Morning News: August Jobs, Smithfield Foods, VeriFone, GSK, Finisar

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Morning Market Update

Stocks that are expected to trade actively in U.S. markets on Friday include: Smithfield Foods, Inc. (NYSE:SFD), Smith & Wesson Holding Corp (NASDAQ:SWHC), VeriFone Systems Inc (NYSE:PAY), GlaxoSmithKline plc (ADR) (NYSE:GSK), Korn/Ferry International (NYSE:KFY), The Cooper Companies, Inc. (NYSE:COO), Finisar Corporation (NASDAQ:FNSR)

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Market Levels:

US: Dow Futures: 14986.00 (0.46%), S&P 500 Futures: 1661.00 (0.48%), NASDAQ Futures: 3141.75 (0.44%)
Europe: CAC: 4020.07 (0.40%), DAX: 8250.77 (0.19%), FTSE: 6550.46 (0.28%)
Asia-Pacific: Australia: 5145.00 (0.05%), China: 2139.99 (0.82%), Hong Kong: 22621.22 (0.10%), Japan: 13860.81 (-1.47%).
Metals: Gold: 1368.90 (-0.30%), Silver: 23.36 (0.47%), Copper: 3.27 (0.92%)
Energy: Crude Oil: 109.06 (0.64%), Natural Gas: 3.56 (-0.31%)
Commodities: Corn: 4.64 (0.65%), Soya Bean: 13.74 (0.51%), Wheat: 6.44 (0.66%)
Currency: EUR/USD: 1.3148 (0.21%), GBP/USD: 1.5642 (0.33%), USD/JPY: 99.0800 (-1.03%)
10-year US Treasury: 2.874% (-0.119)

Market and Economic News Update:

U.S. stock-index futures gain: U.S. stock-index futures are pointing to a higher open on Friday as investors gauged the impact of weaker-than-expected jobs report on the Federal Reserve’s easy monetary policy. The economy added 169,000 jobs in August, and the unemployment rate dropped to 7.3 percent, the Labor Department said today. Economists were expecting 180,000 job gains last month, while the unemployment rate was forecast to hold steady at 7.4 percent. In other news, world leaders gathered for the G-20 summit in St. Petersburg, with nations divided over whether to launch military strikes against Syria.

European markets rise: European markets are up in trade after data showed the U.S. jobless rate fell to its lowest since December 2008. Also on the economic front, Greek GDP was revised to -3.8 percent year-over-year in the second quarter, up from an earlier estimate of -4.6 percent. The FTSE 100 (INDEXFTSE:UKX) edged 0.3 percent higher to 6550.46 points. The CAC 40 (INDEXEURO:PX1) added 0.4 percent to 4020.07 points, and the DAX (INDEXDB:DAX) gained 0.2 percent to 8250.77. The euro zone blue-chip ESTX 50 PR.EUR (INDEXSTOXX:SX5E) (Euro Stoxx 50) was up 0.6 percent in recent trading.

Asian stocks end mostly higher, NIKKEI down 1.5%: Asian markets closed higher, but Japan’s NIKKEI 225 (INDEXNIKKEI:NI225) bucked the trend on the yen’s strength. The SSE Composite Index (SHA:000001) (Shanghai Composite Index) reversed early morning losses to end 0.8 percent higher. The S&P/ASX 200 (INDEXASX:XJO) index finished largely unchanged amid investor caution ahead of Saturday’s general elections.

Stocks in News:

Smithfield Foods, Inc. (NYSE:SFD)

Smithfield Foods, Inc. (NYSE:SFD)’s first-quarter profit fell to $39.5 million, from $61.7 million in the same period last year, amid lower exports to Japan, China and Russia. Earnings per share came in at 27 cents a share for the quarter, much lower than the consensus estimate of 47 cents a share. Revenue rose to $3.4 billion from $3.1 billion, a year earlier. Shares were down in recent trading.

Smith & Wesson Holding Corp (NASDAQ:SWHC)

Smith & Wesson Holding Corp (NASDAQ:SWHC) posted better than expected quarterly results, helped by strong demand for firearms. Net income in its fiscal first quarter rose to $26.5 million, or 40 cents per share, from $17.8 million, or 27 cents per share, in the year-ago period. Revenue increased 26 percent to $171.0 million. Analysts were expecting a profit of 36 cents per share on revenue of 165 million. But shares fell in pre-market trading after the company forecast disappointing current quarter numbers.

VeriFone Systems Inc (NYSE:PAY)

VeriFone Systems Inc (NYSE:PAY) reported fiscal third-quarter adjusted earnings of 24 cents per share, edging past consensus expectations for 20 cents per share. Net revenue stood at $418 million, ahead of Street forecasts for $400.83 million. The electronic payment solutions provider also forecast fourth-quarter earnings of 25 cents per share and adjusted net revenues of $418 million to $422 million. Analysts currently expect earnings of 25 cents per share on sales of $411.85 million for the fourth quarter.

GlaxoSmithKline plc (ADR) (NYSE:GSK)

GlaxoSmithKline plc (ADR) (NYSE:GSK) is in advanced talks to sell the Lucozade and Ribena brands to Japan’s Suntory Beverage & Food Ltd (TYO:2587) for more than 1 billion pounds ($1.6 billion), according to several reports on Friday. A deal is likely to be announced in the next few days. GSK and Suntory declined to comment about the potential deal.

Korn/Ferry International (NYSE:KFY)

Korn/Ferry International (NYSE:KFY) posted fiscal first-quarter earnings excluding one-time items of 33 cents per share, 3 cents above the average analysts’ estimate. Revenue came in at $237.6 million, also topping expectations for $225.0 million. For the second quarter, the company expects earnings of 32 cents to 38 cents per share versus current estimates for 31 cents per share. Shares rallied more than 3 percent in the pre-open session.

The Cooper Companies, Inc. (NYSE:COO)

The medical products company earned $1.74 per share in its fiscal third quarter on sales of $412 million. Analysts had forecast earnings of $1.71 per share on revenue of $410.5 million. In addition, The Cooper Companies, Inc. (NYSE:COO) forecast fourth-quarter earnings of $176 to $1.81 per share on revenue of $410 million to $425 million. Analysts at Wall Street expect the company to earn $1.78 per share on revenue of $421.07 million for the current quarter. Shares slipped in pre-market trading.

Finisar Corporation (NASDAQ:FNSR)

Finisar Corporation (NASDAQ:FNSR) reported fiscal first-quarter profit excluding items of 31 cents per share on sales of $266.1 million, in line with expectations. For the current quarter, the fiber optic component maker sees earnings of 37 cents to 41 cents per share on revenue of $277 million to $292 million, above current analyst estimates. Shares rose in recent trading.

Economic Calendar for Friday, September 06, 2013:

08:00 A.M. ET: Chicago Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Evans speaks.
08:30 A.M. ET: Non-farm Payrolls (August)
08:30 A.M. ET: Unemployment Rate (August)
08:30 A.M. ET: Average Hourly Earnings (YoY) (August)
01:30 P.M. ET: Kansas City Fed President Esther George speaks.
03:00 P.M. ET: Treasury STRIPS

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