Following the market opening Thursday, the Dow traded up 0.58 percent to 18,478.40 while the NASDAQ climbed 0.42 percent to
5,026.71. The S&P also rose, gaining 0.45 percent to 2,162.18.
Leading and Lagging Sectors
On Thursday, financial shares surged by 0.9 percent. Top gainers in the sector included LNB Bancorp Inc (NASDAQ:
LNBB) and Metlife Inc (NYSE: MET).
In trading on Thursday, utilities shares fell by 0.3 percent. Meanwhile, top losers in the sector included RGC Resources
Inc. (NASDAQ: RGCO), down 2 percent, and Connecticut
Water Service Inc (NASDAQ: CTWS), down 2 percent.
Top Headline
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) reported
better-than-expected earnings for its second quarter.
JPMorgan reported net income of $6.2 billion, down one percent from $6.29 billion in the year-ago quarter. On a per share basis,
the company earned $1.55 compared to $1.54 in the corresponding period last year. Street analysts predicted the company to earn
$1.43 a share. The highest estimation among the analysts was $1.54 a share.
The company disclosed net revenue of $24.4 billion on a managed basis, up 2.5 percent from $23.8 billion in the previous year
quarter. On a reported basis, net revenue grew 2.7 percent to $25.2 billion from $24.5 billion in the year earlier period.
Equities Trading UP
Harsco Corporation (NYSE: HSC) shares shot up 10
percent to $8.86 after the company raised its Q2 adjusted operating income outlook.
Shares of Cree, Inc. (NASDAQ: CREE) got a boost,
shooting up 8 percent to $27.16. Cree and German-based Infineon Technologies revealed Thursday that they struck a definitive
agreement enabling the German firm to acquire the Wolfspeed Power and RF division of Cree for $850 million cash.
Ocean Power Technologies Inc (NASDAQ: OPTT) shares
were also up, gaining 17 percent to $3.42. Ocean Power Technologies reported the deployment of its first commercially designed PB3
PowerBuoy.
Equities Trading DOWN
Rennova Health Inc (NASDAQ: RNVA) shares dropped
49 percent to $0.277. Rennova Health reported the pricing of its $8,600,000 public offering.
Shares of DRDGOLD Ltd. (ADR) (NYSE: DRD) were down 6
percent to $7.37. Gold futures fell 1.5 percent to trade at $1,323.50 an ounce.
Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE: OMC) was down, falling
around 3 percent to $82.34. Omnicom reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, but the company missed analysts’ sales
estimates.
Commodities
In commodity news, oil traded up 1.90 percent to $45.60 while gold traded down 1.58 percent to $1,322.40.
Silver traded down 1.41 percent Thursday to $20.13, while copper rose 0.42 percent to $2.25.
Eurozone
European shares were higher today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 gained 0.98 percent, the Spanish Ibex Index rose 1.06 percent, while
Italy’s FTSE MIB Index gained 1.46 percent. Meanwhile the German DAX gained 1.46 percent, and the French CAC 40 gained 1.34
percent, while U.K. shares rose 0.47 percent.
Economics
U.S. jobless claims came in unchanged at 254,000 for the latest week. Economists were expecting initial jobless claims to total
265,000 for the week.
U.S. producer prices rose 0.5 percent in June, versus economists’ expectations for a 0.3 percent growth.
St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank President James Bullard is set to speak in St. Louis at 10:00 a.m. ET.
The Energy Information Administration’s weekly report on natural gas stocks is scheduled for release at 10:30 a.m. ET.
Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank President Dennis Lockhart is set to speak in Victor, Idaho at 11:15 a.m. ET.
Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank President Esther George will speak in Oklahoma City at 1:15 p.m. ET.
Data on money supply for the latest week will be released at 4:30 p.m. ET.
St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank President James Bullard will hold a press briefing, in St. Louis at 6:40 p.m. ET.
Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan is set to speak in St. Louis at 7:00 p.m. ET.
© 2016 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.