Dow futures were under pressure on Thursday, but well off the nearly 400 point decline overnight, one day after the U.S. saw a record number of new daily coronavirus cases. The Dow Jones Industrial Average on Wednesday sank 710 points, or 2.7%, in its worst session since plunging nearly 7% two weeks ago, as increasing Covid-19 infections dampened expectations for a swift economic recovery. (CNBC)
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq on Wednesday both fell more than 2% as well, in their biggest declines since that June 11 nosedive. The Nasdaq's decline broke an eight session winning streak, which saw record high closes on Monday and Tuesday. Apple's rally to records, which had been leading the market higher, ended Wednesday. However, Apple (AAPL) shares were higher in Thursday's premarket. (CNBC)
* Apple re-closes seven stores in Houston Thursday because of Covid-19 spikes (CNBC)
Disney (DIS) has decided to delay the reopening of its California-based theme parks, Disneyland and Disney California Adventure Park, beyond July 17. In Florida, more than 7,000 people signed an online petition urging Disney and government officials there to reconsider the opening of Disney World in Orlando on July 11. Shares of Disney were lower in Thursday's premarket. (CNBC)
* Disney thinks about postponing July 24 release of "Mulan" as theaters struggle to reopen (WSJ)
The Labor Department on Thursday reported the 14th straight week of coronavirus crisis-driven initial jobless claims of over 1 million. A greater-than-expected 1.48 million Americans filed for new unemployment insurance last week. Before the coronavirus, the record for a single week of new claims was 695,000 in September 1982. (CNBC)
The Commerce Department said Thursday that durable goods orders for May were up a better-than-expected 15.8% after April's sharp decline. The government's final reading on first-quarter gross domestic product showed the same 5% annual contraction that was registered a month ago. That matched estimates. (Press Releases)
IN THE NEWS TODAY
The U.S. recorded its highest single-day of new Covid-19 cases ever, with 45,557 diagnoses reported Wednesday, according to a tally by NBC News. That number was more than 9,000 infections higher than the previous daily peak on April 26, weeks before states started to shut down their economies in hopes of slowing the spread of the outbreak.
Florida and California, two of the largest economies in the U.S, reported record numbers of new cases and rising hospitalizations, sparking concerns that Tallahassee and Sacramento could be forced to implement new stay-at-home orders and close nonessential businesses again. (CNBC)
Target (TGT) is among the big retailers with the greatest exposure in states where coronavirus cases are surging, according to investment firm Instinet. The troublesome states identified in the Instinet analysis are Florida, Texas, Utah, South Carolina, Nevada, Georgia, Missouri, Montana, Arizona, California, Tennessee and Oklahoma. (CNBC)
Target, starting Thursday, is adding hundreds of fresh and frozen groceries to its curbside pickup service. The national retailer will offer 750 new produce, dairy, bakery, meat and frozen foods at over 400 stores by the end of the month and more than 1,500 stores, or about 80% of its U.S. locations, by the holidays. (CNBC)
* Macy's to slash 3,900 corporate jobs in restructuring (CNBC)
* Chuck E. Cheese parent files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy (CNBC)
The White House said that Trump won't follow New Jersey's coronavirus quarantine order when he travels to his Bedminster golf club this weekend. On Wednesday, New Jersey, New York and Connecticut said that visitors from eight coronavirus hotspots, including Arizona where Trump was on Tuesday, would be required to quarantine for two weeks, or face fines. (CNBC)
* Dozens of Secret Service officers and agents told to self-quarantine after Trump's Tulsa rally (Washington Post)
The Trump administration will end federal funding for 13 community-based coronavirus testing sites by the end of June as part of a previously announced plan to extend financial support for Covid-19 testing across the nation by other means. "We are not withdrawing federal support," Trump's testing czar Brett Giroir said. "We are providing federal support in a different way." (CNBC)
Vice President Joe Biden has jumped out to a 9-point lead on President Donald Trump with five months to go until the election, but the CNBC All-America Economic Survey finds the president still has the edge among voters on the critical issue of the economy. It's the only issue on which the president leads Biden, who had a 14-point advantage on dealing with the coronavirus.
STOCKS TO WATCH
Tesla (TSLA) is planning a battery research and manufacturing facility in Fremont, California, according to city documents. Tesla already has what it calls a "small scale" battery-making operation in Fremont.
Alphabet's (GOOGL) Google unit agreed to pay some publishers in Australia, Brazil and Germany for certain content, and said it expects to sign similar deals with others.
Darden Restaurants (DRI), the parent of Olive Garden and other restaurant chains, lost $1.24 per share for its latest quarter, smaller than the loss of $1.65 that analysts were predicting. Revenue was essentially in line with expectations, as was a same-restaurant sales decline of 47.7%.
McCormick (MKC), the maker of spices, condiments and sauces, beat estimates by 31 cents a share, with quarterly profit of $1.47 per share. Revenue also beat forecasts helped by the pandemic-related increase in the number of consumers cooking at home.
Rite Aid (RAD) reported a quarterly loss of 4 cents per share, smaller than the 38 cents per share loss predicted by analysts. Revenue also beat expectations as same-store sales in the retail pharmacy segment rose 6.6%. Rite Aid withdrew its full-year forecast due to pandemic-related uncertainty.
KB Home (KBH) beat estimates by 6 cents a share, with quarterly earnings of 55 cents per share. The home builder's revenue missed Street forecasts. Sales were down 11% during the quarter, deliveries fell 10%, and net orders plunged 57%, as the coronavirus pandemic impacted business.
Accenture (ACN) beat estimates by 5 cents a share, with quarterly earnings of $1.90 per share. Revenue also came in above Wall Street forecasts. Revenue was down about 1% from a year ago, but the consulting giant's results were boosted by its growing digital and cloud services businesses.
FactSet (FDS), the provider of financial markets information, reported quarterly earnings of $2.86 per share, beating the consensus estimate of $2.43 a share. Revenue was slightly shy of forecasts. The company said the quarter was a strong one despite "challenging" circumstances.
BlackBerry (BB) reported a quarterly profit of 2 cents per share, compared to consensus forecasts of a 2 cents per share loss. Revenue for the software maker was essentially in line with estimates, though demand for its automotive software was hurt by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Ally Financial (ALLY) called off its proposed acquisition of subprime credit card and consumer finance lender CardWorks. The $2.65 billion deal was canceled by mutual consent, due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the global economy.
AbbVie (ABBV) signed a drug discovery partnership with Japanese pharmaceutical company Sosei Group, initially focusing on inflammatory and autoimmune diseases.
WATERCOOLER
Here are some of the new coronavirus safety rules for Major League Baseball: Testing every other day for players and coaches; wet rags for pitchers' pockets to prevent them from licking their fingers; masks in the dugout and bullpen for any nonplayers; and no spitting, no chewing tobacco or sunflower seeds, and no public transportation to the stadium. (NY Times)
Source: cnbc.com