U.S. shares pared an early rally as better-than-predicted data on consumer confidence outweighed a drop in home sales. The S&P 500 (INDEXSP:.INX) was up 0.2 percent at 11:16 a.m. in New York. The 30-member Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:.DJI) rose 0.3 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (INDEXDJX:.DJI) gained 0.2 percent. Most followed shares included Walt Disney, Walgreen, Sonic, Carnival, McCormick & Company, Safeway, G-III Apparel Group, Pall, and Rackspace Hosting.
Walt Disney Co. (NYSE:DIS), the world's largest entertainment company, dropped 0.5 percent to $79.09, reversing earlier gains. The Burbank, California–based company agreed to acquire Maker Studios, a supplier of online video content to YouTube, for at least $500 million. Walt Disney said it would pay up to $450 million more in bonuses if Maker meets performance targets.
In health-care shares, Walgreen Co. (NYSE:WAG), the biggest U.S. drugstore operator, climbed 4.7 percent to $67.36 after saying it plans to close 76 drugstores and expects more synergies from its Alliance Boots business. Synergies from its Alliance Boots business will reach as much as $425 million a year, the company said.
Sonic Corp. (NASDAQ:SONC), the owner of drive-in restaurants, jumped 10.6 percent to $23.16 after posting a second-quarter adjusted profit of 7 cents a share that beat the average analyst projection of 6 cents.
Pall Corp. (NYSE:PLL), a manufacturer of filtration and purification systems, gained 1.3 percent to $88.72. Credit Suisse lifted its price target on the stock to $102 per share from $94 following meetings with management, saying that cost reductions are continuing and that its recent acquisition of ATMI's LifeSciences business will provide more synergies than previously thought.
In consumer-discretionary shares, Carnival Corp. (NYSE:CCL), the world’s largest cruise line operator, declined 3.7 percent to $38.52 after it narrowed its full-year profit forecast in the wake of lowering ticket prices to attract customers hesitant about incidents at sea.
G-III Apparel Group Ltd. (NASDAQ:GIII) dropped 5.2 percent to $70.58 after outlining disappointing bottom-line forecasts for the current quarter and year, partly tied to its acquisition of the G.H. Bass & Co. shoe brand.
American depositary receipts of Luxottica Group SpA (NYSE:LUX), the maker of the popular Ray-Ban and Oakley brands, climbed 3.6 percent to $55.77. The Milan, Italy–based company signed an agreementl with Google Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) to design and manufacture glasses containing Google Glass technology.
In consumer-staples shares, McCormick & Company Inc. (NYSE:MKC), a spice maker, advanced 5.7 percent to $71.34 after reporting fiscal first-quarter profit of 62 cents per share, surpassing estimates by a penny.
Safeway Inc. (NYSE:SWY), a supermarket operator, inched up 0.3 percent to $38.06. The company declared a special stock dividend, related to its spin-off of Blackhawk Network Holdings, a distributor of gift cards and other digital commerce products.
In other stocks, Rackspace Hosting Inc. (NYSE:RAX), a cloud computing services company, rose 6.2 percent to $34.75. The stock was boosted to "overweight" from equal-weight at Morgan Stanley.
Reported by Proactive Investors 4 hours ago.
Walt Disney Co. (NYSE:DIS), the world's largest entertainment company, dropped 0.5 percent to $79.09, reversing earlier gains. The Burbank, California–based company agreed to acquire Maker Studios, a supplier of online video content to YouTube, for at least $500 million. Walt Disney said it would pay up to $450 million more in bonuses if Maker meets performance targets.
In health-care shares, Walgreen Co. (NYSE:WAG), the biggest U.S. drugstore operator, climbed 4.7 percent to $67.36 after saying it plans to close 76 drugstores and expects more synergies from its Alliance Boots business. Synergies from its Alliance Boots business will reach as much as $425 million a year, the company said.
Sonic Corp. (NASDAQ:SONC), the owner of drive-in restaurants, jumped 10.6 percent to $23.16 after posting a second-quarter adjusted profit of 7 cents a share that beat the average analyst projection of 6 cents.
Pall Corp. (NYSE:PLL), a manufacturer of filtration and purification systems, gained 1.3 percent to $88.72. Credit Suisse lifted its price target on the stock to $102 per share from $94 following meetings with management, saying that cost reductions are continuing and that its recent acquisition of ATMI's LifeSciences business will provide more synergies than previously thought.
In consumer-discretionary shares, Carnival Corp. (NYSE:CCL), the world’s largest cruise line operator, declined 3.7 percent to $38.52 after it narrowed its full-year profit forecast in the wake of lowering ticket prices to attract customers hesitant about incidents at sea.
G-III Apparel Group Ltd. (NASDAQ:GIII) dropped 5.2 percent to $70.58 after outlining disappointing bottom-line forecasts for the current quarter and year, partly tied to its acquisition of the G.H. Bass & Co. shoe brand.
American depositary receipts of Luxottica Group SpA (NYSE:LUX), the maker of the popular Ray-Ban and Oakley brands, climbed 3.6 percent to $55.77. The Milan, Italy–based company signed an agreementl with Google Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) to design and manufacture glasses containing Google Glass technology.
In consumer-staples shares, McCormick & Company Inc. (NYSE:MKC), a spice maker, advanced 5.7 percent to $71.34 after reporting fiscal first-quarter profit of 62 cents per share, surpassing estimates by a penny.
Safeway Inc. (NYSE:SWY), a supermarket operator, inched up 0.3 percent to $38.06. The company declared a special stock dividend, related to its spin-off of Blackhawk Network Holdings, a distributor of gift cards and other digital commerce products.
In other stocks, Rackspace Hosting Inc. (NYSE:RAX), a cloud computing services company, rose 6.2 percent to $34.75. The stock was boosted to "overweight" from equal-weight at Morgan Stanley.
Reported by Proactive Investors 4 hours ago.