Morning Market Update
Stocks that are expected to trade actively in U.S. markets on Friday include: JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM), Dell Inc. (NASDAQ:DELL), Wells Fargo & Co (NYSE:WFC), The Gap Inc. (NYSE:GPS), H & R Block Inc (NYSE:HRB), General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD), Spreadtrum Communications, Inc (ADR) (NASDAQ:SPRD), WebMD Health Corp. (NASDAQ:WBMD), AVEO Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVEO), AngioDynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANGO), GlaxoSmithKline plc (ADR) (NYSE:GSK), Theravance Inc (NASDAQ:THRX).
Market Levels:
US: Dow Futures: 15406.00 (0.08%), S&P 500 Futures: 1671.10 (0.06%), NASDAQ Futures: 3059.50 (0.15%)
Europe: CAC: 3877.53 (0.22%), DAX: 8240.54 (1.00%), FTSE: 6569.04 (0.39%)
Asia-Pacific: Australia: 4973.90 (0.17%), China: 2039.49 (-1.64%), Hong Kong: 21277.28 (-0.75%), Japan: 14506.25 (0.23%).
Metals: Gold: 1271.10 (-0.69%), Silver: 19.76 (-0.98%), Copper: 3.16 (-0.63%)
Energy: Crude Oil: 105.72 (0.77%), Natural Gas: 3.64 (0.66%)
Commodities: Corn: 5.25 (1.05%), Soya Bean: 12.88 (0.35%), Wheat: 6.85 (0.74%)
Currency: EUR/USD: 1.3041 (-0.43%), GBP/USD: 1.5106 (-0.51%), USD/JPY: 99.6000 (0.65%)
10-year US Treasury: 2.552% (-0.020)
Market and Economic News Update:
U.S. stock-index futures little changed: U.S. stock-index futures are pointing to a flat open on Friday after banking giant J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and Wells Fargo & Co. reported quarterly numbers. On the economic front, U.S. wholesale prices increased 0.8 percent in June, following the 0.5 percent rise in the prior month. Investors also await the University of Michigan and Thomson Reuters consumer sentiment data for July. Analysts expect a preliminary reading of 84.1.
European markets gain: European stocks are up in trade, mirroring overnight gains in U.S. markets, despite weak euro zone data. Factory output in the region witnessed a 0.3 percent month-on month decline in May, below estimates of a 0.2 percent drop. The CAC 40 (INDEXEURO:PX1) added 0.2 percent to 3877.53, while the DAX (INDEXDB:DAX) jumped 1 percent to 8240.54. The FTSE 100 (INDEXFTSE:UKX) rose 0.4 percent, helped by a rally in insurance stocks. The euro zone blue-chip ESTX 50 PR.EUR (INDEXSTOXX:SX5E) (Euro Stoxx 50) was up 0.4 percent in recent trading.
Asian markets mixed: Asian stocks were mixed in Friday trading amid investor caution ahead of Chinese second quarter growth figures, scheduled to be released on Monday. The SSE Composite Index (SHA:000001) (Shanghai Composite Index) lost 1.6 percent to 2039.49 points. The S&P/ASX 200 (INDEXASX:XJO) index failed to close above the key 5000-level despite a rally in gold mining stocks. The NIKKEI 225 (INDEXNIKKEI:NI225) rebounded from lows made earlier in the session to end 0.2 percent higher.
Stocks in News:
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM)
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) reported better than expected quarterly results, helped by a rebound in trading revenue. The company reported second quarter profit of $1.60 a share compared to estimates of $1.44, while revenue came in at $25.96 billion against expectations of $2.84 billion. Shares initially rose following the results, but turned lower in recent trading.
Dell Inc. (NASDAQ:DELL)
Activist investor Carl Icahn may present an improved buyout offer for the personal computer maker on Friday, based on comments made in a Bloomberg TV interview. Icahn said his revised proposal will be “vastly superior” to founder Michael Dell’s $13.65 a share offer to take the company private.
Wells Fargo & Co (NYSE:WFC)
Wells Fargo & Co (NYSE:WFC)’s second-quarter profit rose to $5.52 billion, or 98 cents per share, from $4.4 billion, or 82 cents a share in the year-ago period. Net revenue stood at $21.38 billion, up from $21.3 billion in the same period last year. Analysts were expecting Wells Fargo to earn 93 cents a share on revenue of $21.18 billion.
The Gap Inc. (NYSE:GPS)
The clothing retailer reported a 7 percent rise in June same-store sales, exceeding analysts’ expectations for an increase of 4.7 percent. Total revenue for the five-week period gained 8.5 percent to $1.53 billion, from $1.41 billion in the same period last year. Shares climbed in pre-open session.
H & R Block Inc (NYSE:HRB)
The tax preparer said it will sell its banking assets to Republic Bank and Trust as it looks to exit Federal Reserve oversight. The deal will result in one-time expenses of 3 cents to four cents in the current fiscal year, and reduce earnings by about six cents to nine cents a share on an annual basis. Shares were largely unchanged in pre-market trading.
General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD)
Defense contractor General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD) has emerged as the front-runner to deliver battle tanks to Saudi Arabia, according to a Reuters report. General Dynamics’ M1 Abrams tank beat out German rival Krauss-Maffei Wegmann’s Leopard 2 tank for the lucrative deal, Reuters cited German newspaper Handelsblatt.
Spreadtrum Communications, Inc (ADR) (NASDAQ:SPRD)
The chip designer has agreed to be acquired by China’s Tsinghua Unigroup Ltd. for $1.78 billion or $31 per share, a 17 percent premium to Spreadtrum’s closing price on Thursday. The company’s board unanimously approved the deal, but the buyout still requires approval from shareholders, as well as anti-trust agencies.
WebMD Health Corp. (NASDAQ:WBMD)
The health-information website provider raised its revenue forecast for the year, and said it now expects to post a full-year profit. WebMD projected revenue of between $485 million and $505 million, up from its earlier view of $450 million to $470 million. In addition, the company expects to report full-year profit of $3 million to $11 million, compared with its previous view of a loss of $1.5 million to $13 million.
AVEO Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVEO)
The drug maker received a subpoena from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission earlier this month requesting information about tivozanib, a treatment for patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma, according to a regulatory filing. Aveo Pharmaceuticals said it will fully cooperate with the regulator regarding this fact-finding inquiry. Following the news, shares plunged in early-hours trading.
AngioDynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANGO)
The medical-device company reported better than expected fourth quarter results, sending shares higher in pre-market trading. Excluding one-time items, earnings came in at 7 cents a share, on revenue of $90 million. Analysts were expecting earnings of 6 cents a share on sales of $86.43 million. For the full-year, AngioDynamics now expects adjusted per-share earnings of between 31 cents to 35 cents a share on revenue of $346 million to $352 million.
GlaxoSmithKline plc (ADR) (NYSE:GSK), Theravance Inc (NASDAQ:THRX)
GlaxoSmithKline plc (ADR) (NYSE:GSK) and U.S. partner Theravance Inc (NASDAQ:THRX) have withdrawn the license application for the use of fluticasone furoate and vilanterol in patients with chronic lung disease in Japan. The decision comes amid concerns that clinical data on the inhaled drug Relvar might not be strong enough to secure approval from Japanese regulators.
Economic Calendar for Friday, July 12, 2013:
08:30 A.M. ET: Producer Price Index (YoY) (June)
08:30 A.M. ET: Producer Price Index (MoM) (June)
08:30 A.M. ET: Producer Price Index ex Food & Energy (YoY) (June)
08:30 A.M. ET: Producer Price Index ex Food & Energy (MoM) (June)
09:55 A.M. ET: Reuters/Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index (July)
