Stifel Remains Sidelined on Facebook (FB) Ahead of 1Q Release

Wall Street ends mixed as investors eye earnings

April 23, 2018 7:49 AM EDT

By Stephen Culp

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street ended mixed on Monday as concerns about soft smartphone demand weighed on tech stocks and pulled the Nasdaq lower while earnings optimism protected against deeper losses.

Tech stocks dragged on both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq ahead of a big week of earnings for the sector. Chipmaker shares dropped after the world's largest contract chipmaker, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd , cut its full-year revenue target due to softer demand for smartphones.

Yields on 10-year U.S. Treasuries rose to their highest level since... More

Facebook's hidden data haul troubles German cartel regulator

April 23, 2018 5:07 AM EDT

By Douglas Busvine

BONN, Germany (Reuters) - That the personal data of tens of millions of Facebook (NASDAQ: FB) users fell into the wrong hands is troubling politicians, but Germany's top competition regulator is questioning the sheer volume of information that the social network harvests.

Andreas Mundt, president of the Federal Cartel Office, is awaiting Facebook's response to his findings, published in December, that it abuses its market dominance by gathering data on people without their proper consent.

That includes tracking visitors to websites with an embedded Facebook... More

Britain says web firms "turning blind eye" to children, threatens regulation

April 22, 2018 6:44 AM EDT

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's health minister Jeremy Hunt threatened to impose new regulations on social media firms unless they do more to protect young people using their services.

Hunt said the groups were "turning a blind eye" to the effect social media had on children's well-being - an accusation that comes as Facebook (NASDAQ: FB) and others face heightened scrutiny worldwide over their impact and influence.

Google's UK operation and Facebook said they were committed to protecting children and working on new features to help. There was no immediate comment from Twitter,... More

Facebook (FB) option implied volatility elevated into Q1

April 20, 2018 11:40 AM EDT

Facebook (NASDAQ: FB) April weekly call option implied volatility is at 55, May is at 34; compared to its 52-week range of 16 to 43 into the expected release of Q1 results after the market close on April 25.

... More

Global Economy: Is it just a cold, or something more serious?

April 20, 2018 11:38 AM EDT

By Francesco Canepa

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Is it just a cold or something more serious?

That's the question investors hope will be answered in the coming week by a policy update from the European Central Bank, fresh euro zone and U.S. economic data, and earnings reports from some of the world's largest technology firms.

Cold weather in the first quarter is among temporary factors blamed for a spell of poor economic readings from Europe and the United States, with some analysts already betting on a rebound in the summer.

But some fear this minor... More

Take Five: World markets themes for the week ahead

April 20, 2018 11:02 AM EDT

LONDON (Reuters) - Following are five big themes likely to dominate thinking of investors and traders in the coming week and the Reuters stories related to them.

PATIENT, PERSISTENT, PRUDENT

ECB chief Mario Draghi has good reason to stick to a mantra of PPP - patience, persistence and prudence - when the central bank meets on Thursday. Since the ECB's March meeting, economic data has disappointed, inflation estimates have been revised lower and a global trade spat may loom.

ECB policymaker Francois Villeroy de Galhau has already said the bank may have to alter... More

Active options: FB MO NFLX INTC WFC NVDA CLF JPM AMD SKX

April 20, 2018 9:41 AM EDT

Active options: FB MO NFLX INTC WFC NVDA CLF JPM AMD SKX

... More

Wall Street falls on investor nerves about interest rates, tech

April 20, 2018 7:40 AM EDT

By Sinéad Carew

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street's three major indexes declined on Friday as investors worried about a jump in U.S. bond yields, with technology stocks leading the decline on nerves about upcoming earnings reports and iPhone demand.

The technology index was the biggest drag on the S&P 500 with a 1.5 percent drop after registering three straight days of losses ahead of a key earnings week for the sector.

"There continues to be some concern over interest rates and their potential impact on equities. There's also been a... More

Credit Suisse Cuts Facebook's (FB) PT To $230

April 20, 2018 7:20 AM EDT

Credit Suisse analyst, Stephen Ju, reiterated his Outperform rating on shares of Facebook (NASDAQ: FB) but cut his price target to $230 from $240 ahead of earnings on April 25th. the analyst stated that advertiser conversations suggest little in the way of changes to budget... More

Facebook (FB) PT Lowered to $230 at Credit Suisse, Remains Buyers

April 20, 2018 6:43 AM EDT

Credit Suisse lowered its price target on Facebook (NASDAQ: FB) to $230.00 (from $240.00) while maintaining an Outperform rating.

"Between advertiser conversations which suggest little in the way of changes to budget allocations to Facebook, as well as OpEx and CapEx guidance parameters which at even... More

Facebook (FB) Slides to Number 3 Spot on Citi Internet Ranking List

April 20, 2018 5:37 AM EDT

Citi maintains Buy on Facebook (NASDAQ: FB).

Analyst Mark may says Facebook moves to the number 3 slot from number 1 in the internet ranking list primarily on other names being moved around along with concerns about how investors will react to margin pressure... More

AT&T CEO Stephenson says Time Warner deal needed in content-dependent world

April 19, 2018 2:21 PM EDT

By Diane Bartz and David Shepardson

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - AT&T (NYSE: T) CEO Randall Stephenson said on Thursday his company's bid to buy movie and TV show maker Time Warner (NYSE: TWX) would allow the two firms to serve customers better by lowering pay TV rates, rejecting government arguments the deal would raise consumer prices.

Speaking in U.S. District Court in Washington, Stephenson addressed himself to Judge Richard Leon who will decide if the $85 billion deal may go forward. He said... More

BlackRock wants regulators to address unequal voting rights

April 19, 2018 12:27 PM EDT

By Ross Kerber

BOSTON (Reuters) - BlackRock Inc (NYSE: BLK) on Thursday called on securities regulators to set international standards for shareholder voting rights, suggesting they resolve one of the thorniest debates in corporate governance.

The world's largest asset manager made the call in a letter to index provider MSCI, which had sought comments about a proposal it is considering to adjust the index weighting of stocks like Facebook Inc (NASDAQ: FB) and Google parent Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ: GOOGL) to account for their unequal voting... More

Facebook (FB): Takeaways From Spending Trends Call - Mizuho

April 19, 2018 8:11 AM EDT

Mizuho Securities analyst, James Lee, reiterated his Buy rating on shares of Facebook (NASDAQ: FB) and expects near term upside to results. The analyst hosted an investor call on spending trends with a leading digital ad agency that highlighted 3 key takeaways:

1) spending strength is... More