Wall Street's Top Stories For Friday, Nov 24, 2018
Stocks opened deep in negative territory to begin the post-Thanksgiving holiday shortened session. Though the major averages briefly looked like they might rally, the selling pressure resumed before the 1 pm ET early closing bell. Equities were pressured by oil prices, which fell below $52 a barrel. The Dow ended up suffering its worst Thanksgiving week decline since 2011 amid the slide in oil and in tech stocks as hopes for a end of the year "Santa Claus rally" may be fading.
ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., Markit's flash November manufacturing PMI fell 0.3 points to 55.4. WTI crude oil was down by about 6% near 1 pm ET to trade at $51.32 a barrel.
COMPANY NEWS: United Technologies (UTX) announced that the conclusion of the regulatory review by China's State Administration for Market Regulation clears the way for the company to close its acquisition of Rockwell Collins (COL). The deal is now expected to close within three business days, the company stated. Following the news, Rockwell Collins shares closed 9% higher while United Technologies shares gained about 2.5%.
Tesla (TSLA) shares declined 3.7% after the company said it is absorbing a "significant part" of tariffs to help make its cars more affordable for customers in China. Tesla said it will cut prices of its Model X and Model S cars in China by 12%-26%, according to a statement to Reuters.
Companies in the energy space, including Exxon Mobil (XOM), BP (BP), Chevron (CVX), ConocoPhillips (COP) and Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A), were under pressure as oil prices dropped to their lowest levels in over a year. The above mentioned oil majors all slid in a range of 2% to 4% amid the pullback in oil.
MAJOR MOVERS: Among the noteworthy gainers was Overstock.com (OSTK), which surged 23% after CEO Patrick Byrne told the Wall Street Journal that he sees striking a deal to sell the company's retail business by February. Also higher was A10 Networks (ATEN), which gained 5% after Reuters reported that the company is exploring options, including a possible sale.
Among the notable losers was Qudian (QD), which slid 15% as Needham analyst Mayank Tandon maintained his Hold rating on the stock following its soft third quarter results, saying the company's operating income and revenues came in below expectations because of continued industry headwinds. Also lower was Credit Suisse (CS), which fell 1% in New York after RBC Capital analyst Anke Reingen downgraded the stock to Sector Perform from Outperform.
INDEXES: The Dow fell 178.74, or 0.73%, to 24,285.95, the Nasdaq lost 33.27, or 0.48%, to 6,938.98, and the S&P 500 declined 17.37, or 0.66%, to 2,632.56.
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