Post Market News
Stocks that were active in the U.S. trading on Thursday were Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE:HPQ), Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA), Ralph Lauren Corp (NYSE:RL), J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE:JCP) and PetSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PETM).
Market Levels
- U.S.: Dow Jones: 15,296.60 (-0.07 percent), S&P 500: 1,650.57 (-0.29 percent), Nasdaq: 3,459.42 (-0.11 percent)
- World Markets: Shanghai: 2,275.67 (-1.16 percent), Nikkei 225: 14,483.98 (-7.32 percent), Hang Seng Index: 22,669.68 (-2.54 percent), TSEC: 8,237.83 (-1.92 percent), FTSE 100: 6,696.79 (-2.10 percent), EURO STOXX 50: 2,776.78 (-2.05 percent), BSE Sensex: 19,674.33 (-1.93 percent)
- Metals: Gold: $1391.80 (+1.78 percent), Silver: $22.51 (+0.16 percent), Platinum: $1457.20 (-0.82 percent)
- Currency: EUR/USD: 1.2932 (+0.83 percent), USD/JPY: 101.88 (-0.59 percent), GBP/USD: 1.5105 (-0.68 percent), USD/CAD: 1.0305 (+0.01 percent), USD/CNY: 6.1340 (-0.12 percent), AUD/USD: 0.9738 (-0.04 percent)
- 10 year U.S. Treasury: 2.01 percent (0.00), 30 year U.S. Treasury: 3.18 percent (-0.01)
Market & Economy Update
After a months long rally, global stock markets slumped today due to a confluence of events. Federal Reserve Ben Bernanke said yesterday that the central bank may scale back its stimulus program over the next few months. Additionally, data showed today that China’s flash PMI fell to 49.6 in May from 50.6 in April. Analysts say actual PMI could be lower than the flash reading. It caused Japanese stocks to tumble more than 7 percent in a single day.
U.S. stock markets also ended the session lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 10.57 points to 15,296.60, the S&P 500 Index skidded 4.83 points to 1,650.52, while Nasdaq plunged 3.88 points to 3,459.42.
Stocks In Focus
Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE:HPQ)
The computer maker reported better than expected second quarter earnings, helped by cost cutting measures and strong growth in its enterprise services unit. Excluding one-time items, earnings came at 87 cents a share on revenues of $27.58 billion. Analysts polled by Thompson Reuters were expecting 81 cents in earnings and $28.01 billion in revenues. H-P also issued optimistic guidance for the current quarter. Shares soared 17.10% to end the session at $24.86.
Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA)
The electric car maker today paid off its entire loan of $451.8 million to the Department of Energy nine years ahead of schedule. Last week, the company raised about $1 billion in a stock and debt offering. Indicating its strong financial position, Tesla said it will fund the development of its next two cars without raising any more money. Shares jumped 6.29 percent to $92.73.
Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE:RL)
The apparel maker reported fourth quarter earnings of $1.37 a share with $1.6 billion in sales. Analysts were expecting $1.30 in earnings. Though earnings handily beat Wall Street estimates, they were much lower than the company’s own cautious guidance issued in February. Shares tanked 2.32 percent to close the session at $183.69.
J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE:JCP)
The struggling retailer announced yesterday that it has secured $2.25 billion in loans, $500 million more than $1.75 billion it initially sought. J.C. Penney will use the funds to revive its sinking business. The loans are secured by a number of the company’s assets including its headquarter building, land and department stores. Shares jumped 3.58 percent to end the session at $19.39 per share.
PetSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PETM)
The pet products retailer reported better than expected first quarter earnings. The company earned 98 cents per share on revenues of $1.71 billion. Earnings were 2 cents above estimates. PetSmart also raised its full-year earnings outlook. Shares rose 1.82 percent to $70.32.
