From Briefing.com: 4:07 pm Micron beats by $0.04, reports revs in-line; guides Q3 EPS and rev above consensus (MU) : Reports Q2 (Feb) earnings of $0.90 per share, $0.04 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of $0.86; revenues rose 58.4% year/year to $4.65 bln vs the $4.65 bln Capital IQ Consensus. The increase in the company's revenues of 17 percent for the second quarter of fiscal 2017 compared to the first quarter of fiscal 2017 was due primarily to a 21 percent increase in DRAM average selling prices and an 18 percent increase in trade NAND sales volumes. The company's overall consolidated GAAP gross margin of 36.7 percent for the second quarter of fiscal 2017 was 11.2 percentage points higher compared to the first quarter of fiscal 2017 primarily due to increases in DRAM average selling prices and manufacturing cost reductions for both NAND and DRAM.
Co issues upside guidance for Q3, sees EPS of $1.43-1.57, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $0.93 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate; sees Q3 revs of $5.2-5.6 bln vs. $4.52 bln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate.
4:38 pm Cypress Semi stockholders approve consent solicitation to eliminate cumulative voting ahead of June 8 Annual Meeting; expects to file prelim proxy materials shortly (CY) : Cypress' previously announced bylaw amendments to adopt proxy access, as well as a majority vote standard for the election of directors in uncontested elections and a plurality vote standard for the election of directors in contested elections, are now in effect and will govern the Company's upcoming 2017 Annual Meeting of Stockholders which the Company will hold on June 8, 2017.
4:21 pm Closing Market Summary: Stocks Settle Lower Following Health Care Vote Delay (:WRAPX):
The stock market had a decent rebound try going for much of Thursday's session, but it fell to the wayside in the afternoon after reports that the House vote on the American Health Care Act, which was scheduled for tonight, will be delayed. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq settled lower by 0.1% while the Dow closed flat.
The financial sector (+0.2%) led the stock market to modest gains when it appeared that GOP leadership and the House Freedom Caucus might reach a deal to push the AHCA through the House. However, the major averages retreated back to their flat lines after the House Freedom Caucus failed to reach an agreement on the proposed legislation. Equities then pushed into negative territory on news that the vote would be delayed.
The pick up in selling interest was due in large part to the angst the delayed vote created about the fate of tax reform. Administration officials and Congressional leaders have said health care reform needs to get tackled first before moving on to tax reform.
With investors in wait-and-see mode, almost all sectors settled within 0.4% of their respective flat lines. The lightly-weighted real estate sector (+0.7%) finished at the top of the leaderboard while several sectors--energy (-0.4%), technology (-0.3%), and health care (-0.4%)--contended for the bottom spot.
The technology sector struggled throughout the session with Alphabet (GOOGL 839.65, -10.15) suffering as brands continued to freeze their marketing campaigns with the company after The Times reported that ads were appearing next to extremist videos on YouTube.
On the earnings front, retailers cheered PVH's (PVH 98.55, +7.70) latest earnings report. The company, which owns brands like Van Heusen, Tommy Hilfiger, and Calvin Klein, jumped 8.5% after reporting better than expected earnings and issuing upbeat guidance. The SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT 41.21, +0.31) also settled higher, climbing 0.8%.
In the Treasury market, U.S. sovereign debt finished flat with the benchmark 10-yr yield closing unchanged at 2.41%.
On the data front, investors received February New Home Sales and the weekly Initial Claims report:
New Home Sales in February hit an annualized rate of 592,000, which was above the revised January rate of 558,000 (from 555,000), and more than the 560,000 that was expected by the Briefing.com consensus. The key takeaway from the report is that new home sales activity was robust, driven by increased demand for lower-priced homes as high prices and rising mortgage rates have created affordability constraints at higher price points for prospective homebuyers. The latest weekly initial jobless claims count totaled 258,000 while the Briefing.com consensus expected a reading of 239,000. Today's tally was above the revised prior week count of 243,000 (from 241,000). As for continuing claims, they declined to 2.000 million from the revised count of 2.039 million (from 2.030 million). The key takeaway from the report is that it could soften March nonfarm payroll growth expectations a bit since it covered the week in which the survey for the Employment Situation Report was conducted. Friday's lone economic report, February Durable Orders (Briefing.com consensus +1.3%), will cross the wires at 8:30 ET.
Nasdaq Composite +8.1% YTD
S&P 500 +4.8% YTD
Dow Jones Industrial Average +4.5% YTD
Russell 2000 -0.3% YTD
On Thursday, the broader market closed lower but only just so as afternoon gains could not hold behind reports of a delay for the vote of the American Health Care Act (AHCA). Ultimately, the S&P 500 was the worst performer, shedding 2.49 points (-0.11%) to 2345.96. The Nasdaq Composite lost 3.95 points (-0.07%) to 5817.69, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 4.72 points (-0.02%) to 20656.58.
As mentioned, up until midday, the stock market had a decent rebound try going, yet it has fallen by the wayside in the afternoon session, largely because the vote on the House GOP's health care reform plan, which was scheduled for tonight, sounds as if it is falling by the wayside, too.
Press reports have indicated that Speaker Ryan has postponed his press conference on the AHCA until further notice and separate reports are suggesting a vote may not happen until Monday now.
The implication for the market is that the House GOP doesn't have the votes right now that it needs to get the AHCA passed. The notion that it could still take place, though, whether it is Monday, or before then, has tempered a little of the market's disappointment, yet it certainly hasn't squelched it altogether.
Selling interest has picked up due in large part to the angst the delayed vote has created about the fate of tax reform. Administration officials and Congressional leaders have said health care reform needs to get tackled first before moving on to tax reform.
Market data today included the February New Home Sales reading which hit an annualized rate of 592,000, which was above the revised January rate of 558,000 (from 555,000). Additionally, the latest weekly initial jobless claims count totaled 258,000, above the revised prior week count of 243,000 (from 241,000). As for continuing claims, they declined to 2.000 million from the revised count of 2.039 million (from 2.030 million).
Moderately amplifying the selling action in the broader market today, the Technology (XLK 52.80, -0.14 -0.26%) space had moments of positive trading today but ultimately could not sustain gains. Component Accenture (ACN 120.76, -5.72 -4.52%) was one of the worst performing names in the space today after reporting Q2 results and giving select Q3 and FY17 guidance. Displaying relative strength today, cyber-security name FireEye (FEYE 12.19, +0.70 +6.09%) was higher today in reaction to a premarket upgrade of the stock to a "Buy" rating from a "Sell" at Goldman. Real Estate XLRE +0.74% led all other S&P sectors today, followed by XLB +0.42%, XLY +0.23%, XLF +0.21%, IYZ -0.06%, XLI -0.14%, XLP -0.22%, XLU -0.31%, XLV -0.31%, XLE -0.41%.
In the S&P 500 Information Technology (896.17, -2.90 -0.32%) space, trading also grabbed a lower close today as broader selling took hold. Component Alphabet (GOOG 817.58, -12.01 -1.45%) was pressured today as global brands continue to pull advertising following YouTube extremist video controversies. Other names in the space which closed lower today included CTSH -1.18%, MCHP -1.02%, FSLR -1.00%, INTU -0.93%, NVDA -0.91%, PAYX -0.77%, ADI -0.71%, JNPR -0.61%, CRM -0.44%, CSCO -0.41%, QCOM -0.40%, XLNX -0.39%, KLAC -0.36%.
Other notable news items among sector components:
Alphabet (GOOG) shares were pressured today as brands continue to pull advertising following YouTube extremist videos controversy.
Arris (ARRS 26.67, +1.00 +3.90%) announced a new $300 million share repurchase program at its Investor Day today. The company also guided 2017 adjusted EPS of $2.40-2.60 and adjusted revenues of $6.615-6.83 billion.
Accenture (ACN) to acquire First Annapolis Consulting, Inc., a privately held payments consulting and advisory firm. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Intel (INTC 35.27, -0.10 -0.28%) increased its quarterly dividend to $0.2725 from $0.26 per share.
Microsoft (MSFT 64.87, -0.16 -0.25%) announced a new patent licensing agreement with Toyota (TM 110.51, -0.32 -0.29%) that includes broad coverage for connected car technologies.
DragonWave (DRWI 1.45, +0.10 +7.41%) announced the selection of the Harmony Enhanced MC backhaul solution by Corridor Communication Inc. (CCI Wireless), a service provider in the province of Alberta, Canada, delivering broadband services to rural customers.
Apple (AAPL 140.92, -0.50 -0.35%) has acquired utility app maker Workflow, according to TechCrunch.
Western Digital (WDC 76.19, +1.26 +1.68%) repriced 881 million of new Euro-denominated term B-2 loans at an interest rate of Euribor + 2.00%, which priced 125 basis points lower than its previous Euro-denominated term B-1 loans issued in September 2016.
In reaction to quarterly results:
Accenture (ACN) reported better than expected Q2 EPS of $1.33 on in-line revenues of $8.32 billion. The company also guided Q3 revenues in-line at $8.65-8.90 billion and raised the low end of FY17 EPS and revenues guidance to in-line with market expectations at $5.70-5.87 and growth of 4-6% to about $34.20-34.86 billion, respectively.
Hanwha Q CELLS (HQCL 6.70, -0.50 -6.94%) reported a worse than expected Q4 loss per share of $0.31 on worse than expected revenues of $565.9 million. The company also guided Q1 revenues below market expectations at $410-430 million.
Analyst actions:
FEYE was upgraded to Buy from Sell at Goldman,
VRNS was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Stifel,
MANT was upgraded to Market Perform from Underperform at Wells Fargo;
PFPT was downgraded to Sell from Neutral at Goldman,
NMBL was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Maxim Group;
SNAP was initiated with a Neutral at Piper Jaffray,
SNAP was initiated with a Positive at OTR Global,
FTV was initiated with a Sector Perform at RBC Capital Mkts
AI
