Markets News, October 29, 2024: Nasdaq Surges to Record Close Ahead of Big-Tech Earnings; Bitcoin Nears All-Time High

Biggest S&P 500 Movers on Tuesday

3 hr 25 min ago

Advancers

• Shares of Cadence Design Systems (CDNS) surged 12.5% on Tuesday to notch the top daily performance of any S&P 500 stock after the electronic design automation firm posted better-than-expected quarterly results and boosted its full-year guidance. Revenue from the company’s Cadence.AI portfolio, which builds generative AI and big data analysis into design processes, more than tripled year-over-year.
• Although Incyte (INCY) reported third-quarter profits that fell short of analysts’ forecasts, the pharma company’s revenue for the period exceeded expectations, and its shares jumped 12.0%. Incyte said both of its key products—cancer drug Jakafi and topical eczema treatment Opzelura—enjoyed strong demand and sales trends during the period.
• Application delivery company F5 (FFIV) delivered a quarterly sales and profit beat for its fiscal fourth quarter, and its shares jumped 10.1%. F5’s CEO touted the company’s transformation from its focus on hardware into a provider of security and software solutions better geared toward the current hybrid and cloud-based technological environment.
• Leidos Holdings (LDOS) shares added 9.5% after the IT services provider beat consensus estimates with its third-quarter sales and profit results. Strong bookings figures for the quarter also suggest that Leidos is poised for additional growth, and the company lifted its full-year outlook. Major U.S. defense contract wins contributed to the solid performance and upbeat forecast.

Decliners

• Shares of tool manufacturer Stanley Black & Decker (SWK) tumbled 8.8%, the biggest drop in the S&P 500, in the wake of an underwhelming quarterly update. The company said weak demand from consumers and the auto industry pressured its performance, contributing to a quarterly sales and profit miss. Tuesday’s decline sank Stanley Black & Decker into negative for 2024.
• Ford Motor (F) shares skidded on Tuesday, dropping 8.4% after the carmaker reported lower-than-expected third-quarter profits. Following the earnings miss, JPMorgan and Bank of America trimmed their price targets on Ford stock. However, analysts pointed to some reasons for optimism, noting that high warranty expenses contributed to the profit shortfall and highlighting the potential of the Ford Pro division.

• Homebuilder D.R. Horton (DHI) reported year-over-year declines in revenue and net income, falling short of estimates on the top and bottom lines. The company also issued lower-than-expected full-year sales guidance, indicating that it sees pressure from potential homebuyers holding out for lower mortgage rates. D.R. Horton shares fell 7.2%.

–Michael Bromberg

Alphabet Stock Pops in Extended Trading After Earnings Report

3 hr 46 min ago

Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL) reported third-quarter results that topped analysts’ estimates, sending shares higher after the bell Tuesday.

Alphabet’s third-quarter revenue climbed 15% year-over-year to $88.27 billion, above the analyst consensus from Visible Alpha. Net income came in at $26.3 billion or $2.12 per share, up from $19.69 billion or $1.55 per share a year earlier, beating Street estimates.

Google Cloud delivered revenue of $11.4 billion, exceeding analysts’ expectations and representing 35% growth from the year-ago period as demand for artificial intelligence (AI) surged. Google Cloud’s AI infrastructure and generative AI solutions led growth, along with other core cloud products.

Shares of Alphabet surged 5% in extended trading following the release. They were up nearly 22% for the year through Tuesday’s close.

–Andrew Kessel

AMD Stock Slides After Hours as Profit Misses Expectations

3 hr 53 min ago

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) reported third-quarter earnings that missed expectations, sending shares lower after the closing bell Tuesday.

The chipmaker’s third-quarter revenue grew 18% year-over-year to $6.82 billion, ahead of the Visible Alpha analyst consensus. Net income at $771 million or 47 cents per share was up from $299 million or 18 cents per share a year earlier, but below Street estimates as costs rose.

AMD’s revenue gains came as data center sales more than doubled to a fresh high of $3.5 billion, driven by demand for the company’s AI chips.

Earlier this month, AMD launched its next generation of AI chips at its Advancing AI event but did not raise its AI sales outlook or announce new customers as many investors had hoped, weighing on its stock price.

AMD said Tuesday it expects fourth-quarter revenue to land between $7.2 billion and $7.8 billion, up from $6.2 billion in the prior-year quarter. The analyst consensus was at the higher end of that range at $7.6 billion, according to Visible Alpha.

Shares of AMD fell over 7% in extended trading Tuesday following the release.

–Andrew Kessel

Bitcoin Surged Above $73,000, Near Record High

4 hr 57 min ago

Bitcoin (BTCUSD) traded above $73,000 Tuesday for the first time since March, gaining traction ahead of the U.S. presidential election as investors poured billions into spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds.

The momentum brings the most-traded cryptocurrency within striking distance of its all-time high price of $73,798, set earlier this year. It also propelled shares of MicroStrategy (MSTR) Tuesday—which held more than 252,000 bitcoin on its books as of Sept. 19—to a 52-week high of $267.89.

Shares of other bitcoin-related companies, including such as Coinbase Global (COIN) and Marathon Digital parent company MARA Holdings (MARA) and Riot Platforms (RIOT), were also higher. MicroStrategy and Coinbase report earnings tomorrow.

Bitcoin trading activity is picking up as Election Day nears. Both former President Donald Trump, the Republican candidate, and Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris have made efforts to engage with the crypto community: Trump embraced crypto earlier this year after previously being more sceptical, while Harris has discussed her own approach in recent months.

Since Oct. 11, spot bitcoin ETFs have received net inflows of nearly $4 billion, with only one day where money flowed out of them, according to data from Farside Investors. Spot bitcoin ETFs hold bitcoin, and increased demand for the product was partially responsible for driving bitcoin to all-time highs earlier this year.

–Mrinalini Krishna

Crocs Stock Tumbles as Heydude Sales Weakness Persists

6 hr 18 min ago

Shares of Crocs, Inc. (CROX) plunged Tuesday after the company’s third-quarter earnings beat was overshadowed by sales weakness from its smaller Heydude brand.

The footwear company reported $1.06 billion in revenue, narrowly above estimates compiled by Visible Alpha, while profit of $199.8 million also beat estimates of $187.3 million.

Investor concerns seemed to stem from sales of Heydude shoes—a company Crocs acquired in 2022.

Heydude’s revenue fell short of estimates at $204 million, and the company also updated full-year projections, expecting Heydude sales to fall by a larger margin than previously reported.

CEO Andrew Rees said Crocs has seen positive results from its investments in new marketing for the brand, but noted that Heydude’s “recent performance and the current operating environment are signaling it will take longer than we had initially planned for the brand to turn a corner.”

The company said it expects fourth-quarter revenue to be roughly flat to up slightly year-over-year, as 2% growth in Crocs revenue will likely be offset by a 4% to 6% decline in Heydude sales.

Crocs shares were down 19% late Tuesday, trading at their lowest level since February.

–Aaron McDade

Stanley Black & Decker Falls After Weak Earnings

8 hr 32 min ago

Stanley Black & Decker (SWK) shares plunged as the toolmaker posted worse-than-expected results and narrowed its guidance, citing falling consumer demand and a slowdown in the auto sector.

The company reported third-quarter diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.60, with revenue down 5.1% to $3.75 billion. Analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha were looking for $0.87 and $3.80 billion, respectively. 

Sales at the Tools & Outdoors division declined 3% to $3.26 billion as volumes fell on a weak consumer and do-it-yourself (DIY) backdrop. Sales at the Industrial unit tumbled 18% to $488 million because of what the company called “market softness in automotive.”

Stanley Black & Decker now sees adjusted EPS in a range of $3.90 to $4.30 as compared to its previous outlook of $3.70 to $4.50. 

Shares of Stanley Black & Decker were down 8% in afternoon trading, falling into negative territory for the year.

–Bill McColl

D.R. Horton Tumbles on Weak Results, Outlook

10 hr 4 min ago

Shares of homebuilder D.R. Horton (DHI) sank Tuesday morning to lead S&P 500 decliners after the company’s quarterly results and projections for fiscal 2025 both fell short of analysts’ expectations.

For the fourth quarter of fiscal 2024, D.R. Horton reported $10.00 billion in revenue, down from $10.50 billion the same time last year and below the $10.22 billion consensus estimate of analysts compiled by Visible Alpha. The homebuilder reported $1.28 billion in net income, down from $1.51 billion and below the $1.37 billion analysts expected.

D.R. Horton’s outlook for fiscal 2025 revenue also came in short of analysts’ estimates. The company said it expects revenue between $36 billion and $37.5 billion, well below the $39.39 billion expectation.

Executive chairman David Auld said sales were slower than the company expected in the quarter. “While mortgage rates have decreased from their highs earlier this year, many potential homebuyers expect rates to be lower in 2025,” Auld said.

D.R. Horton shares were down 10%, trading at their lowest levels since July.

–Aaron McDade

Ford Stock Slides After Earnings—Key Levels to Watch

12 hr 34 min ago

Shares in Ford (F) were down 7% in premarket trading after the automaker late Monday posted third-quarter profit below Wall Street expectations and trimmed its full-year outlook.

The stock has consolidated within an ascending triangle, a chart pattern that can signal a move lower if formed within an established downtrend.

Investors should watch key support levels on Ford’s chart around $9.50, $8.70, and $7.50. A breakout above key resistance at $11.30 could act as a catalyst for a bullish trend reversal.

Read the full technical analysis piece here.

–Timothy Smith

Futures Point to Lower Open for Major Indexes

13 hr 4 min ago

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 0.4%.

S&P 500 futures were off 0.2%.

Nasdaq 100 futures were down 0.1%.