Stocks that are expected to trade actively in U.S. markets on Thursday include Dollar Tree, Inc. (NASDAQ:DLTR), Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. (NASDAQ:GMCR), Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF), Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) and Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT).
Market Level
U.S.: DJIA 15900.82 (-0.41%)S&P 500 1781.37 (-0.36%)NASDAQ 3921.27 (-0.26%)
Europe: FTSE 6669.4(-0.17%), DAX 9154.58 (-0.52%), CAC 40 4,234.50 (-0.79%).
Asia Pacific: NIKKEI 15365.60(1.92%), SHANGHAI 2205.77 (-0.04%), HSI 23580.29(-0.51%), ASX 200 5288.32 (-0.36%), KOSPI 1993.78 (-1.16%).
Commodities: Oil 93.80 (-0.04%), NAT GAS 3.678 (0.11%), Gold 1246.90 (-0.88%), Silver 20.01 (-0.26%), Wheat 649.75 (0.39%), Corn 420.25 (0.78%).
Currency: EUR/USD 1.3428 (-0.07%), GBP/USD 1.6092 (-0.07%), USD/JPY 100.88 (0.86%).
10 year Treasury bond: 2.801 (-0.004).
Market & Economic Update
U.S. market may open flat: U.S. stock futures were almost flat amid indications by the Federal Reserve that it may withdraw monetary stimulus sooner than expected. Ahead of the opening bell, the Dow Jones industrial average index futures soared 0.01% and Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures jumped 0.06%. NASDAQ index futures rose 0.03%.
European markets down: European shares tumbled on Thursday, owing to indications given by the Federal Reserve that it will start withdrawing its monetary backing in the next few months. Weak data from China also fueled the decline. At 0824 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 lost 8.07 points, or 0.6%, at 1289.31.
Asian market mixed: Nikkei shares surged 1.9% to a six month high on the back of increased foreign buying and plans by a major government fund to invest a major part of its $2 trillion funds in riskier assets. Nikkei increased 289.52 points to 15,365.60 fueled by weaker yen, which spurred exports higher. The index rose as high as 15,377.00 earlier, the best mark since May 23. On Thursday, Hang Seng was down 0.5% to 23,580.29 and China’s Shanghai Composite dropped 0.04% to 2,205.77. The decline in stocks was primarily fueled by the expectations that the Federal Reserve may soon change its policies.
Stocks to watch
Dollar Tree, Inc. (NASDAQ:DLTR)
Dollar Tree is expected to post its third quarter earnings at $0.60 per share on revenue of $1.91 billion. Shares gained 1.32% to $59.70 in after-hours trading. In the previous four quarters, Dollar Tree income soared by an average of 27% year on year.
Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. (NASDAQ:GMCR)
Green Mountain Coffee Roasters posted positive fourth quarter results, but gave a weak forecast for the current quarter. Green Mountain shares gained 4.64% to $64.70 in after-hours trading. Full year revenue for the company came in at $4.4 billion, an increase of 16% year on year. Free cash flow was $603 million and full year GAAP earnings per share were $3.16 per share.
Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF)
Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF) posted earnings of $0.20 per share on revenue of $1.03 billion, for the third quarter. Abercrombie & Fitch rose 0.09% to $35.02 in after-hours trading. The company has performed worse than the estimates for three out of five quarters in the past along with poor EPS for the past two quarters.
Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)
Williams-Sonoma posted a 16% rise in its third-quarter profit, and raised the outlook for the full fiscal. Williams-Sonoma shares surged 6.18% to $58.94 in after-hours trading. Profit for the company in the third quarter came in at $56.7 million, or 58 cents a share, up from $48.9 million, or 49 cents a share, a year earlier. The company logged in revenue of 11% to $1.05 billion.
Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT)
Target posted earnings of 0.54 per share on revenue of $17.26 billion. Target shares gained 0.02% to $66.50 in after-hours trading. Last quarter, the company posted an increase in revenue by 22.7%.
