Mid-Morning Market Update: Markets Open Higher; Delta Air Lines Earnings Top Views

Following the market opening Thursday, the Dow traded up 0.55% to 26491.96 while the NASDAQ rose 0.56% to 7947.93. The S&P also rose, gaining 0.54% to 2935.17.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

Financial shares climbed 1.4% on Thursday. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included LexinFintech Holdings Ltd. LX, up 4%, and E*TRADE Financial Corporation ETFC, up 3%.

In trading on Thursday, utilities shares fell 0.5%.

Top Headline

Delta Air Lines, Inc. DAL reported better-than-expected earnings for its third quarter.

Delta Air Lines reported third-quarter earnings of $2.32 per share, which beat the analyst consensus estimate of $2.26. The company reported total operating sales of $12.56 billion compared to the $12.6 billion estimate.

Delta sees fourth-quarter EPS at $1.20-$1.50 versus a $1.51 Estimate, as well as system capacity being up about 4.5% year over year.


Equities Trading UP

Ra Pharmaceuticals, Inc. RARX shares shot up 102% to $45.79 after the company announced it will be acquired by UCB for $48 per share in cash.

Shares of Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. BBBY surged 27% to $12.63 after the company announced Mark Tritton will succeed Mary Winston as CEO. He was also named President of the company. Telsey Advisory Group also upgraded the company's stock from Market Perform to Outperform and raised the price target from $14 to $16.

Stealth BioTherapeutics Corp MITO was up, rising 28% to $8.12 after the company teamed up with Alexion to advance the development of elamipretide for the treatment of mitochondrial diseases.


Equities Trading DOWN

Forescout Technologies, Inc. FSCT shares tumbled 32% to $26.53 after the company cut its Q3 sales guidance below analyst estimates.

Shares of PG&E Corporation PCG were down 31% to $7.63 after the judge presiding over the company’s bankruptcy cleared the way for bondholders to come up with a restructuring plan. The company was stripped of its right to exclusively pitch a reorganization plan in court, escalating an an already heated battle over the largest utility bankruptcy in U.S. history. The damages, which are tied to the blazes that its equipment ignited, forced the company to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in January.

ADTRAN, Inc. ADTN was down, falling 22% to $8.49 after the company reported preliminary results for the third quarter. MKM Partners downgraded the stock from But to Neutral.

Commodities


In commodity news, oil traded up 0.3% to $52.73, while gold traded down 0.1% to $1,512.50.

Silver traded down 0.1% Thursday to $17.80, while copper rose 0.9% to $2.592.

Euro zone


European shares were mostly lower today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 fell 0.2%, the Spanish Ibex Index rose 0.2%, while Italy’s FTSE MIB Index fell 0.1%. Meanwhile, the German DAX dropped 0.1%, and the French CAC 40 rose 0.2% while UK shares fell 0.2%.

Economics

The Consumer Price Index was flat for September, versus economists’ expectations for a 0.1% rise.

Initial jobless claims fell 10,000 to 210,000 last week. Economists were expecting a reading of 220,000.

The Energy Information Administration’s weekly report on natural gas stocks in underground storage is schedule for release at 10:30 a.m. ET.

The Treasury is set to auction 4-and 8-week bills at 11:30 a.m. ET.

Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank President Neel Kashkari is set to speak in New York at 12:15 p.m. ET.

San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank President Mary Daly will speak in La Jolla, California at 12:30 p.m. ET.

The U.S. Treasury budget report for September will be released at 2:00 p.m. ET.

San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank President Mary Daly is set to speak in San Diego, California at 3:30 p.m. ET.

Data on money supply for the recent week will be released at 4:30 p.m. ET.

Cleveland Federal Reserve Bank President Loretta Mester will speak in University Heights, Ohio at 5:30 p.m. ET.

Posted In: NewsEurozoneCommoditiesGlobalIntraday UpdateMarketsMid-Morning Market Update
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