Cowen Raises Price Target on Wal-Mart (WMT) Following a Positive 1Q

Wal-Mart (WMT) PT, Estimates Raised at Nomura on Strong Quarter

May 20, 2016 7:56 AM EDT

Nomura Securities analyst Robert Drbul reiterated a Buy rating and raised his price target on Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) to $81.00 (from $70.00) following strong results.

Drbul commented, "Revenue increased 0.9% to $115.90bn (+4.0% in CC). Walmart U.S. comps increased 1.0%, above our expectation for +0.5%, incl. 1.5% traffic growth (vs. TGT's +0.3% traffic in 1Q). We are encouraged by... More

Pre-Open Stock Movers 05/19: (TNXP) (RPRX) (AEO) Higher; (HK) (SSI) (AAP) Lower (more...)

May 19, 2016 9:30 AM EDT

Today's Pre-Open Stocks Movers:

Halcon Resources Corporation (NYSE: HK) 66.9% LOWER; reached an agreement in principal on terms of a plan to restructure its balance sheet (the Restructuring Plan) with select holders of its 13.0% 3rd Lien Notes due 2022 (3L Notes), its three tranches of senior unsecured notes comprised of its 9.75% Senior Notes due 2020, its 8.875% Senior Notes due 2021, and its 9.25% Senior Notes due 2022 (together, the Unsecured Notes), its 8.0% Convertible Note due 2020 (the Convertible Note) and its 5.75% Perpetual Convertible Preferred Stock (the Preferred Equity,... More

Wal-mart (WMT) Tops Q1 Views on Solid Comps, Robust Margins - Cowen

May 19, 2016 9:23 AM EDT

Cowen and Company reaffirms Wal-mart (NYSE: WMT) at Market Perform with a price target of $64 following Q1 results and outlook issued earlier.

Analyst Oliver Chen commented, 1Q sales summary: Walmart US comps of +1.0%, above Cowen and the Street's +0.5% estimate and mgmt.'s guidance of +0.5%. The 2-year stack was flat with 4Q at a healthy... More

No pain, no gain: M&S boss to map out rocky road to recovery

May 19, 2016 8:49 AM EDT

By James Davey

LONDON (Reuters) - The new boss of British retailer Marks & Spencer (NYSE: MKS) will deliver some uncomfortable truths to investors next week: turning around its clothing business will require yet more costly change and could squeeze short-term profits.

Chief Executive Steve Rowe will set out his strategy to shareholders on May 25, almost two months after he replaced Marc Bolland at the top of the 132-year-old firm, a UK institution that has fallen out of fashion over the last decade.

For generations, M&S dressed British... More

U.S. economic data point to second-quarter GDP rebound

May 19, 2016 8:35 AM EDT

By Lucia Mutikani

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of Americans filing for unemployment aid fell from a 14-month high last week, the latest sign the economy was picking up speed in the second quarter and likely would be healthy enough for the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates in June.

The economic outlook got a further boost from another report on Thursday showing a gauge of future activity jumped in April. The reports followed recent upbeat data on retail sales, home building and industrial production.

Minutes from the Fed's April 26-27 policy meeting, published on Wednesday, showed... More

Wall St. falls on Fed rate hike worry

May 19, 2016 7:36 AM EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The S&P 500 fell to its lowest level since March on Thursday as Wall Street became more worried that the U.S. Federal Reserve might raise interest rates as early as June.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 91.42 points, or 0.52 percent, to 17,435.2, the... More

Wal-Mart (WMT) volatility elevated, shares up 8% in premarket on better than expected Q1 and outlook

May 19, 2016 7:31 AM EDT

Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) May call option implied volatility is at 80, June is at 27; compared to its 52-week range of 13 to 33, into better than expected Q1 results and guidance.

... More

Wal-Mart profit beats expectations; stock jumps

May 19, 2016 7:17 AM EDT

By Nathan Layne

(Reuters) - Wal-Mart Stores Inc (NYSE: WMT) on Thursday reported a higher-than-expected quarterly profit as increased drug prices and solid demand for basic apparel items boosted sales, and its shares jumped more than 9 percent.

The discount retailer's performance bucked a string of weak results from competitors. On Wednesday, rival Target Corp (NYSE: TGT), which caters to a higher-income customer than Wal-Mart, gave a cautious outlook and reported a lower-than-expected rise in quarterly sales due to unseasonable weather and soft demand.

"It looks like the... More

Wal-mart (WMT) Tops Q1 EPS by 10c; Guides Q2 EPS

May 19, 2016 7:04 AM EDT

Wal-mart (NYSE: WMT) reported Q1 EPS of $0.98, $0.10 better than the analyst estimate of $0.88. Revenue for the quarter came in at $115.9 billion versus the consensus estimate of $113.22 billion.

Walmart U.S. delivered positive comp sales for the seventh consecutive quarter, up 1.0%, driven by the sixth... More

Stocks with Implied Volatility Movement

May 19, 2016 6:23 AM EDT

Baxter (NYSE: BAX) 33, Salesforce.com (NYSE: CRM) 43 implied volatility is above its IV index mean

Anacor Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: ANAC) 13, Office Depot (NYSE: ODP) 73 implied volatility is... More

Stocks weaken, dollar gains amid Fed hike talk

May 18, 2016 8:31 PM EDT

By Lewis Krauskopf

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks around the world sold off on Thursday, while the U.S. dollar gained, pressuring oil and other commodities, as investors absorbed the possibility that the U.S. Federal Reserve will raise interest rates in the near term.

Oil prices erased most losses as supply worries offset the drag from the dollar.

Financial markets were adjusting to the minutes of the Fed April meeting, released on Wednesday, in which the U.S. central bank opened the door to a rate hike in June, catching investors off guard.

... More

Trading Radar for 5/19: Wal-mart (WMT), Advance Auto Parts (AAP), Autodesk (ADSK), New York & Co. (NWY) Report

May 18, 2016 2:47 PM EDT

The Trading Radar highlights key earnings and economic announcements for the next trading session:

Before Markets Open:
Economics:
8:30am EDT

Initial Claims - Street sees 278kContinuing Claims - no Street consensusPhiladelphia Fed - Street sees 2.7

Earnings:

Advance Auto Parts (NYSE: AAP) - consensus EPS $2.60
Apollo Investment Corporation (Nasdaq: AINV) - consensus EPS... More

Straddle prices for companies reporting financial results this week

May 18, 2016 1:05 PM EDT

Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) May 63.50 straddle priced for 4.3% movement into Q1
Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) May 27 straddle priced for 4.4% movement into Q3
Salesforce (NYSE: CRM) May 78 straddle priced for 7.4% movement into Q1
Urban... More

Wal-Mart (WMT) May call volatility elevated into Q1 and outlook

May 18, 2016 10:20 AM EDT

Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) May call option implied volatility is at 70, June is at 27; compared to its 52-week range of 13 to 33, into the expected release of Q1 results on May 19.

... More

Call puts ratio elevated as shares sell off on Amazon (AMZN) encroachment

May 18, 2016 10:00 AM EDT

Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) call put ratio 1 call for 7 puts
Target (NYSE: TGT) call put ratio 1 call for 3.9 puts
Best Buy (NYSE: BBY) call put ratio 1 call for 26 puts

... More

Target shares plunge after sales, outlook disappoint

May 18, 2016 8:00 AM EDT

By Nandita Bose

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Retail chain Target Corp (NYSE: TGT) gave a cautious outlook on Wednesday after reporting a lower-than-expected increase in quarterly sales due to unseasonable weather and weaker demand for electronics and groceries.

Shares of the company fell as much as 11 percent, their biggest intraday decline since December 2008, as investors focused on weaker revenues and a poor outlook despite higher-than-expected earnings.

Target's woes also encouraged investors to sell shares of rival retailers like Macy's (NYSE: M), JC Penney (NYSE:... More

Companies forced to rethink U.S. high court class action strategy

May 17, 2016 7:46 PM EDT

By Lawrence Hurley

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Lawyers for companies trying to fend off costly class action lawsuits are rethinking longstanding legal strategies after businesses lost two key U.S. Supreme Court cases as well as their staunchest supporter on the bench.

At the start of the court's term in October, the business community had reason to believe the justices would further pare back class action litigation after rulings spearheaded by conservative Justice Antonin Scalia favoring corporate defendants in prior years. But the term has defied expectations.

The justices ruled against businesses in two of the three... More

Wall Street sells off amid Fed rate hike jitters

May 17, 2016 7:31 AM EDT

By Lewis Krauskopf

(Reuters) - Wall Street sold off on Tuesday as investors boosted their bets on the Federal Reserve raising rates later this year, while Home Depot dragged on indexes following its quarterly report.

U.S. consumer prices recorded their biggest increase in more than three years in April as gasoline and rents rose. The data pointed to a steady inflation build-up that could give the Fed ammunition to raise interest rates later this year.

Also on Tuesday, a Fed policymaker said he will push for an interest rate hike in June or July,... More