Markets around the world remain mixed after the long holiday weekend but US futures are firmly in the red at this 6AM hour as Friday’s jobs report generates corporate profit concerns. This week will see the kickoff of the first quarter earnings season when AA reports on Wednesday. Across the commodity markets, gold jumped 1.7% as traders turned away from equities. Oil is seeing healthy gains on the view that last week’s Iranian nuclear deal won’t immediately produce more crude supply from that country. The US dollar is stable after having taken a dip on the jobs report.
ON THE ECONOMIC CALENDAR:
- 8:30AM: Gallup US Consumer Spending Measure
- 9:45AM: PMI Services Index
- 10AM: Labor Market Condition Index
- 10AM: ISM Non Manufacturing Index
- 12:30PM: TD Ameritrade IMX
NEWS:
- WYNN: The leading proxy-advisory firm, ISS, on Sunday, advised shareholders to protest governance support issues at the casino operator by voting against all board nominees, including dissident nominee Elaine Wynn, the former wife of the company’s CEO, reports the wsj
- VTR: AHS: Ventas to acquire Ardent Health Services for $1.75B in cash
- EDR: sees fall same-community portfolio revenue up 2.5-3.5%
- RDY: GILD: Dr Reddys in deal with Gilead to distribute, hep C drug, sofosbuvir in India
- GILD: RBC Capital out positive on Gilead earnings expectation
- O: announces 5M share secondary offering
- TRUE: reports dealership growth: 38% higher over last year
- WBAI: suspends all online lottery sales in China, reports rpnewswire
- GOOG: GOOGL: Google in talks with mobile operators for cheap overseas calls, report the telegraph
- AMGN: European Commission approves expanded use of Vectibix
- AAPL: iWatch could be delayed in Switzerland due to patent issues, reports appleinsider
- QURE: announces deal with BMY which includes Bristol-Myers acquiring an initial equity stake of 4.9% in UniQure
- TSLA: First-Quarter Car Deliveries Rise Above 10,000: looks to accelerate volume gains for the rest of the year, reports the wsj
ANALYSTS RATINGS CHANGES
UPGRADES:
- LL: upgrade; market perform to outperform: Raymond James: $40
- VMW: upgrade: neutral to buy: Nomura: $95
- LB: upgrade: neutral to buy: Mizuho: pt raised from $92 to $108
- TIF: neutral to buy: Monness Crespi: $103
- IMAX: upgrade; hold to buy: Canaccord: pt raised from $35 to $38
- MAT: upgrade: hold to buy: B Riley
- COH: upgrade; underperform to market perform: Telsey: $45
- MSFT: upgrade: market perform to outperform: Wells Fargo
DOWNGRADES:
- QCOM: downgrade: outperform to market perform: FBR: pt cut from $80 to $72
- Z: downgrade; overweight to equal weight: Barcalys: $!05
INITIATIONS:
- PCLN: initiated: buy: Argu: $1480
PRICE TARGET CHANGES:
- MCD: pt cut from $115 to $110: RBC Capital
- KRFT: pt raised from $90 to $95: Stifel
- KMX: pt raised from $68 to $76: RBC Capital (Wells Fargo out positive on KMX this morning)
- ACHN: pt cut from $25 to $20: Deutsche Bank
