Markets Marginally Lower Ahead Of Friday's Jobs Report

U.S. stocks were slightly lower on Thursday as investors and traders may be sitting on the sidelines ahead of Friday's monthly jobs report.

The Dow nearly traded lower by 100-points but rebounded and traded at a new all-time high of 17,937.96 before ending the day almost unchanged.

U.S. data released on Thursday showed fewer Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week. However, comments coming out of the European Central Bank may have taken over the spotlight.

Bloomberg reported that the ECB is preparing a broad stimulus plan to begin in January with all assets (except gold) “on the table for purchase.”

The Dow lost 0.07 percent, closing at 17,900.10.
The S&P 500 lost 0.12 percent, closing at 2,071.92.
The Nasdaq lost 0.11 percent, closing at 4,769.44.
Gold lost 0.19 percent, trading at $1,206.40 an ounce.
Oil lost 0.93 percent, trading at $66.75 a barrel.

News of Note

November Challenger Job-Cut Report fell to 35,940 from 51,183 in October.

November Gallup US Payroll To Population declined to 44.2 percent from 44.4 percent in October.

Initial Jobless Claims declined to 297,000 (versus expectations of 295,000) from 314,000 last week. Continuing claims rose 39,000 to 2.36 million.

Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index fell to 39.8 from 40.7 last week.

Recommended: Imperial Capital Releases Its 'Best Ideas' With An Upside Potential Of More Than 30%

EIA Natural Gas Inventory declined 22 bcf (versus expectations of a 41 bcf decline) after declining 162 bcf last week.

The European Central Bank maintained its marginal lending facility at 0.30 percent, its refinancing rate at 0.05 percent and the deposit facility rate at -0.20 percent.

The Bank of England maintained its Bank Rate at 0.5 percent and its QE program at 375 billion pounds.

Equities News Of Note

Sears Holdings SHLD reported its third quarter results Thursday. The company lost $2.71 per share, better than the consensus estimate of a loss of $3.31 per share. Revenue of $7.21 billion beat the consensus estimate of $6.88 billion. Shares lost 3.77 percent, closing at $32.96.

Dollar General DG reported its third quarter results this morning. The company earned $0.76 per share, missing the consensus estimate of $0.80. Revenue of $4.72 billion fell short of the consensus estimate of $4.75 billion. Shares hit new 52-week highs of $68.92 before closing the day at $67.79, up 1.65 percent.

Kroger KR reported its third quarter results this morning. The company earned $0.69 per share, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61. Revenue of $25.00 billion beat the consensus estimate of $24.82 billion. Shares hit new 52-week highs of $61.16 before closing the day at $60.76, up 3.58 percent.

Analysts at Oppenheimer maintained an Outperform rating on FedEx FDX with a price target raised to $200 from a previous $175. Shares gained 0.08 percent, closing at $180.18.

Analysts at Jefferies maintained a Hold rating on Johnson & Johnson JNJ with a price target raised to $114 from a previous $110. Shares lost 0.15 percent, closing at $107.56.

Analysts at Jefferies maintained a Hold rating on Merck & Company MRK with a price target raised to $65 from a previous $63. Shares hit new 52-week highs of $61.38 before closing the day at $60.92, up 0.56 percent.

Analysts at UBS downgraded Wal-Mart WMT to Neutral from Buy with an unchanged $91 price target. Shares lost 0.21 percent, closing at $84.76.

Best Buy BBY said that it plans on selling its Chinese operations to focus on its North American business. Shares gained 0.11 percent, closing at $36.08.

Barnes & Noble's BKS announced during its earnings report that it will purchase Microsoft's MSFT stake in NOOK Media for $62.4 million in cash and 2.7 million shares. Shares of Barns & Noble lost 5.44 percent, closing at $21.03 while shares of Microsoft gained 1.56 percent, closing at $48.83.

Recommended: Thursday's Retailers Roundup: Quarterly Reports And November Sales Metrics

Enbridge ENB announced it will transfer ownership of its Canadian pipelines to affiliates to lower funding costs for future projects. The company also said it is considering a similar move to restructure its U.S. based assets. Shares hit new 52-week highs of $57.19 before closing the day at $52.80, up 10.28 percent.

Starbucks SBUX said during an Investor Presentation that it is aiming to achieve $30 billion in revenue by fiscal 2019. Shares hit new 52-week highs of $82.30 before closing the day at $81.31, up 1.04 percent.

PetroChina PTR and Sinochem SHI have agreed to team up and spend $4.2 billion to tap five shale blocks in the southwest of China. Shares of PetroChina gained 6.18 percent, closing at $109.56 while shares of Sinochem gained 5.28 percent, closing at $32.33.

Quote of the Day

“Millions of people may decide that they no longer need to own a car because using Uber will be cheaper than owning one.” - Uber CEO Travis Kalanick commenting on the future of his firm after raising $1.2 billion at a $40 billion valuation.

Posted In: NewsAfter-Hours CenterMarketsMoversBank Of EnglandBloombergBloomberg Consumer Comfort IndexChallenger Job CutChinaecbEuropean Central BankInitial Jobless ClaimsJefferiesjohn chenMoody'sNatural Gas InventoryNOOOK MediaOppenheimerpayrollUberUBS
We simplify the market for smarter investing

Trade confidently with insights and alerts from analyst ratings, free reports and breaking news that affects the stocks you care about.

Join Now: Free!

Loading...