Market wrap for July 10th
End of the Day: S&P 500 up 0.3 to 1,652.62; Dow Jones down 8.7 to 15,291.66; Nasdaq up 16.5 to 3,520.76
* The FOMC released minutes from its June 19th meeting today. In part, the Fed said that about half of participants think that the Fed’s $85 billion per month bond-buying program sould cease by the end of this year, showing a continued split in the thinking of the committee. The decision on QE would still be separate from any move on raising short-term rates.
* The SEC vote 4-to-1 in favor of lifting the 80-year old ban on general solicitation, which will permit hedge funds, start-ups, venture capitalist and private equity funds to openly advertise to the general public. The agency first proposed lifting the ban in 2012, however a dispute erupted among consumer advocates who were worried about rampant fraud. This was countered by pro-business advocates who see the lifting of the ban as a opportunity for small businesses to access capital and grow jobs.
* Family Dollar Stores, Inc. (NYSE: FDO) reported Q3 EPS of $1.05, $0.02 better than the analyst estimate of $1.03. Revenue for the quarter came in at $2.57 billion versus the consensus estimate of $2.57 billion. Comps rose 2.9 percent. The retailer sees FY2013 EPS of $3.77 to $3.82, from prior expectations of $3.73 to $3.93 and the consensus of $3.77.
* According to the latest numbers out of China, sales of General Motors vehicles rose 10.6 percent in June to 236,207 units. Sales for the year are up 10.6 percent as well, to 1,567,392 units. Having one of the best months in China was GM counterpart Ford Motor (NYSE: F), which saw sales rise 44.0 percent in June to 75,254 units. For more color, click here.
* Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE: YUM) reported Q2 EPS of $0.56, versus the analyst estimate of $0.54. Revenue for the quarter came in at $2.9 billion versus the consensus estimate of $2.93 billion. Comps grew 1 percent in the U.S., while falling 20 percent in China (down 12 percent prior to FX impact).
* Roche (OTCBB: RHHBY) announced that following the results of a regular safety review of the aleglitazar AleCardio phase III trial, the independent Data and Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) has recommended to halt the trial due to safety signals and lack of efficacy. Based on this recommendation, Roche has decided to terminate the AleCardio trial and all other trials involving aleglitazar.
* Apple, Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) was found to violate antitrust laws over e-book pricing today. U.S. District Judge Denise Cote made the verdict against Apple in a Manhattan federal court on Wednesday. The decision was made without a jury.
* Data from Gartner out Wednesday has PC shipments down 10.9 percent to 76 million for the three-months ended June 2013. Shipments in the U.S. fell 1.4 percent in the quarter to 15 million units. Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) saw a 4.8 percent drop in shipments, while Dell (Nasdaq: DELL) shipments fell 3.9 percent. HP’s total PC market share is 16.3 percent, pushing it to second place behind Lenovo, which saw a 0.6 percent drop in shipments to the quarter and holds 16.7 percent of the market. Dell currently has an 11.8 percent market share.
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