Mid-Day Market Update: Finisar Jumps On Upbeat Earnings, Pier 1 Drops

Midway through trading Thursday, the Dow traded down 1.38 percent to 14,903.62 while the NASDAQ declined 1.45 percent to 3,393.43. The S&P also fell, dropping 1.53 percent to 1,603.97.

Rite Aid

posted a profit in the fiscal first quarter and cut its full-year earnings forecast. Rite Aid now expects full-year earnings of penny to $0.16 per share, versus its earlier forecast of $0.04 to $0.20 per share. Rite Aid posted a quarterly profit of $89.7 million, or $0.09 per share, versus a year-ago loss of $28.1 million, or $0.03 per share. However, analysts were expecting a profit of $0.09 per share.

Finisar

shot up 11.23 percent to $16.15 after the company reported upbeat fiscal fourth-quarter earnings and issued strong forecast for the first quarter. Shares of Wright Medical Group

got a boost, shooting up 6.67 percent to $26.62 after the company announced its plans to sell its implants business to a unit of MicroPort Scientific for $290 million in cash.. Red Hat

was also up, gaining 1.45 percent to $46.89 after the company reported an 8% surge in its net income for its fiscal first quarter.

Shares of Pier 1 Imports

were down 3.71 percent to $23.10 on Q1 results. FedEx

was down, falling 4.41 percent to $96.11. JP Morgan downgraded FedEx from “overweight” to “neutral.” Rite Aid

shares tumbled 6.75 percent to $2.90 after the company cut its full-year earnings forecast.

In commodity news, oil traded down 2.79 percent to $95.50, while gold traded down 5.84 percent to $1,293.80. Silver traded down 8.50 percent Thursday to $19.79, while copper fell 2.84 percent to $3.06.

European shares tracked Asian markets lower and continued to trade lower following the weaker than expected German manufacturing data. The Eurozone Manufacturing PMI posted a slight beat of expectations this morning, rising to 48.7 from 48.3 on an expected reading of 48.6. Strength was seen in France while Germany's PMI unexpectedly dropped to 48.7 vs. 49.4 previously on an expected rise to 49.8. The Spanish Ibex Index fell 3.29 percent and the Italian FTSE MIB Index declined 3.06 percent. Meanwhile, the German DAX fell 3.06 percent and the French CAC 40 declined 3.66 percent while U.K. shares dropped 2.79 percent.

US jobless claims rose by 18,000 to 354,000 in the week ended June 15. However, economists were projecting claims to surge to 340,000 in the week. The US flash manufacturing PMI declined to a reading of 52.2 in June, versus 52.3 in May, Markit reported. The Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index rose to minus 29.4 in the week ended June 16, versus minus 31.3 in the prior week. US existing-home sales increased 4.2% to an annual rate of 5.18 million in May. However, sales of existing homes jumped 12.9% y/y in May. Economists were expecting existing-home sales to rise an annual rate of 5 million. The leading economic index increased 0.1% to 95.2% in May, the Conference Board reported. However, economists were expecting a 0.2% rise. The Philadelphia Fed business condition index surged to 12.50 in June, versus a reading of -5.20 in May. However, economists were expecting t-2.00. Natural-gas inventories surged 91 billion cubic feet for the week ended June 14, the US Energy Information Administration reported. The Treasury is set to auction 30-year TIPS. Data on money supply will be released at 4:30 p.m. ET.