The Market In 5 Minutes: Stumpf Leaves Wells Fargo, More Trump Allegations

Below is a tool used by the Benzinga News Desk each trading day -- it's a look at everything happening in the market, in five minutes. Apply for daily AM access by clicking here or email minutes@benzinga.com.

Macro Focus

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 102 points to 17,955.00, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures declined 12.25 points to 2,119.75. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index fell 29.50 points to 4,785.50.

Oil prices traded mixed as Brent crude futures gained 0.04 percent to trade at $51.83 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures also fell 0.08 percent to trade at $50.60 a barrel.

The Fed's voting policymakers noted there was a reasonable argument for either hiking in September or waiting for additional data minutes. Several voting Fed policymakers thought rates should rise relatively soon.

Initial Jobless Claims for Oct 7 246.0K vs 252.0K consensus estimate. Continuing Claims for Sep 30 2.05M

• The Energy Information Administration's weekly report on natural gas stocks is schedule for release at 10:30 a.m. ET.
• The Energy Information Administration's weekly report on petroleum inventories is schedule for release at 11:00 a.m. ET.
• Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank President Patrick Harker is set to speak at 12:15 p.m. ET.
• The U.S. Treasury budget data for September will be released at 2:00 p.m. ET.
• Data on money supply for the recent week will be released at 4:30 p.m. ET.
• Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank President Neel Kashkari will speak in Missoula at 9:00 p.m. ET.

BZ News Desk Focus

• CSX CSX Reports Q3 EPS $0.48 vs. Est. $0.45, Revenue $2.71B vs $2.69B
• Delta Air DAL Reports Q3 Adj. EPS $1.70; Sees Q4 CASM Excluding Profit Sharing Up 1-2% YoY, Operating Margin in 14-16% Range $DAL
• Ulta ULTA Raises Q3 EPS Outlook from $1.25-$1.30 to $1.35-$1.38 vs $1.30 Est., Comps Up 14-15%
• EXFO EXFO Reports Q4 EPS $0.04 vs $0.05 Est., Adj. EBITDA $6.2M, Sales $62.9M vs $59.5M Est.
• Lindsay Corp. LNN Reports Q4 EPS $0.73 vs $(0.28) in Same Qtr. Last Year, Sales $132.9M vs $123.5M YoY

As the public awaits further earnings news flow over the course of the next few weeks, here are some prognoses concerning how the season could pan out.

Sell-Side Themes

KeyBanc initiated coverage on Dollar Tree DLTR and Dollar General DG at Sector Weight, while giving Five Below FIVE and Overweight rating.

Sell-Side's Most Noteworthy Calls

• Jefferies downgraded Pfizer PFE to Hold.
• Citi downgraded Rio Tinto RIO to Sell.
• Mizuho upgraded Synaptics SYNA to Buy.
• KeyBanc upgraded HCA Holdings HCA to Overweight.

Deal Talk

Imperva IMPV shares spiked on continued interest by IBM, Cisco and Private Equity firms. However, the stock closed in the red.

SoftBank is seeking to acquire Yahoo's YHOO stake in Yahoo Japan and merge it with Rakuten, according to a report in the New York Post.

In The News

Wells Fargo WFC Chairman and Chief Executive John Stumpf is stepping down from both roles, effective immediately, as the bank’s sales tactics scandal continues to roil the firm. He won’t receive a severance package.

Two women told The New York Times in a report published Wednesday night that Donald Trump touched them inappropriately, allegations that were swiftly followed by a similar claim in People magazine. The Trump campaign has asked for a retraction and there a re rumors he might sue the New York Times.

Blogosphere

"Donald Trump, currently steering the Republican Party into an iceberg, will never be president," writes John Thorpe, a Michigan-based political columnist who is a registered Democrat and spent most of his life working on behalf of the Republican Party. "That's a very good thing for Americans who value the Constitution and a very bad thing for bigots, chauvinists and the ne’er-do-wells who orbit Trump Tower."

Trending

GPRO OCUL GILD ESPR VRX DAL WFC OMER ULTA TGTX CSX SPY JPM

In light of last night's reports, the hashtag #NextFakeTrumpVictim is making the round.

Guess This Chart

• This company announced they're hiring 120,000 seasonal workers this year.
• This stock is a top 10 component in the S&P 500 Index.
• Stocks potentially affected by this company include Wal-Mart, Sears and FedEx.