Stocks making the biggest moves midday: Abercrombie & Fitch, Palo Alto Networks, Moderna and more
Check out the companies making headlines in midday trading.
Citigroup — Citigroup shares fell nearly 3%. The bank announced plans to spin off its Mexico business Banamex through an initial public offering after its efforts to find a buyer for the unit failed.
Palo Alto Networks — The cybersecurity company saw its shares jump nearly 8%. The action came a day after Palo Alto Networks posted a better-than-expected quarterly report and strong earnings guidance. The company reported adjusted earnings of $1.10 per share and revenue of $1.72 billion. Analysts polled by Refinitiv had estimated earnings of 93 cents per share and $1.71 billion in revenue.
Netflix — Shares rose 1.2%. On Tuesday, the company started notifying customers of its password-sharing rules in the U.S. Oppenheimer said the crackdown on account sharing should help the stock.
Analog Devices — Analog Devices dropped 8% in midday trading. The semiconductor manufacturing firm gave weaker-than-expected guidance for the fiscal third quarter, despite beating expectations on the top and bottom lines in its second quarter. Analog Devices expects adjusted earnings of about $2.52 per share in the third quarter, compared to analysts' forecasts of $2.65 per share, according to FactSet. The company expects revenue of about $3.10 billion, less than the $3.16 billion estimate.
Tesla — Shares of Elon Musk's electric vehicle maker dipped about 2% midday. Disappointing quarterly results from Chinese rival Xpeng sent EV stocks lower. Xpeng missed estimates on revenue and posted a wider loss than analysts expected, per Refinitiv. The company also forecast a decline in vehicle deliveries.
Energy stocks — Shares of oil companies rose Wednesday. The move came a day after Saudi Arabia's energy minister indicated potential OPEC+ output reductions. The Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) was up 0.3%. Marathon Oil and APA both gained roughly 1%.
Semiconductor stocks — Semiconductor shares declined Wednesday. A spokesperson for China's Ministry of Commerce spoke out against Japan's chip export restrictions to China a day earlier. Shares of Microchip Technology were down 6%. NXP Semiconductors fell 4%, while On Semiconductor shed 3%. Nvidia also declined 2% ahead of its earnings announcement after the bell.
Moderna — The biotech company's shares fell more than 4%. The drop marks a sharp reversal for the stock, which has popped in recent days amid news of the new XBB variant wave of Covid cases in China. Beijing officials reportedly estimate this could result in 65 million new weekly cases by the end of June.
Abercrombie & Fitch — Shares of the apparel retailer soared 26% after the company reported fiscal first-quarter earnings and revenue that beat analysts' estimates, according to Refinitiv. The apparel retailer also issued strong guidance for the fiscal second quarter and full year.
Urban Outfitters — Shares of the retail company spiked about 16%. On Tuesday, Urban Outfitters issued a fiscal first-quarter report that beat expectations on the top and bottom lines. The company generated 56 cents in earnings per share on $1.11 billion of revenue. Analysts surveyed by Refinitiv had penciled in 35 cents of earnings per share on $1.09 billion of revenue. Barclays upgraded the stock to overweight from equal weight after the earnings report.
Accolade — Shares jumped nearly 7% following an upgrade to buy from neutral from Bank of America. The firm said the health benefits assistance company has a "steady growth engine."
Stem — Stem shares climbed 5%. Evercore ISI initiated coverage of the stock with an outperform rating, saying the energy storage company is a leader in a rapidly growing market given the rise in clean energy technologies. The firm said in a Tuesday note Stem is "well-positioned to capture a significant market share," and is a "growth story."
Corning — Shares gained 2% a day after Corning announced it would hike prices for its display glass products 20%. The company said the price adjustment is intended to offset ongoing high energy and material costs. Corning said it expects demand to grow in the second half of 2023.
Kohl's — The retail giant got a 5% lift in its shares after it reported an unexpected first-quarter profit Wednesday and reaffirmed its full-year outlook. The company said its stores have improved productivity and noted sustained momentum at Sephora at Kohl's.
Agilent Technologies — Shares of the laboratory technology company declined almost 8%. On Tuesday, Agilent posted guidance for earnings and revenue in the fiscal third quarter was lower than anticipated, according to Refinitiv. However, the company posted beats on the top and bottom lines for the previous quarter.
Intuit — The tax software company's shares declined 7% a day after Intuit issued quarterly results. While Intuit's fiscal third-quarter earnings came above analysts' estimates, the company reported a revenue miss, according to Refinitiv data. The company's earnings outlook for the current quarter also missed analysts' expectations.
— CNBC's Samantha Subin, Alex Harring, Yun Li, Brian Evans, Jesse Pound and Tanaya Macheel contributed reporting.