Stocks that traded actively in U.S. markets on Wednesday include: Apple Inc. (AAPL), Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM), Dell Inc. (DELL), Walgreen Company (WAG), Mead Johnson Nutrition CO (MJN), Pharmacyclics, Inc. (PCYC).
Market Levels:
Stocks in News:
Apple Inc. (AAPL)
Apple Inc. (AAPL) shares edged lower after a federal judge ruled that the iPhone maker colluded with major book publishers to raise the retail price of e-books, costing consumers millions of dollars. The ruling is significant because it exposes Apple to hundreds of millions of dollars in damages. The major publishers, including News Corp (NWSA)’s HarperCollins Publishers LLC, Pearson plc (LON:PSON)’s Penguin Group (USA) Inc, CBS Corporation (CBS)’s Simon & Schuster Inc and Verlagsgruppe Georg von Holtzbrinck GmbH’s Macmillan, had previously settled with the government.
Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM)
Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM) posted second-quarter earnings excluding one-time items of 56 cents a share on revenue $2.90 billion, compared to analysts’ expectations for earnings excluding items of 54 cents a share on $2.93 billion in sales. Same-store sales slumped 20 percent in China, and were up 1 percent in the U.S.
Dell Inc. (DELL)
Billionaire investor Carl Icahn, in an effort to block Dell Inc. (DELL) founder Michael Dell’s $24.4 billion buyout offer, has urged shareholders to seek a higher price for their shares in court. In an open letter released today, Icahn asked shareholders to exercise their appraisal rights to determine whether the company is worth more than the $13.65 per share that Michael Dell and buyout partner Silver Lake Management LLC have agreed to pay.
Walgreen Company (WAG)
The drugstore chain raised its quarterly dividend by 15 percent to 31.5 cents a share from 27.5 cents a share. The dividend is payable September 12 to stockholders of record on August 20. The additional payout will cost the company $37.8 million per quarter. Shares are up in after-hours trading following the announcement.
Mead Johnson Nutrition CO (MJN)
Mead Johnson Nutrition CO (MJN) will lower the price of its infant milk formula in China by 7 percent to 15 percent after the country’s top economic planning agency began an investigation into suspected price-fixing and anti-competitive behavior in the sector. Danone SA (EPA:BN), Nestle SA and Abbott Laboratories (ABT) have already said they will cut prices of their key products in China.
Pharmacyclics, Inc. (PCYC)
Pharmacyclics, Inc. (PCYC) shares soared in trade after the biopharmaceutical company filed for U.S. approval of a blood cancer drug that is being developed with Johnson & Johnson (JNJ). The company wants to use the drug, ibrutinib, for treatment on two types of lymphoma, mantle cell lymphoma and chronic lymphocytic leukemia. In February, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration assigned the drug “breakthrough” status for mantle cell lymphoma.
Market Levels:
- US: Dow: 15291.70 (-0.06%), S&P 500: 1652.11 (-0.01%), 3520.76 (0.47%)
- Europe: CAC: 3840.53 (-0.08%), DAX: 8066.48 (0.22%), FTSE: 6504.96 (-0.12%)
- Asia-Pacific: Australia: 4881.70 (1.50%), China: 1965.45 (0.37%), Hong Kong: 20683.01 (0.49%), Japan: 14472.90 (2.51%).
- Metals: Gold: 1247.40 (0.12%), Silver: 19.16 (0.14%), Copper: 3.09 (0.86%)
- Energy: Crude Oil: 106.52 (2.89%), Natural Gas: 3.68 (0.63%)
- Commodities: Corn: 5.21 (-0.05%), Soya Bean: 12.84 (0.67%), Wheat: 6.79 (0.22%)
- Currency: EUR/USD: 1.2884 (0.81%), GBP/USD: 1.4923 (0.38%), USD/JPY: 100.120 (-1.02%)
- 10-year US Treasury: 2.680% (0.046)
Stocks in News:
Apple Inc. (AAPL)
Apple Inc. (AAPL) shares edged lower after a federal judge ruled that the iPhone maker colluded with major book publishers to raise the retail price of e-books, costing consumers millions of dollars. The ruling is significant because it exposes Apple to hundreds of millions of dollars in damages. The major publishers, including News Corp (NWSA)’s HarperCollins Publishers LLC, Pearson plc (LON:PSON)’s Penguin Group (USA) Inc, CBS Corporation (CBS)’s Simon & Schuster Inc and Verlagsgruppe Georg von Holtzbrinck GmbH’s Macmillan, had previously settled with the government.
Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM)
Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM) posted second-quarter earnings excluding one-time items of 56 cents a share on revenue $2.90 billion, compared to analysts’ expectations for earnings excluding items of 54 cents a share on $2.93 billion in sales. Same-store sales slumped 20 percent in China, and were up 1 percent in the U.S.
Dell Inc. (DELL)
Billionaire investor Carl Icahn, in an effort to block Dell Inc. (DELL) founder Michael Dell’s $24.4 billion buyout offer, has urged shareholders to seek a higher price for their shares in court. In an open letter released today, Icahn asked shareholders to exercise their appraisal rights to determine whether the company is worth more than the $13.65 per share that Michael Dell and buyout partner Silver Lake Management LLC have agreed to pay.
Walgreen Company (WAG)
The drugstore chain raised its quarterly dividend by 15 percent to 31.5 cents a share from 27.5 cents a share. The dividend is payable September 12 to stockholders of record on August 20. The additional payout will cost the company $37.8 million per quarter. Shares are up in after-hours trading following the announcement.
Mead Johnson Nutrition CO (MJN)
Mead Johnson Nutrition CO (MJN) will lower the price of its infant milk formula in China by 7 percent to 15 percent after the country’s top economic planning agency began an investigation into suspected price-fixing and anti-competitive behavior in the sector. Danone SA (EPA:BN), Nestle SA and Abbott Laboratories (ABT) have already said they will cut prices of their key products in China.
Pharmacyclics, Inc. (PCYC)
Pharmacyclics, Inc. (PCYC) shares soared in trade after the biopharmaceutical company filed for U.S. approval of a blood cancer drug that is being developed with Johnson & Johnson (JNJ). The company wants to use the drug, ibrutinib, for treatment on two types of lymphoma, mantle cell lymphoma and chronic lymphocytic leukemia. In February, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration assigned the drug “breakthrough” status for mantle cell lymphoma.