The Market In 5 Minutes: GDP, Jobless Claims And Micron

Macro Focus

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 13 points to 19,878.00, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures dropped 2.25 points to 2,258.25. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index slipped 3.75 points to 4,945.50.

Oil prices traded lower as Brent crude futures dropped 0.53 percent to trade at $54.17 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures also fell 0.69 percent to trade at $52.13 a barrel.

USA GDP (QoQ) for Q3 3.50% vs 3.30% consensus estimate. The prior reading was 3.20%.

Initial Jobless Claims for Dec 16 275.0K vs 256.0K estimate. Continuing Claims for Dec 09 2.04M vs 2.02M estimate.

Data on personal income and consumer spending for November will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET.
The index of leading economic indicators for November is schedule for release at 10:00 a.m. ET.
The Energy Information Administration’s weekly report on natural gas stocks is schedule for release at 10:30 a.m. ET.
The Kansas City Fed manufacturing index for December will be released at 11:00 a.m. ET.
Data on money supply for the recent week will be released at 4:30 p.m. ET.

BZ News Desk Focus

Micron MU Reports Q1 Adj. EPS $0.32 vs $0.28 Est., Sales $3.97B vs $3.95B Est.
Bed Bath & Beyond BBBY Reports Q3 EPS $0.85 vs. Est. $0.98, Rev. $2.955B vs. Est. $3.01B
Rite Aid RAD Reports Q3 EPS $0.02 vs $0.04 Est, Revenue $8.1B vs $8.2B Est
CalAmp CAMP Reports Q3 Adj EPS $0.21 vs $0.26 Est, Revenue 83.4M vs $83.93M Est
Red Hat RHT Reports Q3 EPS $0.61 vs. Est. $0.58, Rev. $615M vs. Est. $618M

Sell-Side Themes

Aegis Capital initiated coverage on several casinos, with Las Vegas Sands LVS, MGM Resorts MGM and Melco Crown MPEL receiving Buy ratings, while Wynn Resorts WYNN received a Neutral rating.

Finish Line FINL received at least three downgrades following the stock's 9 percent drop on Wednesday.

Sell-Side's Most Noteworthy Calls

B. Riley downgraded Zumiez ZUMZ to Neutral.
Wells Fargo downgraded Swift Transportation SWFT to Market Perform.
FBR Capital upgraded Sunoco SUN to Outperform.
Summit upgraded Micron from Sell to Buy.

Deal Talk

Aetna AET and Humana HUM have reached a pact to extend the date to waive until February 15, 2017, with the right to terminate merger due to failure to complete merger on or before December 31.

Shares of 8x8 EGHT spiked as high as $15.45 on Wednesday, as Benzinga reported that the company's Board of Directors has started a process to find a buyer, according to a source. However, the source said that no buyers have come forward.

Johnson & Johnson JNJ confirmed it has entered into exclusive negotiations with Actelion ALIOF regarding a potential transaction. The companies confirmed on December 13 that discussions had ended.

In The News

Goldman Sachs GS ties to scandal-plagued 1MDB run deep. The bank courted state fund now at heart of global embezzlement probes, and investigators want to know if it should have reported suspicious activity.

Seasoned traders know rumors are a major part of the Wall Street world. Rumors can be both frustrating and profitable to traders who time them right because the rumors don’t actually need to turn out to be true to influence share prices. Here’s a look at seven of the biggest rumors of 2016 and how they were resolved.

Blogosphere

Need a little self-examination? "Do yourself a favor and get a grip. Log into your account and examine your performance. It might not feel good and it might not even change your approach, but maybe it will dampen any illusions you have about the future."

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