Mid-Morning Market Update: Markets Mostly Lower; Hormel Foods Earnings Top Views

Following the market opening Tuesday, the Dow traded down 0.24% to 28240.82 while the NASDAQ rose 0.01% to 11378.17. However, the S&P fell 0.02% to 3431.91.

The U.S. has the highest number of coronavirus cases and deaths in the world, reporting a total of 5,741,080 cases with around 177,280 deaths. Brazil confirmed a total of over 3,622,860 COVID-19 cases with 115,300 deaths, while India reported a total of at least 3,167,320 confirmed cases and 58,390 deaths. In total, there were at least 23,676,590 cases of COVID-19 worldwide with over 813,780 deaths, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

Health care shares gained 0.6% on Tuesday. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included Orchard Therapeutics plc ORTX, up 25%, and iBio, Inc. IBIO, up 20%.

In trading on Tuesday, utilities shares fell by 0.9%.

Top Headline

Hormel Foods Corp HRL reported better-than-expected earnings for its third quarter..

Hormel Foods reported quarterly earnings of $0.37 per share, beating analysts’ estimates of $0.34 per share. The company reported sales of $2.40 billion, also surpassing expectations of $2.37 billion.

Equities Trading UP

Viveve Medical, Inc. VIVE shares shot up 117% to $1.153 after the company announced positive primary efficacy data from its three-arm, five-month stress urinary incontinence feasibility study, which is comparing the company's cryogen-cooled monopolar radiofrequency treatment and a cryogen-only sham treatment to an inert sham treatment for mild-to-moderate SUI in women. Additionally, the company announced positive outcomes from an in-vivo preclinical study that was conducted to validate its new inert sham tip for use in the upcoming pivotal PURSUIT Trial in the U.S.

Shares of Sigma Labs, Inc. SGLB got a boost, shooting 47% to $3.6692 after the company reported that it has been awarded a contract by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

Orchard Therapeutics plc ORTX shares were also up, gaining 26% to $6.95. On Monday, Orchard Therapeutics announced clinical data presentations at the 46th Annual Meeting of the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation.

Equities Trading DOWN

The Children's Place, Inc. PLCE shares tumbled 20% to $18.65 after the company reported wider-than-expected Q2 loss.

Shares of Sonnet BioTherapeutics Holdings, Inc. SONN were down 18% to $3.19. Sonnet BioTherapeutics shares climbed over 48% on Monday after the U.S. FDA issued an emergency use authorization for investigational convalescent plasma for the treatment of COVID-19 in hospitalized patients.

Cancer Genetics, Inc. CGIX was down, falling 18% to $5.13. Cancer Genetics shares jumped 115% on Monday after the company announced the entry into a definitive merger agreement with StemoniX.

Commodities


In commodity news, oil traded up 0.2% to $42.71, while gold traded down 0.5% to $1,930.20.

Silver traded down 0.1% Tuesday to $26.59, while copper fell 0.1% to $2.9255.

Euro zone

European shares were higher today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 climbed 0.6%, the Spanish Ibex Index rose 0.6%, while Italy’s FTSE MIB Index surged 0.7%. Meanwhile, the German DAX 30 climbed 0.7%, French CAC 40 rose 0.8% and UK shares rose 0.3%.

Economics

The S&P Corelogic Case-Shiller home price index increased 3.5% year-over-year in June, versus a revised 3.6% rise in the earlier month.

The FHFA house price index rose 0.9% in June.

The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index dipped to 84.80 in August, versus a revised reading of 91.70 in the previous month.

U.S. new home sales climbed 13.9% to an annual rate of 901,000 in July.

The Richmond Fed manufacturing index rose to 18 in August versus a reading of 10 in the prior month.

The Treasury is set to auction 2-year notes at 1:00 p.m. ET.

Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco President Mary Daly will speak at 3:25 p.m. ET.