Market Update
Durable Goods Orders In May Rise, April Data Revised Higher
Brian Turner
27 Jun, 2022
New York City
New orders for durable goods rose 0.7% in May after rising 0.4% in April, the Commerce Department said on Monday.
The orders increased in seven of the last eight months.
Excluding volatile transportation orders, durable goods orders rose 0.7% after rising 0.2% in April.
Shipment of durable goods increased 1.3% in May after rising 0.3% in April, an increase in twelve of the last thirteen months.
Inventories of manufactured durable goods in May increased sixteen consecutive months.
Inventories increased $2.7 billion or 0.6% to $482.7 billion followed a 0.9% rise in April.
The Commerce Department revised April orders, shipments, and unfilled orders higher but inventories lower.
April new orders were revised higher to $534.8 billion from $533.2 billion; shipments to $534.3 billion from $532.1 billion; unfilled orders were lowered to $1,106.1 billion from $1,106.8 billion and total inventories to $787.9 billion from $786.1 billion.
U.S. Stocks Waver, Oil Price Rebound Likely to Persist
Barry Adams
27 Jun, 2022
New York City
U.S. stocks traded sideways in early trading after a week of strong gains following steep declines in the last four months.
The popular indexes are likely to close the first-half with double-digit losses, the worst decline since 1971.
The S&P 500 index added 0.1% to 3,916.17 and the Nasdaq Composite index declined 0.08% to 11,597.81.
In subdued trading stocks braved to climb higher fighting the worries of looming economic slowdown or a recession and potential rate hikes.
New orders for durable goods rose 0.7% in May after rising 0.4% in April, the Commerce Department said on Monday.
Excluding volatile transportation orders, durable goods orders rose 0.7% after rising 0.2% in April.
Futures of crude oil gained $1.83 to $109.45 a barrel and natural gas edged up a fraction to $6.23 a unit.
The Ukraine war is likely to persist well into 2023 as neither Russia nor Ukraine are discussing peaceful settlement.
Energy prices are likely to remain higher on the expectations of a long a war combined with the slow rebound in manufacturing activities in China.
Ukraine's elevation to the European Union candidacy status is seen more as a signaling step rather than accession to the union in the near future.
Albania and Turkey have the EU candidacy status for nearly two decades with no clear deadline.
The yield on 10-year U.S. Treasury notes edged up a fraction to 3.175% despite the cooling expectations of faster rate hikes next month.
On the earnings front, Nike is scheduled to release earnings after the market close today followed by results later in the week from Walgreens, Constellation Brands, General Mills, and Bed Bath & Beyond.
European Markets Lose Early Momentum
European markets advanced in volatile trading and commodities prices traded higher on the expectations of rising demand from China.
The indexes in the region traded at a two-week high on the easing of aggressive rate hike worries.
The U.S. dollar edged lower and one euro fetched $1.0556.
The DAX index increased 0.6% to 13,197.61, the CAC 40 index declined 0.3% to 6,055.47, and the FTSE 100 index advanced 0.5% to 7,244.03.
The indexes opened sharply higher following a surge in New York in Friday's trading and the S&P 500 index closed up more than 3%.
European markets began to lose momentum after the first 45 minutes of trading in Frankfurt, Paris, and London.
Higher commodities prices kept the positive market sentiment in check and the elevated wholesale prices also affected the market sentiment.
Spain's producer price index in May soared 43.6% in May following 44.5% in April, the statistical office INE reported on Monday.
Finland's producer prices accelerated in May to 31.7% after rising at 29.2% in April, according to data from Statistics Finland on Monday.
Norway's retail sales fell 8.8% in May on an annual basis after adjusting for seasonality factors and faster than 2.4% decline in April, Statistics Norway reported today.
Commodities stocks led the gainers in European trading.
Antofagasta, Angle American, and Glencore advanced between 1% and 2%.
BP Plc and Shell Plc added more than 1%.
Intesa Sanpaolo jumped 1.4% after the bank received an approval from the supervisory committee of the European Central Bank to buy back 3.4 billion euros of its own shares.
Sandvik AB closed up 3.2% to 172.95 Swedish kroner after the company agreed to acquire Portugal-based Frezigest, SGPS.
Prosus NV soared 13.8% to 60.36 euros after the company said it plans to sell its $134 billion stake in China-based Tencent, the parent of Wechat.
Asian Markets Close at 2-week High
Markets in Asia closed higher tracking the gains in the U.S. markets.
The Nikkei index soared after tech stocks led the gainers and Softbank soared 3.7 and. ship builders closed higher.
Indexes in China advanced after profits of large industrial companies declined less than expected in May 6.5% after falling at 8.5% in April, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Monday.
The Nikkei index increased 1.4% to 26,871.27, the Hang Seng index soared 2.4% to 22,229.52, and the Sensex index advanced 0.8% to 53,161.28.
The yen near two-decade low and one U.S. dollar fetched 135.45 and record high 78.45 rupees.
European Markets Lose Early Momentum
Bridgette Randall
27 Jun, 2022
New York City
European markets advanced in volatile trading and commodities prices traded higher on the expectations of rising demand from China.
The indexes in the region traded at a two-week high on the easing of aggressive rate hike worries.
The DAX index increased 0.6% to 13,197.61, the CAC 40 index declined 0.3% to 6,055.47, and the FTSE 100 index advanced 0.5% to 7,244.03.
The indexes opened sharply higher following a surge in New York in Friday's trading and the S&P 500 index closed up more than 3%.
European markets began to lose momentum after the first 45 minutes of trading in Frankfurt, Paris, and London.
Higher commodities prices kept the positive market sentiment in check and the elevated wholesale prices also affected the market sentiment.
Spain's producer price index in May soared 43.6% in May following 44.5% in April, the statistical office INE reported on Monday.
Finland's producer prices accelerated in May to 31.7% after rising at 29.2% in April, according to data from Statistics Finland on Monday.
Norway's retail sales fell 8.8% in May on an annual basis after adjusting for seasonality factors and faster than 2.4% decline in April, Statistics Norway reported today.
Commodities stocks led the gainers in European trading.
Antofagasta, Angle American, and Glencore advanced between 1% and 2%.
BP Plc and Shell Plc added more than 1%.
Intesa Sanpaolo jumped 1.4% after the bank received an approval from the supervisory committee of the European Central Bank to buy back 3.4 billion euros of its own shares.
Sandvik AB closed up 3.2% to 172.95 Swedish kroner after the company agreed to acquire Portugal-based Frezigest, SGPS.
Prosus NV soared 13.8% to 60.36 euros after the company said it plans to sell its $134 billion stake in China-based Tencent, the parent of Wechat.
Asian Markets Close at 2-week High
Markets in Asia closed higher tracking the gains in the U.S. markets.
The Nikkei index soared after tech stocks led the gainers and Softbank soared 3.7 and. ship builders closed higher.
Indexes in China advanced after large industrial companies in declined less than expected in May 6.5% after falling at 8.5% in April, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Monday.
The Nikkei index increased 1.4% to 26,871.27, the Hang Seng index soared 2.4% to 22,229.52, and the Sensex index advanced 0.8% to 53,161.28.
Best One-Day Gain In S&P 500 In Two Years
Barry Adams
24 Jun, 2022
New York City
U.S. stocks rebounded and extended weekly gains after rate expectations cooled and bargain hunters searched for beaten down stocks.
The S&P 500 added 6.5% and the Nasdaq advanced 7.5% and the major averages logged second weekly rise in the last twelve weeks.
The indexes gained more than 1% on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday and the S&P 500 registered its best one-day gain since May 2020 and the index is likely to deliver its worst first-half performance since 1970.
The index of consumer sentiment declined to 50.0 in June, a decline of 14.4% from May and 41.5% from a year ago, according to the index publisher University of Michigan.
The consumer sentiment dropped to the lowest level on record.
"Consumers across income, age, education, geographic region, political affiliation, stockholding and homeownership status all posted large declines.
About 79% of consumers expected bad times in the year ahead for business conditions, the highest since 2009," said consumer surveys director Joanne Hsu.
Traders bid up stocks after consumer inflation expectations for the year were significantly lower than the latest inflation rate of 8.6%.
The inflation expectation of 5.3% was unchanged from the previous month but long run inflation expectations declined to 3.1% from 3.3% in the previous month.
The Fed Chairman Powell stressed how critical it is to tame inflation in his testimony to lawmakers on the second day of his testimony yesterday.
ZenDesk Signs $10.2 Billion Deal With a Buyout Group
Scott Peters
24 Jun, 2022
New York City
ZenDesk soared 28.3% to $78.33 after the customer service software firm agreed to go private through a all-cash $10.2 billion deal with a group of private equity investors.
The investor group includes Hellman & Friedman and Permira, the investor group includes a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), and GIC.
Under the terms, Zendesk shareholders will receive $77.50 per share, reflecting a premium of approximately 34% over Zendesk
Movers: CarMax, Carnival Cruise, FedEx, LendingTree, Microsoft, ZenDesk
Barry Adams
24 Jun, 2022
New York City
Stocks on Friday extended weekly gains after the release of consumer sentiment data and popular indexes are set to close the week on a higher note.
The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq are set to extended weekly gains over 5% and close up for the second time in thirteen weeks.
The S&P 500 increased 2.4% to 3,887.83 and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 2.5% to 11,509.20.
CarMax, Inc increased 6.6% to $97.65 after the used-auto retailer said fiscal 2023 first quarter revenues ending in May increased 21.0% to $9.3 billion.
Used vehicle sales declined 11.0% to 240,950 units and wholesale sales increased 2.7% to 186,307 units.
Average selling price of a used vehicle increased 28.0% to $28,844 and for wholesale vehicles soared 51.0% to $10,996.
Net earnings plunged to $252.2 million or $1.56 a share from $436.8 million or $2.63 a share a year ago.
Carnival Cruise Lines said revenues in the second quarter ending in May jumped to $2.4 billion and net loss declined to $1.84 billion from $2.1 billion a year ago.
Diluted loss per share fell to $1.61 a share from $1.83 a year ago.
Revenues in the second quarter increased 50% from the first quarter and occupancy jumped to 69% from 54% in the period.
The bookings in the second quarter for future sailings were nearly double the bookings in the first quarter, the best quarterly booking volumes since the beginning of the pandemic.
Cruise operators traded higher after Carnival Cruise reported its best quarterly booking since the start of the pandemic two years ago.
Carnival Cruise jumped 9.7% to $10.59, Royal Caribbean Cruises advanced 13.6% to $41.0, and Norwegian Cruise jumped 12.0% to $12.84.
Federal Express advanced 6.9% to $242.85 after the parcel delivery company said revenues in the fourth quarter ending in May increased 7.9% to $24.4 billion.
Net income plunged to $558 million or $2.13 a share from $1.87 billion or $6.88 a share a year ago.
In the fiscal year 2022, the company earned $3.83 billion or $14.33 a share compared to $5.23 billion or $19.45 a year ago.
The parcel delivery company held out for higher earnings per share in the fiscal 2023.
LendingTree Inc declined 9.5% to $49.65 after the company lowered its outlook in a regulatory filing yesterday.
The mortgage lending company lowered its fiscal year 2022 second quarter ending June revenue estimate to between $259 million and $264 million from the previous range between $283 million and $293 million.
" We have seen the most significant impact in our Home segment as mortgage rates have nearly doubled over the last six months, causing a sharp decline in refinance volumes and more recent pressure on purchase activity.
Although our Insurance segment continues to rebound from the trough in 4Q 2021, the recovery has been slower than expected as demand from our carrier partners remains volatile as premium increases continue to chase inflation," said Chief Financial Officer Trent Ziegler.
Microsoft Corp gained 2.3% to $264.81 after positive comments and a recommendation by Citi.
The brokerage arm of Citigroup named Microsoft as its "top pick" and said that the broker has high conviction in the company's long term pricing power. The news was first reported by CNBC.
ZenDesk soared 28.3% to $78.33 after the customer service software firm agreed to go private through a $10.2 billion deal with a group of private equity investors including Hellman & Friedman and Permira, the investor group includes a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), and GIC.
Under the terms, Zendesk shareholders will receive $77.50 per share, reflecting a premium of approximately 34% over Zendesk
S&P 500 Jumps 2% On Lower Rate Expectations
Barry Adams
24 Jun, 2022
New York City
Stocks on Friday extended weekly gains after the release of consumer sentiment data and popular indexes are set to close the week on a higher note.
The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq are set to extended weekly gains over 5% and close up for the second time in thirteen weeks.
The index of consumer sentiment declined to 50.0 in June, a decline of 14.4% from May and 41.5% from a year ago, according to the index publisher University of Michigan.
The consumer sentiment dropped to the lowest level on record.
"Consumers across income, age, education, geographic region, political affiliation, stockholding and homeownership status all posted large declines.
About 79% of consumers expected bad times in the year ahead for business conditions, the highest since 2009," said consumer surveys director Joanne Hsu.
Traders bid up stocks after consumer inflation expectations for the year were significantly lower than the latest inflation rate of 8.6%.
The inflation expectation of 5.3% was unchanged from the previous month but long run inflation expectations declined to 3.1% from 3.3% in the previous month.
The Fed Chairman Powell stressed how critical it is to tame inflation in his testimony to lawmakers on the second day of his testimony yesterday.
Movers: Ferguson, Lamprell, Saipem, Ultra, Zalando, Zurich Insurance
Bridgette Randall
24 Jun, 2022
New York City
The DAX index rose 1.8% to 13,946.58, the CAC-40 index advanced 3.2% to 6,069.13, and the FTSE 100 index increased 2.5% to 7,191.66.
Ferguson Plc increased 5.5% to 9,210 pence after the plumbing and heating products distributor commenced its stock buy back for 375 million pounds between June 24 and October 10 through affiliates of JP Morgan.
The current plan is a continuation of its $2 billion share repurchase program authorized by shareholders to buyback 22.186 million shares, the company said in a filing with the SEC.
The company also said it plans to request an additional share repurchase program at its next annual meeting to be held in November or December.
Lamprell Plc dropped 78.2% to 4.75 pence on the liquidity worries.
Saipem SpA plunged 19.7% to 24.34 euros after the oil and gas contractor said its finances will be exhausted by the end of the first quarter 2020 if the company fails to raise capital.
TUI AG declined 3.6% to 1.70 euros after the CEO of the German tourism and travel company abruptly resigned.
Ultra Electronics jumped 12.3% after 3,448 pence after Cobham Limited received a regulatory approval to takeover the company for 35 pounds a share or 2.6 billion pounds.
Zalando SE dropped as much as 15% before recovering to a decline of 1.4% to 25.19 euros after the German online fashion retailer trimmed its annual outlook citing weak consumer confidence and macro headwinds.
Zurich Insurance Group gained 3.9% to 417.10 Swiss franc after the insurance company agreed to sell its legacy life insurance business in Germany to Viridium Holding AG.
European Markets Advance, Spain's Growth Slows, UK Retail Sales Fall
Bridgette Randall
24 Jun, 2022
New York City
European markets jumped after investors set aside inflation and growth worries.
Spain's economic growth slowed in the first quarter ending in March to 0.2% from 2.2% in the fourth quarter of 2021, according to the final revision released by the statistical office INE today.
The annual growth in the first quarter was revised down to 6.3% from 6.5% but higher than 5.5% in the fourth quarter.
Earlier in the month, The Bank of Spain lowered its 2022 growth estimate to 4.1% from 4.5% and 2023 growth estimate to 2.8% from 2.9%.
The U.K. retail sales in May declined 0.5% on a monthly basis after rising 0.4% in April, according to the Office of National Statistics.
Consumers retrenched after prices surged to record highs and food sales declined 1.6%.
Non-food sales were unchanged in May and excluding transportation fuel, retail sales fell 0.7% after rising 0.2% in April.
Retail sales decline eased to 4.7% in May from 5.4% in April, on an annual basis.
Excluding transportation fuel, the fall in retail sales slowed to 5.7% from 6.9% in April.
The DAX index rose 1.8% to 13,946.58, the CAC-40 index advanced 3.2% to 6,069.13, and the FTSE 100 index increased 2.5% to 7,191.66.
In the week, the indexes in Paris advanced 3.3%, in London gained 2.6%, and in Frankfurt nearly unchanged.
Zurich Insurance Group gained 3.9% to 417.10 Swiss franc after the insurance company agreed to sell its legacy life insurance business in Germany to Viridium Holding AG.
Saipem SpA plunged 19.7% to 24.34 euros after the oil and gas contractor said its finances will be exhausted by the end of the first quarter 2020 if the company fails to raise capital.
Lamprell Plc dropped 78.2% to 4.75 pence on the liquidity worries.
TUI AG declined 3.6% to 1.70 euros after the CEO of the German tourism and travel company abruptly resigned.
Asian Markets Extend Rally
Asian markets rebounded on the final day of the week supported by a sustained advance in the U.S. and weaker commodities prices.
The market sentiment turned positive and investors looked ahead to corporate results for the current quarter.
The Nikkei index in Japan closed higher led by gains in tech stocks.
The battered yen found support at 135.17 against a dollar after inflation gained for the second month in a row and stayed near a 7-year high.
Consumer price inflation in May increased to 2.5% from a year ago and on a seasonally adjusted monthly basis slowed to 0.2% from April after rising 0.4% in the month.
The inflation data were released by the internal affairs ministry today.
The Nikkei index in Tokyo added 1.2% to 26,491.97 and for the week increased 1.95%.
Tokyo Electron gained 4%, Advantest increased 3.5%, and Screen Holdings increased 2.6%.
Stocks in Hong Kong and Shanghai gained on the hopes that the technology crackdown is easing and the economic activities are on the rebound after two months of severe lockdowns across the nation.
Indexes in Hong Kong gained 1.3% to 21,273.34 and in Shanghai rose 1.6% to 3,320.15.
For the week, the Hang Seng advanced 3.7% and the SSE gained 1.0%.
Stocks in Mumbai advanced for the second day in a row following advances across Asia.
Investors looked beyond rate hikes and elevated commodities prices and focused on earnings growth in the current quarter.
Traders also took note of the latest comments from the RBI Governor Das.
Das commented that headline inflation is likely to stay above the central bank's target rate of 2% until December and moderate after.
"Inflation expectations influence not only households but also businesses and drive up pricing of food, manufactured goods and services.
If they expect inflation to be high, even companies will defer their investment plans," Das commented.
The Sensex index gained 462.25 or 0.9% to 52,727.98 and the Nifty 50 index increased 0.9% to 15,699.65.
For the week, the Sensex and the Nifty gained 2.8% and in the year so far declined 10.9%.
The Kospi index in Seoul rebounded 2.3% to 2,366.60 after hitting a 19-month low on recession worries in the previous session.
Naver Corp surged 5.8%, Samsung Electronics increased 1.7%, and SK Hynix closed up 1.6%.
Asian Markets Rebound, Japan Inflation at 7-Year High
Arjun Pandit
24 Jun, 2022
New York City
Asian markets rebounded on the final day of the week supported by a sustained advance in the U.S. and weaker commodities prices.
The market sentiment turned positive and investors looked ahead to corporate results for the current quarter.
The Nikkei index in Japan closed higher led by gains in tech stocks.
The battered yen found support at 135.17 against a dollar after inflation gained for the second month in a row and stayed near a 7-year high.
Consumer price inflation in May increased to 2.5% from a year ago and on a seasonally adjusted monthly basis slowed to 0.2% from April after rising 0.4% in the month.
The inflation data were released by the internal affairs ministry today.
The Nikkei index in Tokyo added 1.2% to 26,491.97 and for the week increased 1.95%.
Tokyo Electron gained 4%, Advantest increased 3.5%, and Screen Holdings increased 2.6%.
Stocks in Hong Kong and Shanghai gained on the hopes that the technology crackdown is easing and the economic activities are on the rebound after two months of severe lockdowns across the nation.
Indexes in Hong Kong gained 1.3% to 21,273.34 and in Shanghai rose 1.6% to 3,320.15.
For the week, the Hang Seng advanced 3.7% and the SSE gained 1.0%.
Stocks in Mumbai advanced for the second day in a row following advances across Asia.
Investors looked beyond rate hikes and elevated commodities prices and focused on earnings growth in the current quarter.
Traders also took note of the latest comments from the RBI Governor Das.
Das commented that headline inflation is likely to stay above the central bank's target rate of 2% until December and moderate after.
"Inflation expectations influence not only households but also businesses and drive up pricing of food, manufactured goods and services.
If they expect inflation to be high, even companies will defer their investment plans," Das commented.
The Sensex index gained 462.25 or 0.9% to 52,727.98 and the Nifty 50 index increased 0.9% to 15,699.65.
For the week, the Sensex and the Nifty gained 2.8% and in the year so far declined 10.9%.
The Kospi index in Seoul rebounded 2.3% to 2,366.60 after hitting a 19-month low on recession worries in the previous session.
Naver Corp surged 5.8%, Samsung Electronics increased 1.7%, and SK Hynix closed up 1.6%.
U.S. Stocks and Bonds Rise After Powell Comments
Barry Adams
23 Jun, 2022
New York City
U.S. stocks opened higher and in volatile trading closed higher after weekly jobless claims were stable and the Fed Chairman Powell reiterated central bank's commitment in lowering inflation.
U.S. weekly jobless claims declined 2,000 to a seasonally adjusted 229,000 in the week ended June 18, the Labor Department said today.
The previous week's claims were revised 2,000 higher to 231,000.
The 4-week moving average was 223,500, an increase of 4,500 from the previous week's revised average.
The 4-week moving average of insured unemployment remained near 1%, historic multi-decade low.
The Fed Chairman Powell stressed how critical it is to tame inflation in his testimony to lawmakers on the second day of his testimony.
Accenture Lifts Annual Revenues Outlook, Lifts Dividend 10%
Scott Peters
23 Jun, 2022
New York City
Accenture, the worldwide professional services provider reported another quarter of revenues and earnings growth and stable operating margins.
Revenues increased by double digits on all business segments driven by strong demand for services and a surging backlog.
Accenture Plc revenues in the third quarter ending in May increased 22% to $16.2 billion.
Net income increased 16% to $1.82 billion from $1.57 billion a year ago.
Gross margin was stable and edged slightly lower to 32.9% from 33.2% a year ago and selling and general expenses fell to 16.8% from 17.2%.
Diluted earnings per share increased to $2.79 from $2.40 a year ago.
Operating cash flow for the quarter was $3.06 billion and after deducting property and equipment expenses of $195 million free cash flow was $2.87 billion, an increase from $2.24 billion a year ago.
Revenues by Geography
North America revenues increased 23% in local currencies and U.S. dollars from a year ago to $7.6 billion and revenues in Europe rose 20% to $5.35 billion, an increase of 30% in local currencies.
Revenues in other markets increased 22% in the U.S. dollar and 30% in local currencies from a year ago to $3.19 billion.
Revenues by Industry Groups
Financial services revenues increased 19% to $3.08 billion, communication, media and technology revenues rose 27% to $3.4 billion, resources and energy segment advanced 21% to $2.13 billion, and products segment gained 25% to $4.6 billion.
Revenues in the health & public services segment advanced 16% to $2.92 billion.
New Orders Rise 10%
New orders in the quarter increased 10% to $17.0 billion and jumped 15% in local currencies.
Consulting new orders increased 54% to $9.1 billion and outsourcing new bookings advanced 46% to $7.8 billion.
Total backlog of orders increased to $53.0 billion at the end of the quarter.
Stock Repurchase Activity
During the third quarter, Accenture repurchased 3.1 million shares for a total of $972 million, including approximately 2.9 million shares repurchased in the open market.
The company has repurchased in fiscal year three quarters 10.1 million shares for a total of $3.51 billion, including approximately 7.7 million shares repurchased in the open market.
The company still has $3.7 billion available as of the end of May towards the repurchase program.
Dividend Hiked 10%
Accenture hiked quarterly dividend 10% to 97 cents a share to shareholders on record at the close of July 14, 2022 and payable on August 15.
In the previous quarter, the company paid $614 million in dividends or 97 cents a share on May 13 to shareholders on record April 14, totaling $1.84 billion payments in the fiscal year.
Guidance and Outlook
Accenture guided in the fiscal year 2022 fourth quarter revenues in the range of $15.0 billion to $15.5 billion, an increase of 20% to 24% in local currency and reflecting the estimate of a negative 8% foreign-exchange impact compared with the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021.
For fiscal year 2022, the company anticipates revenues in local currencies to increase in the range of 25.0% to 26.5%, higher than the previous estimate between 24% and 26%.
The company also lifted its estimate of operating margin by 10 basis points to 15.2% for fiscal year 2022.
The company narrowed its fiscal year 2022 diluted earnings per share range to between $10.61 and $10.70 from the previous range between $10.61 and $10.81.
The company reiterated its estimate of operating cash flow in the fiscal year 2022 between $8.7 billion and $9.2 billion.
Company and Stock
Accenture is a professional services company headquartered in Dublin, Ireland and operating from New York provides professional services around the world.
Accenture worldwide employees total 710,000 including 300,000 in India.
Accenture Plc declined 0.6% to $284.71 and in the year so far has declined 29.9%.
Weekly Jobless Claims Fall 2,000
Brian Turner
23 Jun, 2022
New York City
U.S. weekly jobless claims declined 2,000 to a seasonally adjusted 229,000 in the week ended June 18, the Labor Department said today.
The previous week's claims were revised 2,000 higher to 231,000.
The 4-week moving average was 223,500, an increase of 4,500 from the previous week's revised average.
The 4-week moving average of insured unemployment remained near 1%, historic multi-decade low.
Movers: Accenture, Darden Restaurants, HB Fuller, KB Homes, Occidental, Steelcase, Worthington
Barry Adams
23 Jun, 2022
New York City
The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite indexes opened higher and advanced in a volatile pattern as investors snapped up beaten down and leading tech stocks.
The S&P 500 increased 0.8% to 3,789.79 and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.3% to 11,196.28.
Apple Inc, Microsoft Corp, Alphabet Inc, Meta Platforms, and Amazon added between 1% and 1.8%.
Accenture Plc declined 0.6% to $284.71 after the information services provider said revenues in the third quarter ending in May increased 22% to $16.2 billion and net income increased 16% to $1.82 billion from a year ago.
Diluted earnings per share increased to $2.79 from $2.40 a year ago.
During the third quarter, Accenture repurchased 3.1 million shares for a total of $972 million, including approximately 2.9 million shares repurchased in the open market.
The company has repurchased in fiscal year three quarters 10.1 million shares for a total of $3.51 billion, including approximately 7.7 million shares repurchased in the open market.
Darden Restaurants, Inc declined 0.6% to $114.44 and the restaurant chain operator reported sales in the fourth quarter ending in May increased 14.2% to $2.6 billion.
Earnings in the quarter declined to $281.7 million from $368.5 million a year ago.
Blended same store sales in the quarter increased 11.7% from a year ago. Same store sales at Olive Garden rose 6.5%, LongHorn Steakhouse gained 10.6%, and the Fine Dining segment which includes Season's 52 stores advanced 34.5%.
For the fiscal year, total sales increased 33.8% to $9.63 billion and earnings rose about 51% to $952.8 million.
Diluted earnings per share increased to $7.39 from $4.77 a year ago.
H.B. Fuller Company declined 5.7% to $57.93 and the industrial products maker said net revenues in the quarter ending in May increased 20% to $993.3 million.
Net income declined 4% to $47.2 million or 86 cents a share from $49.1 million or 90 cents a year ago.
The company said raw materials costs are expected to be 20% higher in the current fiscal year compared to prices at the end of the fourth quarter 2021.
KB Home surged 8.7% to $28.49 and yesterday after the market closed the company reported sales in the second quarter ending in May increased 19% to $1.72 billion and net income soared 47% to $210 million.
The home builder delivered 3,469 homes, matching the deliveries in the quarter a year ago and average selling price increased 21% to $494,300.
The home builder guided sales in the fiscal year between $7.3 billion and $7.5 billion and average home selling price of $500,000.
Occidental Petroleum Corp gained 1.3% to $56.47 after Berkshire Hathaway increased investment by $500 million and lifted its stake to 16.3% in the oil refiner and explorer.
Berkshire now owns 152.7 million shares worth $8.5 billion in the company after adding a total of 9.5 million shares in the last week.
Berkshire also controls a large stake in Chevron
On Wednesday, President Joe Biden is expected to ask Congress to drop federal gasoline and diesel taxes for three months.
Weaker oil prices dragged down stocks in the energy complex.
Chevron and Marathon Oil dropped more than 1.5%, Exxon Mobil declined 1.6% and Schlumberger NV fell 3.7% after president Biden's administration urged Congress to drop federal tax on gasoline and diesel sales for the next three months.
Federal tax on regular gasoline is 18 cents and diesel 24 cents a gallon.
Lower tax at the pump could provide relief to consumers but it can also lift the fuel demand worsening tight supply.
Steelcase Inc was nearly unchanged at $10.47 after the furniture maker said sales in the first quarter ending May 27 increased 33% to $740.7 million and net loss declined to $11.2 million from $28.1 million a year ago.
Diluted loss per share declined t0 10 cents from 24 cents a year ago.
The company guided second quarter diluted earnings per share between 6 cents and 10 cents.
United Airlines dropped 4.6% to $35.06 and the international air carrier trimmed daily domestic 50 flights from Newark Liberty International Airport.
The airline has delays on capacity constraints and airport construction.
Worthington Industries increased 6.8% to $43.14 after the steelmaker reported sales in the fourth quarter ending in May increased 50% to $1.52 billion.
Net income in the quarter declined 29% to $80.0 million and earnings per share fell to $1.61 from $113 million or $2.15 a year ago.
Net debt at the end of the quarter increased $34.0 million from a year ago to $744.6 million.
European Movers: Air Liquid, Gamesa, Generali, Siemens Energy
Bridgette Randall
23 Jun, 2022
Frankfurt
The DAX index fell 1.04% to 13,027.62, the CAC-40 index declined 0.2% to 5,907.52, and the FTSE 100 index dropped 0.5% to 7,055.07.
Oil companies extended losses after crude oil prices declined 2% in the region.
In volatile trading BP Plc and Shell Plc traded sideways with a negative bias.
Mining companies declined for the second day on the recession worries in the U.S.
Antofagasta Glencore, Anglo American declined between 1% and 4%.
Siemens Energy dropped 3.2% to 15.27 euros and Air Liquid edged down 0.5% to 129.56 euros after the two companies announced a joint venture to make industrial scale hydrogen electrolyzers.
Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy SA was nearly unchanged at 17.85 euros after the wind turbine maker won an order of 60 turbines to supply Moray West Wind Farm located in Scotland.
Assicurazioni Generali gained 0.2% to 19.99 euros after the Italian insurance company announced a group organization structure.