Nasdaq Gains 75 Points; Acuity Brands Posts Upbeat Earnings

U.S. stocks traded higher toward the end of trading, with the S&P 500 gaining around 0.3% on Wednesday.

The Dow traded up 0.08% to 39,200.08 while the NASDAQ rose 0.46% to 16,315.68. The S&P 500 also rose, gaining, 0.31% to 5,221.70.

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Leading and Lagging Sectors

Industrials shares jumped by 0.8% on Wednesday.

In trading on Wednesday, consumer staples shares fell by 0.9%.

Top Headline

Acuity Brands, Inc AYI reported better-than-expected earnings for its second quarter.

The company posted a quarterly net sales decline of 4.0% year-over-year to $905.9 million, missing the consensus of $907.7 million. It clocked an adjusted EPS of $3.38, beating the consensus of $3.25.

Equities Trading UP

Kintara Therapeutics, Inc. KTRA shares shot up 63% to $0.1637 after the company entered a merger agreement with TuHURA Biosciences.

Shares of ARCA biopharma, Inc. ABIO got a boost, surging 78% to $3.04 after the company and Oruka Therapeutics announced a merger agreement.

Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc. VNDA shares were also up, gaining 32% to $5.17 after the company's Fanapt received FDA approval for the acute treatment of bipolar I disorder.

Equities Trading DOWN

Casa Systems, Inc. CASA shares dropped 81% to $0.0485 after the Company filed voluntary petitions for relief under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court.

Shares of View, Inc. VIEW were down 63% to $0.4020 after the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The company on Tuesday said it reached a real with Cantor Fitzgerald and RXR to become a private company.

Sintx Technologies, Inc. SINT was down, falling 46% to $0.0227 after the company announced pricing of a $1.5 million public offering of common stock.

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Commodities

In commodity news, oil traded up 0.5% to $85.61 while gold traded up 1.4% at $2,313.90.

Silver traded up 4.1% to $26.995 on Wednesday, while copper rose 2.9% to $4.1865.

Euro zone

European shares closed higher today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 rose 0.29%, London’s FTSE 100 rose 0.03% while Spain’s IBEX 35 Index rose 0.52% The German DAX rose 0.46% French CAC 40 rose 0.29% while Italy’s FTSE MIB Index rose 0.45%.

The consumer price inflation rate in the eurozone eased to 2.4% year-over-year in March, compared to market expectations of 2.6%, while the unemployment rate in the eurozone came in at 6.5% in February, versus market estimates of 6.4%.

Asia Pacific Markets

Asian markets closed lower on Wednesday, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 falling 0.97%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dipping 1.22%, China’s Shanghai Composite Index falling 0.18% and India’s S&P BSE Sensex falling 0.1%.

Retail sales in Hong Kong climbed 0.5% year-over-year in February following a 1.2% decline in the prior month. The Caixin China General Services PMI rose to 52.7 in March from 52.5 in February, while composite PMI rose to 52.7 in March from 52.5 in the previous two months.

The au Jibun Bank Japan services PMI fell to 54.1 in March from a preliminary level 54.9, while composite PMI fell to 51.7 in March versus a flash reading of 52.3.

Economics

Mortgage applications in the U.S. declined by 0.6% on the week ending March 29, 2024.

Private businesses in the U.S. added 184,000 workers in March compared to a revised 155,000 gain in February, and topping market estimates of 148,000.

The S&P Global composite PMI was revised lower to 52.1 in March from a preliminary reading of 52.2.

The ISM services PMI declined to 51.4 in March compared to February’s reading of 52.6 and compared to market estimates of 52.7.

U.S. crude oil inventories increased by 3.21 million barrels in the week ended March 29, 2024, compared to market estimates of a 1.511 million decline, the EIA said.

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