Liveblog Archief woensdag 17 juni 2020

TOP NEWS
• Facebook closes political ads loophole ahead of U.S. presidential election
Facebook said on Tuesday it would affix labels to political ads shared by users on their own feeds, closing what critics have said for years was a glaring loophole in the company's election transparency measures.
• Beijing extends movement curbs to contain resurgent coronavirus
China's capital cancelled scores of flights, shut schools and blocked off some neighbourhoods as it ramped up efforts to contain a coronavirus outbreak that has fanned fears of wider contagion.
• HSBC revives 35,000 job cut plan after pandemic pause
HSBC is resuming plans to cut around 35,000 jobs which it put on ice after the coronavirus outbreak, as Europe's biggest bank grapples with the impact on its already falling profits.
• Tesla signs three-year pricing deal with battery cell maker Panasonic
Tesla has signed a three-year pricing deal with Japan's Panasonic relating to the manufacture and supply of lithium-ion battery cells at the Gigafactory in Nevada, the electric carmaker disclosed in a filing on Tuesday.
• United Airlines sweetens exit deal for flight attendants
United Airlines sweetened on Tuesday a voluntary exit package for flight attendants and extended the application deadline, saying it needed "a lot more people to sign up" to avoid involuntary layoffs in October, according to a document seen by Reuters.


BEFORE THE BELL
U.S. stock index futures and European shares gained on hopes of a rapid economic recovery, despite a resurgence of global coronavirus cases. Japan’s Nikkei ended lower following weak export data. The dollar rose against its rival currencies, while goldprices dipped. Oil fell on demand concerns. U.S. building permits and housing starts numbers are due on the economic schedule.


STOCKS TO WATCH
Results
• Oracle Corp (ORCL). The company posted quarterly revenue below Wall Street estimates on Tuesday as the coronavirus crisis led clients in the hospitality, retail and transportation sectors to postpone purchases, sending its shares lower after the bell. The company, which has been pushing aggressively into the cloud computing market to make up for its late start, recorded quarterly sales of $6.85 billion in the unit that includes Oracle Cloud, missing estimates of $6.98 billion. Total revenue fell about 6% to $10.44 billion for the fourth quarter ended May 31, missing analysts' average estimate of $10.63 billion. On an adjusted basis, the Redwood, California-based company earned $1.20 per share, above expectations of $1.15 per share.

In Other News
• Boeing Co (BA). U.S. senators introduced legislation on Tuesday that would strengthen FAA oversight of aircraft certification following fatal Boeing 737 MAX crashes, though a victim's father said the bill, while a positive step, "still lacks teeth." The measure seeks to eliminate the ability of aircraft makers like Boeing to unduly influence the certification process. FAA chief Steve Dickson will tell U.S. Senate Commerce Committee chair Roger Wicker's committee at a hearing on Wednesday transparency is key to restoring the public's trust in the FAA and Boeing, and that the FAA must have a culture where employees can raise safety issues "without fearing retaliation," according to a copy of his written testimony seen by Reuters. The legislation, called the Aircraft Safety and Certification Reform Act of 2020, would give the agency new authority to hire or remove Boeing employees conducting FAA certification tasks, and grant new whistleblower protections to employees, among other provisions.
• ConocoPhillips (COP). The company will resume some of its Alaskan production shut in due to falling fuel demand stemming from the coronavirus pandemic, a spokeswoman said on Tuesday. The company cut output in the state by 100,000 barrels per day (bpd), part of a broader series of cuts announced in April in response to the slump in consumption that took U.S. prices briefly to negative-$40 a barrel. The curtailments in Alaska will be lifted for July, Natalie Lowman, spokeswoman for ConocoPhillips Alaska Inc, a division of ConocoPhillips, said. The cuts started in late May, Lowman said. Conoco is restarting production as prices have recovered. The company is one of the state's largest oil producers, averaging 217,000 bpd in output in 2019.
• Facebook Inc (FB). The social media giant said on Tuesday it would affix labels to political ads shared by users on their own feeds, closing what critics have said for years was a glaring loophole in the company's election transparency measures. The social network has attached a "paid for by" disclaimer to political ads since 2018, after facing a backlash for failing to stop Russia from using its platforms to influence the 2016 U.S. presidential election. But the label disappeared once people shared the ads to their own feeds, which critics said undermined its utility and allowed misinformation to continue spreading unchecked. Separately, it also removed almost 900 accounts associated with the far-right Proud Boys and American Guard, including those belonging to Proud Boys supporters who marched into a protest zone in Seattle Monday and confronted anti-racist demonstrators.
• HSBC Holdings Plc (HSBC). The bank is resuming plans to cut around 35,000 jobs which it put on ice after the coronavirus outbreak, as Europe's biggest bank grapples with the impact on its already falling profits. It will also maintain a freeze on almost all external hiring, Chief Executive Noel Quinn said in a memo sent to HSBC's 235,000 staff worldwide on Wednesday and seen by Reuters. The bulk of the job cuts are likely in the back office at Global Banking and Markets (GBM), which houses HSBC's investment banking and trading, a senior executive familiar with the plans said. The cuts will also affect senior bankers in Britain who work in GBM and HSBC's head office, as well as support staff in its businesses around the world, the executive added. HSBC's move is a foretaste of wider cuts in the sector as banks confront a harsh operating environment, analysts said.
• Qualcomm Inc (QCOM). The chipmaker on Tuesday said it is putting 5G technology into chips for smartphones that will sell for as little as $300 and that will come to market in the second half of this year. The company's chips featuring fifth-generation (5G) cellular telecommunications technology are currently in many premium-priced smartphones such as Samsung‘s Galaxy devices. But Qualcomm has also been working to get the technology into cheaper devices. The new chip, called the Snapdragon 690, will go into devices that it expects to retail at $300 to $500, Qualcomm said. Phone makers such as HMD Global, the owner of the Nokia phone brand, LG Electronics and Lenovo's Motorola plan to use the chips, Qualcomm said.
• Southwest Airlines Co (LUV). The airlines said on Tuesday it will continue to limit bookings on its flights until at least September to maintain space between passengers. Social distancing on planes, along with other safety measures, are helping airlines to restore confidence in air travel after the coronavirus outbreak. Southwest also said customers would be allowed to pick their seat, and the airline will not block or direct seating. Other U.S. carriers have been following similar moves to maintain social distancing norms in the air.
• Tesla Inc (TSLA). The electric carmaker has signed a three-year pricing deal with Japan's Panasonic relating to the manufacture and supply of lithium-ion battery cells at the Gigafactory in Nevada, the electric carmaker disclosed in a filing on Tuesday. Tesla and Panasonic have been reported to be in talks to expand the battery joint venture's capacity. Panasonic hinted in May that it was working to develop new batteries with Tesla, possibly with higher capacity. Tesla said the deal, signed last week and effective April 1, 2020, sets the terms for production capacity commitments by Panasonic and purchase volume commitments by Tesla over the first two years of the agreement. Tesla also amended the general terms and conditions of its partnership with Panasonic, modifying the term to expire 10 years after Panasonic achieves certain manufacturing milestones.
• United Airlines Holdings Ltd (UAL). The airlines sweetened on Tuesday a voluntary exit package for flight attendants and extended the application deadline, saying it needed "a lot more people to sign up" to avoid involuntary layoffs in October, according to a document seen by Reuters. In the United email to employees, sent 48 hours before a June 18 deadline, the company said that although "thousands" have signed up for the voluntary exit package so far, the number is not enough. Under the new deal, flight attendants would receive a $1,500 health credit - to pay for health care, including prescriptions - for every year worked, up to $45,000. The credits would be in addition to other medical, retirement and travel benefits already offered. The deadline to apply is July 8.
• Westpac Banking Corp (WBC). A trial of the bank over accusations of systemic breaches of money laundering laws that enabled illegal payments between known child sex offenders could take place in the first half of 2021, an Australian court said. The country's second-largest lender and the financial crimes watchdog, AUSTRAC, have failed to agree on a set of facts, setting the stage for a trial that could start early next year, before the court can approve any fine for the bank. Separately, the bank said it would sell its remaining 9.5% stake in fund operator Pendal Group for about A$185.4 million. Westpac's announcement was in line with its plans to sell the remaining 31 million shares in the investment manager, after a previous sale of Pendal shares in 2017.


INSIGHT
Main Street's boldest take on Wall Street in bankruptcy stock frenzy
When Bryan Quevedo received his U.S. government stimulus check last month, he invested $1,000 in the stock of bankrupt car rental company Hertz Global. The 22-year-old Los Angeles delivery driver made the trade on Robinhood, an app that allows mom-and-pop investors to buy and sell shares. A marketing graduate who has struggled to find an office job amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Quevedo analyzed Hertz's share price movements to predict that the stock had hit bottom. After four days, he had doubled his investment.


Thomson Reuters/INSEAD Asian Business Sentiment Survey 2020Q2
Business sentiment of Asian companies sank to an 11-year low in the second quarter, a Thomson Reuters/INSEAD survey found, with some two-thirds of the firms polled flagging a worsening COVID-19 pandemic as the biggest risk over the next six months. To read more, click here


ANALYSTS' RECOMMENDATION
• Beyond Meat Inc (BYND). Credit Suisse raises target price to $142 from $90, saying the company may emerge as a net beneficiary of the pandemic in the near-term due to strong demand in retail channel and in the long-term due to rising consumer interest in healthier foods.
• Big Lots Inc (BIG). Piper Sandler raises target price to $53 from $52, following the company’s completion of its $725 million sale/leaseback.
• Eli Lilly & Co (LLY). JPMorgan raises target price to $190 from $175, noting positive data for Verzenio in high risk adjuvant breast cancer will further accelerate an already above market growth outlook for the company.
• Lennar Corp (LEN). Evercore ISI raises target price to $74 from $70, following the company’s solid second-quarter results and encouraging guidance.
• Oracle Corp (ORCL). JPMorgan raises target price to $57 from $55, expecting the company to continue to show resiliency as it starts to benefit from the favorable mix shift in its business.


ECONOMIC EVENTS (All timings in U.S. Eastern Time)
0830 Building permits number for May: Expected 1.228 mln; Prior 1.066 mln
0830 Building permits change mm for May: Prior -21.4%
0830 Housing starts number for May: Expected 1.095 mln; Prior 0.891 mln
0830 Housing starts mm change for May: Prior -30.2%


COMPANIES REPORTING RESULTS
No major S&P 500 companies are scheduled to report.


CORPORATE EVENTS (All timings in U.S. Eastern Time)
0830 Magellan Health Inc (MGLN). Annual Shareholders Meeting
0900 Madrigal Pharmaceuticals Inc (MDGL). Annual Shareholders Meeting
0900 HubSpot Inc (HUBS). Annual Shareholders Meeting
0900 IAA Inc (IAA). Annual Shareholders Meeting
1000 Builders FirstSource Inc (BLDR). Annual Shareholders Meeting
1000 Inovalon Holdings Inc (INOV). Annual Shareholders Meeting
1000 Antero Midstream Corp (AM). Annual Shareholders Meeting
1030 Antero Resources Corp (AR). Annual Shareholders Meeting
1100 Encore Capital Group Inc (ECPG). Annual Shareholders Meeting
1100 Global Blood Therapeutics Inc (GBT). Annual Shareholders Meeting
1200 Heron Therapeutics Inc (HRTX). Annual Shareholders Meeting
1200 ServiceNow Inc (NOW). Annual Shareholders Meeting
1300 CareDx Inc (CDNA). Annual Shareholders Meeting
1300 Smartsheet Inc (SMAR). Annual Shareholders Meeting
1300 Cannae Holdings Inc (CNNE). Annual Shareholders Meeting
1700 Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR). Annual Shareholders Meeting


EX-DIVIDENDS
Aaron's Inc (AAN). Amount $0.04
ADT Inc (ADT). Amount $0.03
Altra Industrial Motion Corp (AIMC). Amount $0.04
Belden Inc (BDC). Amount $0.05
Greif Inc (GEF). Amount $0.44
Greif Inc (GEFb). Amount $0.66
Luminex Corp (LMNX). Amount $0.09
Main Street Capital Corp (MAIN). Amount $0.20
Synovus Financial Corp (SNV). Amount $0.33
Wingstop Inc (WING). Amount $0.11