Markets Open Lower; Lululemon Profit Beats Estimates

Following the market opening Thursday, the Dow traded down 0.22 percent to 17,032.08 while the NASDAQ declined 0.14 percent to 4,580.18. The S&P also fell, dropping 0.15 percent to 1,992.69.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

Cyclical consumer goods & services shares rose 0.06 percent on Thursday. Top gainers in the sector included Lululemon Athletica LULU, up 17 percent, and World Wrestling Entertainment WWE, up 3.4 percent.

In trading on Thursday, energy shares were relative laggards, down on the day by about 0.68 percent. Meanwhile, top decliners in the sector included Isramco ISRL, down 4.8 percent, and Nabors Industries NBR, off 3.1 percent.

Top Headline

Lululemon Athletica LULU reported better-than-expected second-quarter earnings.

The Vancouver, Canada-based company posted a quarterly net profit of $48.7 million, or $0.33 per share, versus a year-ago profit of $56.5 million, or $0.39 per share.

Its revenue rose 13% to $390.7 million from $344.5 million. However, analysts were expecting earnings of $0.29 per share on revenue of $376.95 million.

Equities Trading UP

JDS Uniphase JDSU shares shot up 11.52 percent to $13.50 after the company announced its plans to spin off its optical components and subsystem operation as a separate company.

Shares of Lululemon Athletica LULU got a boost, shooting up 17.14 percent to $44.97 after the company reported better-than-expected second-quarter earnings.

The Kroger Co KR shares were also up, gaining 0.52 percent to $52.14 after the company reported upbeat earnings for the second quarter and raised its FY14 earnings forecast.

Equities Trading DOWN

Shares of Five Below FIVE were down 4.70 percent to $40.36 after the company issued a weak earnings forecast for the third quarter. The retailer’s second-quarter comparable sales grew by 3.2%. However, the company reported better-than-expected Q2 earnings.

Restoration Hardware Holdings RH shares tumbled 2.49 percent to $80.00 after the company reported weaker-than-expected second-quarter revenue and issued a weak FY14 revenue forecast. However, the company reported upbeat quarterly earnings and raised its FY14 earnings guidance.

Crocs CROX was down, falling 3.39 percent to $14.53. Buckingham Research downgraded Crocs from Buy to Neutral.

Commodities

In commodity news, oil traded down 1 percent to $90.75, while gold traded down 0.08 percent to $1,244.30.

Silver traded down 0.82 percent Thursday to $18.77, while copper fell 0.87 percent to $3.08.

Eurozone

European shares were lower today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 fell 0.42 percent, the Spanish Ibex Index dropped 0.96 percent, while Italy’s FTSE MIB Index slipped 0.95 percent. Meanwhile, the German DAX fell 0.50 percent and the French CAC 40 declined 0.76 percent while UK shares slipped 0.57 percent.

Economics

US jobless claims increased 11,000 to 315,000 in the week ended September 6. However, economists were expecting initial claims to reach 300,000 in the recent week.

The Treasury is set to auction 3-month, 6-month and 52-week bills.

Data on money supply will be released at 4:30 p.m. ET.