Stock Indexes Close Higher in Rebound From Tech Rout; AMD Rises After Strong Results; Palantir Slips Further

Data-Storage Firms Seagate Technology, Micron, Western Digital Hit All-Time Highs

10 hr 25 min ago

Seagate Technology Holdings (STX) was the top-performing stock in the S&P 500 Wednesday afternoon, rising more than 11% to hit an all-time high.

Shares of the Singapore-based firm, which supplies hard disk drives (HDDs) for data storage, surged after it said it had agreements with lenders to exchange $500 million in debt for cash and stock.

Fellow data-storage firms Micron Technology (MU) and Western Digital (WDC) also were among the top gainers in the benchmark index today, rising 9% and 7%, respectively, to their own record highs.

Shares of both Seagate Technology Holdings and Western Digital have more than tripled this year and Micron stock has more than doubled amid robust AI infrastructure demand.

The Fed Is Turning to These Data Sets During the Shutdown. Here’s What They Reveal About the Economy

10 hr 39 min ago

While the government’s statistical agencies aren’t publishing crucial data during the ongoing shutdown, Federal Reserve officials are closely watching private-sector data to shine a light on economic trends.

The data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and other agencies is considered the “gold standard” by economists and provides the most comprehensive view of the economy. However, alternative indicators do provide the Fed with some insight into what is happening with inflation and the job market during the shutdown. Data is crucial to help the Fed achieve its dual mandate of keeping price increases stable at 2% per year and maintaining high employment.

“It doesn’t replace the government data, but it gives us a picture,” Fed Chair Jerome Powell said last week at a press conference following the Fed’s decision to lower interest rates by a quarter of a point. “If there were material developments, I think we would pick that up.”

The private data is especially important because the most recent official reports showed inflation rising and the job market weakening. That raises the risk that the U.S. will slip into “stagflation” as trade wars and the ongoing government shutdown send shockwaves through the economy.

At the same press conference, Powell mentioned several indicators that Fed officials are closely monitoring during the federal data blackout.

Read the full article here.

–Diccon Hyatt

McDonald’s CEO Says ‘Value Matters to Everyone’ as Wealthy Customers Stream In

10 hr 48 min ago

McDonald’s is becoming a stomping ground for the well-to-do.

The burger chain’s emphasis on inexpensive meals has attracted more high-income Americans, the company said, though it hasn’t stemmed a two-year slide in traffic from low-income consumers. Traffic among high-earners increased by nearly double digits last quarter, while visits from low-income households fell by a similar amount, CEO Christopher Kempczinski said on a conference call Wednesday. 

The chain will continue to concentrate on bargains, Kempczinski said. McDonald’s (MCD) brought back Extra Value Meals this fall and its $2.99 Snack Wrap this summer, after previously rolling out $5 Meal Deals.

“There’s this idea that value only matters to low-income [consumers]. But value matters to everybody,” Kempczinski said, according to a transcript made available from AlphaSense.

Read the full article here.

–Sarina Trangle

Here’s What Wall Street Analysts Are Saying About AMD’s Earnings

11 hr 32 min ago

Advanced Micro Devices investors have become harder to impress.

The chipmaker yesterday posted record quarterly results and an upbeat outlook on surging demand for its data center chips—and its stock has hardly budged. Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) shares were up about 2%, near $255, in recent trading as the broader tech sector looked to rebound from yesterday’s sell-off.

Here’s a roundup of what Wall Street analysts said about AMD after last night’s results.

Analysts at Oppenheimer, who maintained a neutral rating, voiced some concerns about AMD’s reputation as a “second horse supplier” to AI chip leader Nvidia (NVDA), preferring to stay on the sidelines while waiting to see more from AMD’s ability to compete with its AI strategy.

Most Wall Street analysts, however, remain bullish on the chipmaker’s stock amid expectations of growing market share for AMD.

Jefferies and HSBC analysts, who have “buy” or equivalent ratings for the stock and $300 price targets, said they came away from Tuesday’s results convinced of AMD’s potential for more AI-driven growth. HSBC called AMD’s recent deal with OpenAI a “game changing” development.

Wedbush, which boosted its target to $290 from $270, said it is looking forward to an Analyst Day event next Tuesday for more color on its roadmap.

Read the full article here.

–Kara Greenberg

Zimmer Biomet Stock Sinks on Worse-Than-Expected Q3 Revenue

12 hr 3 min ago

Zimmer Biomet Holdings (ZBH) was the worst-performing stock in the S&P 500 on Wednesday afternoon after the medical device maker’s third-quarter revenue came in weaker than expected.

The Warsaw, Ind.-based firm reported revenue that increased nearly 10% year-over-year to $2.00 billion, but it came in a tick below consensus estimates of analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha. Adjusted earnings of $1.90 per share narrowly topped expectations.

For the full year, Zimmer Biomet affirmed its revenue growth guidance of 6.7% to 7.7%, but lowered the top end of its constant currency and organic constant currency revenue growth range projections.

Shares of Zimmer Biomet, which entered Wednesday down 2% this year, dropped almost 14%.

A ‘Weaker Market’ Has This Housing Materials Maker’s Stock Plummeting 30%

13 hr 1 min ago

Trex Co. (TREX) shares sank to multiyear lows after the maker of deck-building materials posted worse-than-expected results and lowered its outlook, citing a slump in spending for housing projects.

While the company saw spending in the repair and remodeling sector improving, CEO Bryan Fairbanks said, “the second half of the season reflected the weaker market conditions that the industry has experienced in the past two years.” Trex expects “this trend to continue in the seasonally slower fourth quarter,” he said. 

Shares of Trex were recently off some 28%, though they’re slightly off earlier lows.

Trex reported third-quarter adjusted earnings per share of $0.51, missing Visible Alpha forecasts by $0.06. Revenue gained 22.1% to $285.3 million, also short of estimates.

The company nowsees fourth-quarter sales of $140 million to $150 million, below its earlier estimates, and reported a full-year outlook of $1.15 billion to $1.16 billion. That’s basically the same as 2024, compared to its previous expectation of an increase of 5% to 7%.

Read the full article here.

–Bill McColl

Novo Nordisk Is Seeing Slowing Demand for GLP-1s Wegovy and Ozempic

13 hr 14 min ago

U.S.-listed shares of Novo Nordisk (NVO) fell after the drugmaker scaled back its outlook, citing disappointing demand for its GLP-1 weight loss and diabetes drugs as competition in the sector increases.

Novo Nordisk, the company behind Wegovy and Ozempic, posted third-quarter adjusted earnings per share of DK4.50 ($0.69), DK20 ($0.03) below the average estimate of analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha. Revenue was up 5.1% to DK74.98 billion ($11.53 billion), also short of forecasts.

Wegovy sales rose 18% to DK20.35 billion ($3.13 billion), below expectations. Ozempic sales added 3% to DK30.74 billion ($4.73 billion), better than anticipated. 

The company now sees full-year operating profit growth of 4% to 7%, and sales of 8% to 11%. The previous outlook was for operating profit to gain 4% to 20% and sales to advance 8% to 14%. It said the change “reflects lowered growth expectations for Novo Nordisk’s GLP-1 treatments within diabetes and obesity.” It’s the fourth time the company narrowed its guidance this year.

U.S.-listed shares of Novo Nordisk have lost about 46% of their value this year. The shares were recently off about 4%.

–Bill McColl

Private Sector Adds Jobs for the First Time in Three Months

14 hours ago

With the government shutdown still delaying official data, private measures of the labor market show the job market is still drying up.

U.S. private employers added 42,000 jobs in October, payroll provider ADP said Wednesday. That was more than the 22,000 forecasters had expected, according to a survey of economists by Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal. The growth was a rebound after a loss of 29,000 jobs in September, but was slow by historic standards, far below the 221,000 jobs added in October 2024, for instance.

Employers have pulled back on hiring in recent months due to uncertainty about trade policy amid President Donald Trump’s unpredictable campaign of raising tariffs on trading partners. Hiring may also be hindered by companies adopting artificial intelligence, the ripple effects of the government shutdown, and high borrowing costs from the Federal Reserve aimed at combating inflation.

Fed officials cut the central bank’s benchmark interest rate in September and October to boost the job market, and may do so again in December if more reports like Wednesday’s ADP figures come in. The Fed is tasked with a dual mandate from Congress to prevent high unemployment and keep inflation low, and Fed officials have become increasingly worried about the health of the labor market.

“You can blame the trade war, or a host of other factors—AI, earlier restrictive monetary policy, and the government shutdown—but it’s pretty clear that the labor market remains soft,” Sal Guatieri, senior economist at BMO Capital Markets, wrote in a commentary. “This could be the key that unlocks another Fed rate cut in December.”

–Diccon Hyatt

Amgen Stock Leads Dow Gainers After Strong Q3 Results

14 hr 28 min ago

Amgen (AMGN) was the best-performing stock in the Dow Jones Industrial Average on Wednesday morning after the biopharmaceutical firm posted third-quarter results that easily topped analysts’ estimates.

Shares advanced 5.5% in recent trading, a day after the Thousand Oaks, Calif.-based firm reported adjusted earnings of $5.64 per share on sales that rose 12% year-over-year to $9.56 billion. Analysts polled by Visible Alpha had expected $5.02 and $8.96 billion, respectively.

Product sales increased 12%, with volume growth of 14% but a 4% lower net selling price.

“We delivered strong volume growth this quarter, reflecting the demand for our medicines and the impact we’re having on patients worldwide,” CEO Robert Bradway said. “With disciplined investment and a pipeline of first-in-class medicines, we’re focused on expanding access, advancing innovation, and sustaining long-term growth.” 

Amgen shares are up more than 20% this year, roughly double the Dow’s advance.

This Social-Media Stock Is Down 20% Today

14 hr 52 min ago

Shares of Pinterest (PINS) plunged after the visual social media and search company missed profit expectations and gave weak holiday quarter guidance.

The company posted third-quarter adjusted earnings per share of $0.38, three cents below what analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha were looking for. Revenue rose 17% to $1.05 billion, in line with forecasts.

For the current quarter, Pinterest sees revenue in the range of $1.31 billion to $1.34 billion, while Visible Alpha analysts are anticipating $1.34 billion.

The news sent Pinterest shares down 20% in morning trading and into negative territory for the year. Shares of Snap (SNAP) and Meta Platforms (META) made far more muted early moves by comparison.

In the U.S. and Canada, revenue increased 9% to $786 million, and average revenue per user (ARPU) gained 5% to $7.64. Both were below Visible Alpha estimates. Global ARPU of $1.78 was slightly less than expected.

The results and outlook offset strong user growth, with the company setting a record with 600 million monthly active users. 

–Bill McColl

As Childcare Prices Outpace Inflation, More Women Are Dropping Out of The Labor Market

16 hr 32 min ago

With the price of childcare escalating, even faster than rent and college tuition for some families, more mothers are opting out of a job and becoming full-time caregivers for their children.

The cost of daycare increased by 5.2% in September compared to the same period last year, according to a report from Bank of America. That is almost twice as fast as overall inflation, which rose 3% annually in September, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

This year, for the first time since 2021, there was an increase in the number of women who said their family is the reason they are not in the labor force, according to the bank.

Childcare costs are rising so fast that the price for one child is more than a month’s rent for some families, according to a 2024 report from the Department of Labor. Average costs also surpassed the average annual tuition and fees at a four-year public college by nearly $1,800, according to a report from The Conference Board.

Read the full article here.

–Elizabeth Guevara

Axon Enterprises Stock Plummets as Q3 Adjusted Profit Comes Up Well Short of Expectations

17 hr 17 min ago

Taser maker Axon Enterprises’ third-quarter sales jumped 31% year-over-year and topped analysts’ expectations. Its stock is plummeting nevertheless.

Shares of Axon Enterprises (AXON) tanked 18% in premarket trading Wednesday, a day after the Scottsdale, Ariz.-based firm reported an adjusted profit of $1.17, well below the $1.49 consensus estimate of analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha.

Sales of $710.6 million were about $5 million above analysts’ projections. It was the seventh consecutive quarter that the company’s sales grew at least 30% from the prior-year period.

Axon Enterprises also announced it had agreed to acquire emergency communications firm Carbyne for $625 million, a deal it expects to close in the first quarter of 2026.

Axon Enterprises shares entered Wednesday up about 19% this year.

Stock Futures Point Lower as AI Bubble Concerns Continue

18 hr 6 min ago

Futures contracts connected to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 0.1%.

S&P 500 futures slipped 0.3%.

Nasdaq 100 futures pulled back 0.4%.