Just 25 days after Twitter's highly anticipated IPO, analysts gave the company mixed reviews on Monday. In a surprise move, the Bank of America Merrill Lynch initiated coverage on the company with an Underperform rating.
The analysts responsible for the valuation, Justin Post, expects to see an 11.7 percent decline in Twitters share price. Morgan Stanley and JP Morgan, both involved in the underwriting for Twitter's IPO, gave the stock an Equal-weight and Neutral rating, respectively.
- Government security forces removed the barriers and allowed protestors into Thailand's main government compound on Tuesday in an attempt to prevent the angry crowd from erupting into violence. The demonstrators now occupy the lawn outside the Government House but have promised not to enter any of the buildings. The hundreds of thousands of protesters are calling for Thailand's Prime Minister to step down in what have been the largest demonstrations the country has seen since 2006.
- The Reserve Bank of Australia announced the results of its policy meeting with no surprises on Tuesday. The bank decided to keep its rate unchanged and reiterated that past easing maneuvers were still working their way through the nation's economy. The bank noted that housing markets were on the mend, but that public spending continued to be quite weak.
- Apple acquired Topsy Labs Inc, a social media analytics company for over $200 million in a deal that has many wondering what Apple's next step will be. The firm analyzes twitter data by filtering tweets to measure the impact of marketing campaigns and find influential users. Apple's spokespeople have yet to comment on the company's plans for their new acquisition, but many believe Apple will use the firm's capabilities to improve iTunes and the Siri voice assistant.
- In his first public address since the anti-government demonstrations began, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych expressed his reasoning for backing away from the EU's trade deal saying that the lost trade from Russia would not be offset by the promised EU funding. He also noted that the terms of the agreement required that Ukraine conform to strict guidelines set by the International Monetary Fund. Protesters have gathered in Kiev' independence square, calling for Yanukovyvh's removal from office for his decision to back away from the EU.
Asian markets were mixed on Tuesday, the Japanese NIKKEI gained 0.60 percent, China's Shanghai composite was up 0.69 percent and the Shenzhen composite gained 2.05 percent. However the Hang Seng index lost 0.45 percent and the South Korean KOSPI was down 1.05 percent.
European Markets
Europe's markets were down across the board; the UK's FTSE lost 0.83 percent and the eurozone's STOXX 600 was down 0.30 percent. Italy's MIB was down 1.52 percent and the Spanish IBEX lost 0.94 percent.
Energy futures were mixed, Brent futures were down 0.05 percent and WTI futures gained 0.22 percent. Gold gained 0.16 percent and silver was up 0.03 percent. Industrial metals were down across the board with tin posting the largest loss, down 1.32 percent.
Currency markets were quiet, the euro to dollar ratio was steady at $1.35 and the pound gained 0.13 percent against the dollar. The dollar gained 0.13 percent against the yen and 0.11 percent against the Australian dollar.
Earnings
Notable earnings released on Monday included:
- Thor Industries, Inc. (NYSE: THO) reported first quarter EPS of $0.77 on revenue of $800.00 million, compared to last year's EPS of $0.58 on revenue of $875.61 million.
- Ascena Retail Group, Inc. ASNA reported first quarter EPS of $0.36 on revenue of $1.20 billion, compared to last year's EPS of $0.39 on revenue of $1.14 billion.
Stocks moving in the Premarket included:
- Exxon Mobil Corp (NYSE: XOM) gained 0.62 percent in premarket trade after falling 1.65 percent over the past week.
- Visa Inc. V lost 1.77 percent in premarket trade after gaining 1.58 percent over the past week.
- Transocean Ltd RIG fell 1.15 percent in premarket trade after losing 1.53 percent over the past week.
- Bank of America Corp BAC was down 1.08 percent in premarket trade after sliding 0.51 percent on Monday.
Notable earnings expected on Tuesday include:
- Bank Of Montreal (NYSE: BMO) is expected to report second quarter EPS of $1.60 on revenue of $4.05 billion, compared to last year's EPS of $1.65 on revenue of $4.18 billion.
- OmniVision Technologies, Inc. OVTI is expected to report second quarter EPS of $0.43 on revenue of $392.26 million, compared to last year's EPS of $0.33 on revenue of $390.14 billion.
- United Natural Foods, Inc. UNFI is expected to report first quarter EPS of $0.54 on revenue of $1.61 billion, compared to last year's EPS of $0.46 on revenue of $1.41 billion.
Economics
Tuesday's economic calender will be a quiet one with notable releases including Brazilian GDP, eurozone PPI, British construction PMI and US car sales.
For a recap of Monday's market action, click here.
Tune into Benzinga’s pre-market info show with Dennis Dick and Joel Elconin here.
© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
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