Tech and Retail Stocks Drive Market Movement
**Salesforce Leads Dow Jones Surge**
Salesforce, a cloud software vendor, experienced a surge of more than 7%, propelling the 30-stock Dow Jones Industrial Average. The company reported fiscal third-quarter earnings that exceeded analysts’ estimates, with an 11% revenue increase from $7.84 billion a year earlier. However, Salesforce’s growth rate has slowed down in 2023 as businesses seek cost-cutting measures.
*Snowflake Posts Strong Quarterly Results*
Snowflake shares rallied over 4% after the cloud company posted better-than-expected quarterly results and an optimistic fourth-quarter product revenue forecast. The company reported adjusted earnings of 25 cents per share on $734 million in revenue, surpassing the profit and revenue anticipated by analysts.
**Discover Financial’s Student Loan Sale**
Discover Financial saw a 4.7% jump in shares after announcing the exploration of the sale of its student loan portfolio. The digital banking company also disclosed that new student loan applications will not be accepted after February, driving investor interest.
*Victoria’s Secret Provides Positive Guidance*
The women’s clothing retailer, Victoria’s Secret, experienced a 15.9% surge after offering current-quarter guidance largely in line with analysts’ expectations. The company posted a wider loss per share than expected for the third quarter, while its revenue met the consensus forecast.
**Pure Storage’s Stock Tumbles**
Data storage company Pure Storage faced a 14.5% decline in its stock price after issuing a weak revenue outlook. The company projected $782 million in revenue for the current quarter and $2.82 billion for the full year, falling below Wall Street’s expectations.
*Phillips 66 Confirms Talks with Activist Investor*
The oil refiner’s stock climbed 2.8% to a 52-week high after confirming discussions with activist investor Elliott Investment Management. Elliott took a $1 billion stake in the company and is seeking two board seats to improve Phillips 66’s performance.
**Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s Collaboration and Upgrade**
Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s stock added 2.7% following the announcement of an expanded partnership with Nvidia. The tech company plans to collaborate with Nvidia to develop an enterprise computing solution for artificial intelligence. Additionally, Morgan Stanley upgraded HPE to equal weight from underweight.
*Cloud Stock, Nutanix, Beats Expectations*
Cloud stock Nutanix advanced 3% after surpassing consensus estimates for the first fiscal quarter. The company reported adjusted earnings of 29 cents per share and $511 million in revenue, exceeding analysts’ projections.
**Snap and Pinterest Stocks Receive Upgrades**
Social media companies Snap and Pinterest saw their stocks rise by 6.8% and 1.5%, respectively, following upgrades to buy from Jefferies. The firm indicated that each company has catalysts for potential revenue growth in the next year.
*Banking and Retail Stocks Show Resilience*
Digital banking stock Ally Financial rose 2.7% after an upgrade to outperform from peer perform by Wolfe Research, positioning the company for potential outperformances regardless of the economic climate. Pet retailer Petco also added nearly 8% despite a recent 29% drop in its stock price due to disappointing third-quarter results.
As the midday trading session progressed, it was clear that the market movement was largely driven by technology and retail stocks experiencing a mix of positive and negative developments.
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