Morning News: FedEx, Salesforce, Zynga, General Motors, Carlyle Group

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Morning News: FedEx, Salesforce, Zynga, General Motors, Carlyle Group

Stocks that are expected to trade actively in U.S. markets on Tuesday include: FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX), salesforce.com, inc. (NYSE:CRM), ExactTarget Inc (NYSE:ET), Zynga Inc (NASDAQ:ZNGA), General Motors Company (NYSE:GM), Dollar General Corp. (NYSE:DG), AstraZeneca plc (ADR) (NYSE:AZN), Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RIGL) SAIC, Inc. (NYSE:SAI), Lululemon Athletica inc. (NASDAQ:LULU), Carlyle Group LP (NASDAQ:CG) and Verint Systems Inc. (NASDAQ:VRNT).

Market Levels

•    US:  Dow Futures: 15230.00 (0.09%), S&P 500 Futures: 1638.70 (0.15%), NASDAQ Futures: 2992.25 (0.23%)
•    Europe: CAC: 3934.47 (0.35%), DAX: 8317.78 (0.39%), FTSE: 6567.15 (0.64%)
•    Asia-Pacific: Australia: 4900.80 (0.26%), China: 2272.42 (-1.18%), Hong Kong: 22285.52 (0.01%), Japan: 13533.76 (2.01%).
•    Metals: Gold: 1396.00 (-1.13%), Silver: 22.32 (-1.79%), Copper: 3.35 (0.53%)
•    Energy: Crude Oil: 93.35 (-0.11%), Natural Gas: 4.02 (0.65%)
•    Commodities: Corn: 5.48 (-1.50%), Soya Bean: 15.20 (1.36%), Wheat: 7.00 (0.42%)
•    Currency: EUR/USD: 1.3065 (-0.08%), GBP/USD: 1.5286 (-0.24%), USD/JPY: 100.2200 (0.69%)
•    10 year US Treasury: 2.132% (0.013)

Market and Economic Morning News Update

U.S. stock-index futures gain: U.S. stock-index futures are pointing to a higher open on Tuesday as data showed the country’s trade gap widened less than forecast. The U.S. trade deficit increased 8.5 percent to $40.3 billion in April, the Commerce Department said today. Economists were expecting the trade deficit to rise to $41.0 billion. Two voting members of the Federal Open Market Committee will speak today. Governor Sarah Bloom Raskin will participate in a panel discussion on employment in Washington, while Kansas City Fed President Esther George speaks in New Mexico about the U.S. economy.

European markets largely higher: European markets are up in trade after worse-than-expected U.S. manufacturing data eased investor concerns about the Fed tapering its bond buying program. On the data front, a report showed the number of people filing for jobless claims in Spain dropped 2 percent in May to 4.89 million, the lowest level of claims since December last year. The DAX (INDEXDB:DAX) and the CAC 40 (INDEXEURO:PX1) gained 0.4 percent, while the FTSE 100 (INDEXFTSE:UKX) added 0.6 percent to 6567.15 points. The euro zone blue-chip ESTX 50 PR.EUR (INDEXSTOXX:SX5E) (Euro Stoxx 50) is up 0.6 percent.

Asian markets end mixed; Nikkei up more than 2%: The NIKKEI 225 (INDEXNIKKEI:NI225) jumped in a choppy session on Tuesday amid a rally in banking stocks. The SSE Composite Index (SHA:000001) (Shanghai Composite Index) fell to its lowest level since May 24 as strong overnight cues from U.S. stocks were countered by concerns over the country’s growth trajectory. The S&P/ASX 200 (INDEXASX:XJO) index closed above the 4,900 mark after the Reserve Bank of Australia kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 2.75 percent.

Stocks in News:

FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX)

FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX) raised its quarterly dividend by a penny, to 15 cents a share. The dividend is payable on July 1 to shareholders of record as of June 17. The package delivery company also said it took a $100 million impairment charge in May for retiring some of its aircraft. Shares were largely unchanged in pre-market trading.

salesforce.com, inc. (NYSE:CRM), ExactTarget Inc (NYSE:ET)

salesforce.com, inc. (NYSE:CRM) has agreed to buy marketing software provider ExactTarget Inc (NYSE:ET) for about $2.5 billion in cash. Salesforce will pay $33.75 for each ExactTarget share, a 53 percent premium to the stock’s closing on Monday. The deal was approved unanimously by the boards of both companies and is expected to close by the end of next month. Shares of salesforce.com fell in pre-market trade following the announcement of the buyout.

Zynga Inc (NASDAQ:ZNGA)

Beleaguered social video game maker Zynga Inc (NASDAQ:ZNGA) plans to lay-off 520 employees, or 18 percent of its workforce, in an effort to cut costs and restructure its business. The layoffs should help save the company about $70 to $80 million per year. In addition, the company forecast weak bookings for the current quarter, sending shares lower in early trade.

General Motors Company (NYSE:GM)

General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) will replace H. J. Heinz Company (NYSE:HNZ) in the S&P 500 after the close of trading on Thursday. The automaker is rejoining the index after it was dropped following the 2009 bankruptcy filing and $50 billion government bailout. Heinz is being taken private by a consortium including Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A) (BRK.B) and private equity firm 3G Capital.

Dollar General Corp. (NYSE:DG)

Dollar General Corp. (NYSE:DG) reported first quarter profit in line with estimates, but cut its outlook for the year, sending shares lower in pre-market trading. On an adjusted basis, earnings came in at 71 cents per share, in line with analysts’ estimates. Sales rose 9 percent to $4.23 billion, trailing expectations for $4.24 billion. The company trimmed the high-end of its full-year earnings guidance, now expecting adjusted earnings of $3.15 to $3.22 a share, compared to a previous forecast of $3.15 to $3.30 a share.

AstraZeneca plc (ADR) (NYSE:AZN), Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RIGL)

AstraZeneca plc (ADR) (NYSE:AZN) has ended development of its rheumatoid arthritis pill, fostamatinib, after disappointing results in a late stage trial. The Anglo-Swedish drug major will take a $140 million impairment charge, and will return the rights to the medicine to U.S. partner Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RIGL). Despite the charge, AstraZeneca reiterated its financial guidance for 2013.

SAIC, Inc. (NYSE:SAI)

Aerospace and defense company SAIC, Inc. (NYSE:SAI) posted first quarter earnings of 23 cents a share on sales of $2.71 billion, compared to expectations for 25 cents a share on revenue of $2.59 billion. The company reaffirmed its full-year outlook of earnings of $1.16 to $1.33 per share, on revenues in the range of $10.0 billion to $10.7 billion. Shares slipped in early hours trading.

Lululemon Athletica inc. (NASDAQ:LULU)

Lululemon Athletica inc. (NASDAQ:LULU) has started restocking stores with the Astro and Groove yoga pants, three months after they were pulled out of the market because the fabric was considered too sheer. The pants were among the company’s most popular products, and sales could see a surge as consumers respond to pent-up demand. Shares were up in pre-open session.

Carlyle Group LP (NASDAQ:CG)

The California Public Employees’ Retirement System is planning to sell its entire 4.1 percent stake in private equity manager Carlyle Group LP (NASDAQ:CG). Calpers had acquired a 5.5 percent in Carlyle in 2001 for $175 million, before the stake was diluted to 4 percent by share sales. At Monday’s closing price of $29.39, a sale of Calpers’s full stake would generate $373.3 million in proceeds.

Verint Systems Inc. (NASDAQ:VRNT)

Verint Systems Inc. (NASDAQ:VRNT) reported first quarter earnings excluding one-time items of 44 cents a share, on sales of $205 million, versus expectations for 52 cents a share on revenue of $203 million. The data-analysis software company also handed in full-year guidance largely in line with expectations. Shares were inactive in pre-market trading.

Economic Calendar for Tuesday, June 04, 2013:

07:45 A.M. ET:    ICSC-Goldman Store Sales
08:30 A.M. ET:    Trade Balance (April)
08:55 A.M. ET:    Redbook Index (MoM) (May 26)
08:55 A.M. ET:    Redbook Index (YoY) (May 26)
09:45 A.M. ET:    ISM New York Index (May)
11:30 A.M. ET:    4-Week Bill Auction
12:30 P.M. ET:    Federal Reserve Governor Sarah Bloom Raskin speaks.
01:30 P.M. ET:    Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank President Esther George speaks

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