Check out the companies making headlines in midday trading.
Meta: Shares of the tech behemoth jumped more than 5% after the company announced a significant price cut for its higher-end virtual reality headset, the Quest Pro. Wall Street is similarly optimistic about Meta’s artificial intelligence capabilities. Meta was listed as one of the AI beneficiaries by Barclays, while Morgan Stanley designated the business as a high selection in the area, stating that the technology is reaching an inflection point.
Apple: The stock gained 2.6% after Morgan Stanley confirmed its top recommendation, citing the stock’s “catalyst-rich event path” over the next year. The business believes that the stock will rise by more than 20% during the following year.
Costco: Wholesale Costco The retailer’s stock fell 3.4% after the company’s fiscal second-quarter profits fell short of analysts’ forecasts. According to Refinitiv, the wholesale retailer reported sales of $55.27 billion, which was less than the average expectation of $55.54 billion.
Hormel Foods: The food manufacturing company’s stock fell 2.7% after JPMorgan downgraded it to underweight from neutral. The company’s shares have not yet been “completely de-risked,” according to the business.
Marvell Technology: Marvell Technologies reported mixed results for the last quarter and gave a bad outlook, which caused the chip stock to fall by 7.3%. StreetAccount says that the company’s first-quarter profits will be 29 cents, which is less than the 41 cents that were expected.Inventory changes and the costs that come with them are to blame, but management thinks that the headwinds will be less of a problem later in the year.
First Solar: Stock went up 5% after UBS said it would be one of the biggest winners of the Inflation Reduction Act among companies that were covered by it.
Asana: Asana shares increased 9% after D.A. Davidson upgraded the software company from neutral to buy. According to the company, “Sensor Tower app data for Asana shows a steady rise in active users and a strong increase in downloads.”
Bumble: Bumble, the dating app provider’s stock, fell 9.1%. The action comes after Bumble launched a secondary offering of 13.75 million shares of common stock at a price of $22.80 per share. Some stakeholders associated with Blackstone and Bumble founder Whitney Wolfe Herd are among the selling parties.
Broadcom: The chipmaker’s stock rose 5% after a better-than-expected quarterly report. Broadcom made $10.33 per share on $8.92 billion in sales. Analysts predicted a profit of $10.10 per share on $8.92 billion in sales. In addition, the corporation released fiscal second-quarter projections that exceeded expectations.
Integral Ad Science: Stocks went up 10% after the digital advertising company said that its sales and profits for the fourth quarter were better than expected.Sales of $117.4 million were above StreetAccount’s average forecast of $111.3 million. Earnings of $40 million in the fourth quarter also exceeded expectations of $36.9 million. Integral Ad Science also provided better first-quarter forecasts than FactSet analysts predicted.
Zscaler: After announcing a better-than-expected first quarter, shares of the cybersecurity business fell about 10%. According to Refinitiv, the business earned an adjusted 37 cents per share, which was more than the 29 cents projected by analysts. But Wall Street was worried about the billings outlook. In a letter to clients, Stifel analyst Adam Borg said it was “muted.”
Shares of the enterprise artificial intelligence startup soared 30% after its fiscal third-quarter earnings exceeded Wall Street’s expectations. The firm lost 6 cents per share, compared to Refinitiv analysts’ expectations of a 22-cent loss. It also reported sales of $66.7 million, above the $64.2 million forecast.
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings: The stock of the cruise line went up by more than 3%, continuing to bounce back from a drop after earnings.Norwegian fell more than 10% on Tuesday after posting a larger-than-expected fourth-quarter loss, but the stock has already recovered much of that loss.
JBG Smith Properties: Shares of the real estate investment trust and builder fell 6.2% after Amazon announced that construction on its Virginia headquarters would be halted.
Samsara: After better-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings, shares of the internet of things startup rose more than 18.8%. Management comments pointing to breakeven free cash flow by year’s end also helped the stock.
