bill McCall
FedEx leads S&P 500 as Wall Street celebrates cost cuts
5 hours 28 minutes ago
Delivery and logistics company FedEx (FDX) was the outperforming stock on the S&P 500 Index Wednesday morning after the company reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings after the close of trading on Tuesday.
The company reported fourth-quarter fiscal 2024 revenue of $22.1 billion, up from the same period a year ago and slightly above analyst expectations, according to estimates compiled by Visible Alpha.
Net income was $1.47 billion, or $5.94 per diluted share, down from $1.54 billion, or $6.05 per share, a year ago but beating analysts’ expectations. Excluding one-time items, adjusted earnings rose nearly 10%, to $5.41 per share.
“These results are unprecedented in the current environment and reflect our continued execution of our DRIVE initiative and our determination to transform FedEx while providing excellent service to our customers,” said Subramaniam. FedEx’s DRIVE program focuses on increasing profits by reducing costs.
FedEx shares rose more than 14% Wednesday morning to about $293, the highest price in nearly three years.
-Naomi Buchanan
The stocks that moved the most immediately after trading began
6 hours 15 minutes ago
Benefits:
- Rivian (RIVN): Rivian shares rose more than 29%, continuing a rally that began in extended trading on Tuesday, after the company said it secured a $5 billion investment from German auto giant Volkswagen.
- FedEx (FDX): The package-delivery giant reported better-than-expected profits in earnings released after the close of trading on Tuesday, sending shares up more than 12% after the company’s plans to cut costs to meet falling demand during the pandemic’s peak paid off.
- Vista Outdoor (VSTO): Shares of the company, which owns outdoor gear and firearms brands such as Camelback and Remington, rose 9% on news that MNC Capital had raised its takeover bid to $3.2 billion to counter a $2 billion bid from a Czechoslovakian group for Vista subsidiary Kinetic Group.
loss:
- General Mills (GIS): Shares of the snack food and cereal giant fell more than 4% after the company released an earnings report that showed sales guidance that fell short of expectations.
- Sanofi (SNY): Shares fell 3% after reports emerged Tuesday that the French pharmaceutical giant was considering selling or spinning off its consumer health products division, which sells products such as Icy Hot.
- Trump Media (DJT): Shares of the former president’s media company continued to be volatile, falling 2% by Wednesday morning after rising 8.5% on Tuesday ahead of the first presidential debate scheduled for Thursday night.
-Aaron McDaid
Nvidia stock futures fall ahead of shareholder meeting
7 hours 6 minutes ago
Futures contracts linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 0.2% at the start of trading on Wednesday.
S&P 500 futures fell 0.2%.
Nasdaq 100 futures also fell 0.2%.
