Stock Market Today Mid-Morning Updates
On Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up by over 500 points following a brutal week. Tech stocks like Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) and Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOGL) are up by over 2% and 3% respectively. Following last week’s biggest interest rate hike since 1994 to combat inflation, Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell will deliver his monetary policy report to Congress on Wednesday and Thursday.
Shares of Mondelez (NASDAQ: MDLZ) are up today after announcing that it will buy energy bar maker Clif Bar & Co. for $2.9 billion. The transaction will close during the third quarter. Valneva (NASDAQ: VALN) surged by over 80% on today’s opening bell after news that Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) will buy an 8.1% stake in the French vaccine maker for more than $95 million. Both companies have already made a joint venture to develop treatments for Lyme disease. Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) was upgraded to an ‘Outperform’ rating from ‘Neutral’ by Credit Suisse. Analysts cite the company’s investments in attractive oil and gas projects.
Among the Dow Jones leaders, shares of Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) are up by 3.70% today while Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) is also up by 2.48%. Meanwhile, Disney (NYSE: DIS) and Nike (NYSE: NKE) are trading higher on Tuesday. Among the Dow financial leaders, Visa (NYSE: V) is up by 2.52% while JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM) is also up by 0.3.41%
Shares of EV leader Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) are up by 8.29% on Tuesday. Rival EV companies like Rivian (NASDAQ: RIVN) are also up by 12.82%. Lucid Group (NASDAQ: LCID) is up by 9.17% today. Chinese EV leaders like Nio (NYSE: NIO) and Xpeng Motors (NYSE: XPEV) are trading higher as well today.
Dow Jones Today: U.S. Treasury Yields Rise To Pandemic-Era Highs; Oil Recovers After Last Week’s Declines.
Following the stock market opening on Tuesday, the S&P 500, Dow, and Nasdaq are trading higher at 2.43%, 1.74%, and 3.01% respectively. Among exchange-traded funds, the Nasdaq 100 tracker Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ: QQQ) is up by 3.05% while the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (NYSEARCA: SPY) is also up by 2.48%.
The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield remains at an elevated high of 3.28% today. The Dow closed under 30,000 again on Friday and lost 4.8% that week. This would be one of its weakest weekly performances since 2020. Oil prices recovered some gains, with West Texas Intermediate crude rising 2% today to about $110 per barrel. The volatility in oil prices comes from supply chain issues due to geopolitical factors. Notably, this would include China’s pandemic lockdowns and also the Russia-Ukraine war.
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Spirit Airlines Stock Gains Altitude Following News Of JetBlue Raising Acquisition Offer
In the news today, we have Spirit Airlines (NYSE: SAVE). For the most part, this would be thanks to the latest development regarding the takeover war over the carrier. For those unaware, both JetBlue (NASDAQ: JBLU) and Frontier Group (NASDAQ: ULCC) are currently looking to acquire Spirit. With travel demand continuously growing, “ultra-low-cost carriers” like Spirit could be a prime choice for consumers looking to fly. As such, it would make sense that JetBlue and Frontier are actively pushing to come out on top here.
Regarding today’s latest update, JetBlue is increasing its current offer to Spirit by $2 per share. Following the notable raise, JetBlue is currently offering Spirit shareholders a total of $33.50 per share. In detail, this will be in the form of a $32 per share payment should JetBlue come out on top in its takeover efforts. Furthermore, there is also a prepayment of $1.50 per share on top of that as well, according to JetBlue.
Providing commentary on the company’s latest move is JetBlue CEO Robin Hayes. He notes, “After discussions with the Spirit team last week and further due diligence review, we are more convinced than ever that a JetBlue-Spirit transaction would create a true national competitor to the Big Four and deliver value to all of our stakeholders.” Moreover, JPMorgan analyst Jamie Baker recently upgraded SAVE stock to an Overweight rating and put it on the firm’s Tactical Trade Idea list. Following all of this, SAVE stock is now gaining by over 7% at the opening bell today.
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Kellogg Stock In Focus After Announcing Plans For Business Split
At the same time, shares of the Kellogg Company (NYSE: K) are also making waves in the stock market today. Getting straight into it, this follows the company’s latest operational update. Notably, Kellogg is planning to split up its business into three separate firms. Overall, this would be its snacks, plant-based foods, and cereal segments respectively. Ideally, such a move could allow Kellogg to better focus on its key segments separately. With popular brands such as Cheez-It, Pringles, and Pop-Tarts under its portfolio, this could be the case.
Speaking on all this is Kellogg CEO Steve Cahillane. He starts by saying, “Kellogg has been on a successful journey of transformation to enhance performance and increase long-term shareowner value. This has included re-shaping our portfolio, and today’s announcement is the next step in that transformation.” Cahillane continues, “These businesses all have significant standalone potential, and an enhanced focus will enable them to better direct their resources toward their distinct strategic priorities.” Also, Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) and Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) are the key financial advisors helping Kellogg with the business split.
On the whole, such an aggressive play by the 116-year-old food industry giant would turn heads in the stock market. Not to mention, the spin-off of its plant-based foods segment could add more pressure to firms like Beyond Meat (NASDAQ: BYND). As a result, investors looking for more defensive plays in the stock market now could be eyeing K stock.
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