Biggest S&P 500 Movers on Thursday

3 hr 2 min ago

Decliners

• Shares of Lamb Weston (LW) plunged 20%, more than any other S&P 500 stock on Thursday, after the provider of frozen fries and other potato products reported an unanticipated loss for its fiscal second quarter. The Idaho-based company also lowered its full-year outlook and announced the appointment of a new CEO,
• Micron Technology (MU) provided lower-than-expected sales guidance for the current quarter, and its shares tumbled 16%. The chipmaker cited soft demand in consumer-oriented markets, pointing to the auto and industrial sector as well as an underwhelming PC replacement cycle. Bank of America analysts downgraded Micron stock to “neutral” from “buy” and lowered their price target, noting the company faces pricing pressure in the memory chip market.
• Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) shares fell 11% following mixed results from a Phase 2 clinical trial of a treatment for lumbosacral radiculopathy, a condition causing leg and back pain. The biotechnology company said that, although the drug met its primary endpoint of reducing pain, the placebo used in the study showed similar results.

Advancers

• Darden Restaurants (DRI) stock skyrocketed on Thursday, leading the S&P 500 higher with a surge of nearly 15%. The parent company of Olive Garden and other restaurant chains posted better-than-expected sales and adjusted profits for its fiscal second quarter, boosted by strong same-restaurant sales growth from its LongHorn Steakhouse business. Darden also lifted its full-year revenue outlook.

• A beat-and-raise quarter also helped lift shares of Accenture (ACN), which jumped 7.1% after the professional services and consulting firm topped revenue and net income forecasts and increased its full-year sales outlook. Year-over-year growth in artificial intelligence bookings contributed to Accenture’s successful quarter.
• Shares of energy equipment maker GE Vernova (GEV) advanced 4.9%. Several market observers highlighted the strong performance of GE Vernova stock since its spin-off from General Electric earlier this year, noting its potential to benefit from increasing demand for clean energy, especially from AI data centers. Last week, GE Vernova declared a dividend, announced a stock buyback plan, and raised its full-year sales forecast.

–Michael Bromberg

FedEx Surges on Plans to Spin Off Freight Business

3 hr 39 min ago

FedEx (FDX) shares jumped in extended trading Thursday after the shipping giant announced plans to spin off its Freight business as a standalone company.

The shipping giant said the process to separate its Freight business will start immediately, and likely be completed within the next 18 months.

Ahead of the announcement, Citi analysts said last week that spinning off the Freight business into a standalone company could “unlock value” for the business, but suggested the move might not be the best option in the long term.

FedEx also Thursday reported fiscal second-quarter revenue of $22 billion, down from $22.17 billion the same time last year and below the $22.14 billion analysts expected. Profits also fell to $741 million, compared to $900 million a year ago, missing analysts’ projections.

After adjusting for $249 million in “business optimization costs,” FedEx reported $990 million in adjusted net income, better than the $976.6 million analysts had expected.

FedEx shares were up 7% in recent after-hours trading. They were up about 9% for 2024 through Thursday’s close.

–Aaron McDade

Palantir Stock Gains After Extending Army Contract

4 hr 11 min ago

Palantir Technologies (PLTR) shares gained Thursday after the analytics software provider said it extended a contract with the U.S. Army that could be worth more than half a billion dollars.

The company said the agreement has a value of $400.7 million for up to four years, with a potential to reach $618.9 million.

Palantir and the Army have partnered since 2018 in a program known as Army Vantage, with Palantir providing the Army with “data and artificial intelligence (AI) to more effectively perform essential missions and enable faster decision-making across the force.”

Shares of Palantir gained nearly 4% Thursday following the news and have more than quadrupled in value since the start of the year. The stock is set to join the Nasdaq 100 Index next Monday.

–Bill McColl

Cintas Shares Sink on Decline in Uniform Direct Sales

4 hr 58 min ago

Cintas (CTAS) shares tumbled more than 10% Thursday as the provider of uniforms and other business supplies reported a decline in direct sales of its uniforms and warned about pricing.

In a transcript of the company’s earnings call provided by AlphaSense, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Todd Schneider noted that uniform direct sales are a “strategic business for us that sells into Fortune 1000-type customers, airlines, hotels, casinos, those types. So that business can be quite lumpy.”

Schneider also said that raising prices has been more challenging, and with inflation coming down “it’s very reasonable to think that price increases will come down as well.”

The comments offset strong results from Cintas. The company reported fiscal 2025 second-quarter earnings per share (EPS) of $1.09, topping the Visible Alpha consensus, with revenue increasing 7.8% year-over-year to $2.56 billion, matching expectations.

Cintas also raised its full-year EPS outlook to $4.28 to $4.34 from $4.17 to $4.25. It sees revenue between $10.255 billion to $10.320 billion versus the previous outlook of $10.220 billion to $10.320 billion.

Shares of Cintas were down 10.3% at $183.27 about half an hour before the closing bell, trading at their lowest levels since July. With the decline, the stock has gained about 22% since the start of 2024, roughly in line with the S&P 500’s performance over the period.

–Bill McColl

CarMax Rises as Lower Prices Boost Sales at Used Car Giant

6 hr 37 min ago

CarMax (KMX) shares jumped Thursday when the biggest U.S. used car retailer reported its first quarterly sales increase in two years as lower prices brought out buyers. 

CarMax posted a 1.2% year-over-year gain in third-quarter revenue to $6.22 billion, and earnings per share (EPS) of $0.81. Both were above Wall Street estimates.

Retail unit sales rose 5.4% to 184,243, with same-store sales adding 4.3%. Retail unit revenue grew 1.2% to $4.89 billion as an $1,100 drop in the average selling price boosted demand. 

Chief Executive Officer Bill Nash said the results were helped by “a more stable environment for vehicle valuations.”

CarMax shares were up about 3% in recent trading.

–Bill McColl

Darden Surges as LongHorn Steakhouse Strength Powers Sales

8 hr 10 min ago

Shares of Darden Restaurants (DRI) surged Thursday to lead S&P 500 gainers as the company’s fiscal 2025 second-quarter sales and adjusted profit beat expectations on strong LongHorn Steakhouse results.

Darden—which operates LongHorn, Olive Garden, Ruth’s Chris, and other restaurant chains—recorded net income of $215.1 million, or $1.82 per share, on revenue of $2.89 billion. Darden reported adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $2.03.

Same-restaurant sales surged 7.5% year-over-year at LongHorn, well above the 4.3% growth analysts expected. Olive Garden same-restaurant sales also rose more than expected at 2%, but its fine dining operations declined 5.8%, nearly double the 3% drop analysts anticipated.

LongHorn’s performance has been strong throughout the year. Executives have said that consumers have been willing to spend on things like a steakhouse meal when they feel they are getting their money’s worth.

Darden updated its fiscal 2025 outlook, lifting its revenue projection to about $12.1 billion from the prior range of $11.8 billion to $11.9 billion.

The stock was up 15% in recent trading, pushing it into positive territory for the year.

–Aaron McDade

Accenture Surges as Earnings Top Estimates, AI Demand Grows

8 hr 54 min ago

Shares of Accenture (ACN) surged Thursday after the professional services and consulting firm reported first-quarter results that topped analysts’ expectations and lifted its full-year revenue growth forecast.

Accenture posted $17.7 billion in revenue for the quarter, up from $16.2 billion the same time last year and above the $17.1 billion analysts projected as AI bookings climbed. The company recorded $2.28 billion in net income, or $3.59 per share, better than the $1.98 billion, or $3.10 per share, the company reported a year ago.

Accenture said it anticipates second-quarter revenue of $16.2 billion to $16.8 billion. The company also lifted its full-year revenue outlook, projecting growth of 4% to 7% compared to fiscal 2024, up from 3% to 6% previously.

However, the Ireland-based firm lowered its full-year earnings per share (EPS) projection, warning exchange rates would have a negative impact of 0.5% compared to last year. Accenture had previously expected it to have a 1.5% positive effect.

The company now expects EPS between $12.43 to $12.79, down from $12.55 to $12.91 previously, which still amounts to growth of 9% to 11% from last year.

Accenture shares were up 7% Thursday morning, putting them back in the green for the year

–Aaron McDade

Vertex Shares Plunge Following Pain Drug Study Results

10 hr 10 min ago

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) shares sank Thursday morning after the company reported mixed results in a Phase 2 drug trial to treat lumbosacral radiculopathy (LSR), which causes leg and back pain.

The company said the trial of suzetrigine “met the primary endpoint with a statistically significant and clinically meaningful 2.02 point within-group reduction from baseline in the Numeric Pain Rating Scale (NPRS).”

However, the placebo reference arm “showed a similar within-group reduction from baseline in pain with a mean change in NPRS at Week 12 of -1.98,” Vertex said. It added that “the study was not designed nor powered for statistical comparison between suzetrigine and placebo.”

Vertex shares were down 12% in recent trading, pushing them into negative territory for the year.

–Aaron Rennie

Lamb Weston Plunges After Unexpected Loss, CEO Change

10 hr 43 min ago

Shares of Lamb Weston (LW) plunged nearly 20% in early trading Thursday after the maker of frozen fries swung to a surprise loss, cut its fiscal 2025 guidance, and appointed a new Chief Executive Officer (CEO).

The Idaho-based company reported a second-quarter loss of $36.1 million, or $0.25 per share, while analysts polled by Visible Alpha were expecting a profit of $88.0 million, or $0.61 per share. Revenue of $1.60 billion also was shy of expectations.

In a separate release, Lamb Weston announced that current Chief Operating Officer (COO) Michael J. Smith would take over the CEO role from Tom Werner, effective Jan. 3. Werner, who also will be replaced by Smith on the board, “will serve in an advisory role through August 31, 2025 to ensure a smooth transition,” the company said.

The company cut its fiscal 2025 targets, now projecting sales of $6.35 billion to $6.45 billion, earnings per share (EPS) of $2.30 to $2.45, and adjusted EPS of $3.05 to $3.20. Last quarter, it guided for sales of $6.6 billion to $6.8 billion, EPS of $2.70 to $3.15, and adjusted EPS of $4.15 to $4.35, with both per-share targets having been reduced from prior targets.

Lamb Weston shares were down 17% about half an hour after Thursday’s opening bell. The stock is down 40% since the start of the year.

–Aaron Rennie

Micron Price Levels to Watch as Stock Slides on Weak Outlook

11 hr 46 min ago

Micron Technology (MU) shares fell sharply in premarket trading Thursday after the memory chip maker and Nvidia (NVDA) partner issued a weaker-than-expected current-quarter outlook.

While the Idaho-based company said it sees a return to growth in the second half of fiscal 2025, it anticipates consumer-oriented markets to remain weaker in the near term. In prepared earnings call remarks, executives attributed the light outlook to a slower-than-expected PC upgrade cycle and softer auto and industrial markets.

Micron shares were down 11% at around $92 in recent premarket trading. Through the close of trading Wednesday, the stock had gained 22% since the start of the year, roughly in line with the S&P 500’s 23% return over the same period.

The stock looks set to stage a decisive breakdown below a trading range on Thursday, increasing the potential for further earnings-driven selling. 

Investors should monitor key price levels on Micron’s chart around $85, $78, and $72, while also watching an important overhead area near $97.

Read the full technical analysis piece here.

–Timothy Smith

Futures Point to Higher Open for Major Indexes

12 hr 26 min ago

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 0.7%.

S&P 500 futures added 0.9%.

Nasdaq 100 futures were up 0.8%.