At Thursday’s opening bell, stocks traded lower. In the first few minutes of trading, the Nasdaq was down by about 1%, the S&P 500 by about 0.9% and the Dow Jones industrials 0.84% lower.
New claims for unemployment benefits came in at 204,000, below last week’s total of 223,000 and below the consensus estimate for 225,000 new claims. Share prices tumbled following the report.
Before markets opened, Walgreens quarterly results beat estimates on both the top and bottom lines. A year-over-year revenue decline of 1.5% set the tone, however, sending the shares down more than 6% in early trading Thursday.
Constellation Brands missed the consensus adjusted earnings per share (EPS) estimate but beat on revenue. The company sees a fiscal 2023 increase of 9% to 10% in beer sales and a drop of up to 2% in wine sales. Constellation raised its free cash flow projection to $1.5 billion to $1.6 billion. Shares traded down more than 5%.
Conagra shares traded up more than 4% after the packaged foods giant beat both EPS and revenue estimates and raised profit guidance.
Schnitzer Steel beat the consensus EPS estimate but missed on revenue. Sales fell nearly 25% year over year. Shares traded down about 1% in the premarket, likely due to lowered expectations after a warning from the company early last month.
Here is a preview of what to expect when these two companies report quarterly results before markets open on Monday.
Commercial Metals
Recycler and metals fabricator Commercial Metals Co. (NYSE: CMC) stock has added about 30% to its share price over the past 12 months. Over the past six months, shares are up almost 45%, while rebar steel prices are down by around 12% in the same period. The stock posted its 52-week high in the first week of December. While rebar supply remains tight, there is the possibility that as supply ramps up, it will outrun demand. Diversifying its products would go a long way to brightening CMC’s prospects.
Just eight analysts cover the stock, and five have a Hold rating. The other three rate the shares at Buy or Strong Buy. At a recent price of around $49.00 a share, the stock trades right at its median price target. At the high price target of $55.00, the upside potential is 12.2%.
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