Stocks rallied in the final hour of trading on Wednesday as Wall Street geared up for
Nvidia’s
fourth-quarter earnings report and reacted to minutes from the Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting that revealed central bank officials need to see more evidence that inflation is trending lower before they reduce interest rates.
These stocks made moves Wednesday:
Nvidia
fell 2.9% as investors prepared for the chip maker’s earnings report that was scheduled for after the closing bell. The stock tumbled 4.4% on Tuesday, losing about $75 billion of market value. It was the stock’s steepest decline since October. Wall Street expected Nvidia to report revenue of $20.4 billion—up nearly 240% from a year earlier—with adjusted earnings of $4.59 a share versus year-earlier profit of 88 cents.
Palo Alto Networks
reported fiscal second-quarter adjusted earnings and revenue that topped analysts’ expectations but the stock fell 28% after the cybersecurity company cut its fiscal-year revenue outlook. Palo Alto said it expects revenue of between $7.95 billion and $8 billion in the fiscal year, down from a previous estimate of between $8.15 billion and $8.2 billion. CEO Nikesh Arora said the guidance didn’t reflect a change of demand but a strategy shift as Palo Alto looks to become a “platform” within the cybersecurity sector. Cybersecurity peers
Zscaler
and
CrowdStrike
fell 14% and 9.7%, respectively.
Amazon.com,
the e-commerce and technology giant, will be added to the
Dow Jones Industrial Average
at the start of trading Monday, replacing
Walgreens Boots Alliance.
It’s the first change in the blue-chip index since 2020. Walgreens was added to the index in 2018. Amazon rose 0.9% while Walgreens declined 2.5%.
SolarEdge Technologies
dropped 12% after the maker of inverters and other solar-power equipment reported a drop of 65% in fourth-quarter revenue and said it expects first-quarter revenue of $175 million to $215 million, a decline of 77% to 81% from a year earlier. “The first half of 2023 included record installations and expectations for continued growth, with a shift in the second half of the year to a weaker market due to higher interest rates and lower power prices, which resulted in an inventory buildup that slowed our shipments,” said CEO Zvi Lando.
Teladoc Health
tumbled 24% after the telehealth provider said it expects first-quarter sales of $630 million to $645 million, below analysts’ forecasts of $673 million. The company said it anticipates a loss in the period of 45 cents to 55 cents a share, wider than expectations that called for a loss of 41 cents.
Toll Brothers,
the luxury home builder, reported fiscal first-quarter earnings that beat analysts’ estimates as revenue jumped 9% to a better-than-expected $1.95 billion. The company delivered 1,927 homes in the period, up 6% and ahead of the 1,864 expected by analysts. Toll shares rose 3.8%.
Garmin
rose 8.8%. The navigation company’s fourth-quarter earnings beat analysts’ expectations and it said its board was proposing a dividend hike following the strong report.
International Flavors & Fragrances
declined 6.4% after the scents and flavors maker issued disappointing sales guidance and slashed its quarterly dividend.
Vertiv Holdings
fell 5.6% after the provider of power and cooling equipment for data centers reported fourth-quarter revenue that missed analysts’ estimates and issued first-quarter earnings guidance below forecasts.
RingCentral,
the cloud-based communications company, issued sales guidance for the fiscal first quarter and fiscal year that was short of analysts’ expectations. The stock, however, was up 2.5%.
Earnings reports were expected after the closing bell Wednesday from
Rivian Automotive,
Lucid Group,
Marathon Oil,
Synopsys,
and
Etsy.
Write to Joe Woelfel at [email protected]
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