Midway through trading Thursday, the Dow traded down 0.25 percent to 24,685.64 while the NASDAQ declined 0.69 percent to
7,244.81. The S&P also fell, dropping 0.55 percent to 2,693.72.
Leading and Lagging Sectors
On Thursday, the financial shares climbed 1.06 percent. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included American Express
Company (NYSE: AXP), up 7 percent, and China Internet
Nationwide Financial Services Inc. (NASDAQ: CIFS), up 8
percent.
In trading on Thursday, consumer staples shares fell 3.13 percent.
Top Headline
Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE: PM) shares
fell around 15 percent after the company reported better-than-expected profit for its first quarter, while revenue missed
estimates.
The company said it earned $1 per share in the first quarter on revenue of $6.9 billion versus expectations of $0.90 per share
on revenue of $6.99 billion.
Philip Morris raised its FY18 earnings outlook from $5.20-$5.35 per share to $5.25-$5.40 per share.
Equities Trading UP
OpGen, Inc. (NASDAQ: OPGN) shares shot up 19
percent to $2.50. OpGen completed rapid testing clinical trial in Colombia and expanded international operations.
Shares of Bio-Path Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: BPTH)
got a boost, shooting up 11 percent to $1.84 after reporting pre-clinical data demonstrating potential of Prexigebersen presented
at the annual American Association for Cancer Research meeting in Chicago.
AGM Group Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: AGMH) shares were
also up, gaining 40 percent to $8.78 after rising 26 percent on Wednesday.
Equities Trading DOWN
Aceto Corporation (NYSE: ACET) shares dropped 62
percent to $2.795 following announcement of financial challenges. The company has suspended further guidance and is evaluating
strategic alternatives. Aceto also expects reduction in dividend moving forward. Canaccord Genuity downgraded Aceto from Buy to
Sell.
Shares of Helios and Matheson Analytics Inc. (NASDAQ: HMNY) were down 40 percent to $2.29 after pricing public share offering.
Sears Hometown and Outlet Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ: SHOS) was down, falling around 29 percent to $2.30. Sears Hometown and Outlet
Stores reported a Q4 loss of $1.46 per share on revenue of $395.77 million.
Commodities
In commodity news, oil traded up 0.70 percent to $68.95 while gold traded down 0.40 percent to $1,348.10.
Silver traded down 0.02 percent Thursday to $17.245, while copper fell 0.83 percent to $3.155.
Eurozone
European shares were mixed today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 fell 0.07 percent, the Spanish Ibex Index fell 0.04 percent, while
Italy’s FTSE MIB Index gained 0.01 percent. Meanwhile the German DAX fell 0.31 percent, and the French CAC 40 gained 0.19 percent
while U.K. shares rose 0.11 percent.
Economics
Initial jobless claims declined 1,000 to 232,000 for the latest week.
The Philadelphia Fed’s manufacturing index rose 1 point to a reading of 23.2 for April.
The index of leading economic indicators rose 0.3 percent for March.
Domestic supplies of natural gas slipped 36 billion cubic feet for the week ended April 13, the U.S. Energy Information
Administration reported. Analysts expected a drop of 25 billion cubic feet.
Data on money supply for the recent week will be released at 4:30 p.m. ET.
Cleveland Federal Reserve Bank President Loretta Mester is set to speak in Pittsburgh at 6:45 p.m. ET.
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