A trader works on the trading floor of First Republic Bank stock on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on March 16, 2023 in New York City.
Brendan McDermidt | Reuters
Check out the companies making headlines before Wednesday.
Enphase Energy – The solar inverter company fell 16% after reporting disappointing earnings guidance for the second quarter. The company said Tuesday that its upcoming quarterly revenue would be between $700 million and $750 million, compared with the $765.2 million expected by analysts polled by the Street Account. Enphase reported adjusted earnings of $1.37 per share on revenue of $726 million, beating Street estimates of $1.21 per share on revenue of $724.4 million. Shares in rival Solaredge Technologies fell 5.8%.
Boeing — Boeing shares rose 3.7% in premarket trading after the company released its latest quarterly results and said it will ramp up production of 737 Max planes later this year despite production problems. The company reported an adjusted loss of $1.27 per share and revenue of $17.92 billion. Analysts polled by Refinitiv expected a loss of $1.07 per share on revenue of $17.57 billion.
Activision Blizzard — Shares of Activision Blizzard fell about 10.4% in the premarket after a UK regulator blocked its acquisition of video game publisher Microsoft. “The final decision to block the deal follows the failure of Microsoft’s proposed solution to effectively address concerns in the cloud gaming industry,” the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority wrote.
First Republic Bank – Affected regional bank stocks tumbled 10% before the bell, potentially weighing on the broader banking sector again. First Republic on Monday said its deposits fell 40% to $104.5 billion in the first quarter, and the stock lost nearly half its value on Tuesday.
Bequest Bancorp – Shares rose 14% in morning trade after Bequest said it saw deposit inflows last month. Deposits fell more than 16% to about $28.2 billion in the first quarter, but Regional Bank said it had added about $1.8 billion in deposits since it last updated investors on March 20. April saw $700 million in deposits. On Tuesday, PacWest reported a net loss of $1.21 billion for the quarter, largely due to a goodwill impairment charge. Regional bank Western Alliance Bancorp also rose before the bell on Wednesday.
Microsoft — Shares advanced 8% after Microsoft reported fiscal third-quarter results and posted better-than-expected quarterly guidance. The technology company posted earnings of $2.45 per share on revenue of $52.86 billion. Analysts polled by Refinitiv had forecast earnings of $2.23 per share on revenue of $51.02 billion. Additionally, Microsoft finance chief Amy Hood provided fourth-quarter revenue guidance of $54.85 billion to $55.85 billion. The midpoint of the range was above the consensus estimate of $54.84 billion. Separately, the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority on Wednesday blocked Microsoft’s takeover of video game giant Activision Blizzard, weighing on tech stocks.
Alphabet — Alphabet shares were flat before the bell, even after the Google parent beat both revenue and earnings expectations in the latest quarter and announced a $70 billion share buyback plan. Ad revenue beat estimates but fell from a year ago.
Chipotle Mexican Grill — Shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill gained more than 7% in premarket trading after the burrito chain posted an up-and-down beat in its most recent quarter. The company benefited from strong same-store sales growth and said traffic grew despite menu price hikes.
ServiceNow – Shares of the digital workflow company rose 3.1% after falling more than 6% during Tuesday’s session when Infosys announced a collaboration with ServiceNow. ServiceNow will report its quarterly earnings later on Wednesday.
Amazon – The e-commerce giant’s stock rose 2.8% in premarket trading. Amazon’s sentiment was boosted after tech peer Microsoft reported quarterly earnings that beat expectations. The company reports numbers Thursday after noon.
Thermo Fisher Scientific – Shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific fell 3.9% after Earnings reported in the first quarter That came in line with expectations. The Massachusetts-based scientific instruments supplier reported adjusted earnings per share of $5.03, according to Street Account estimates. Thermo Fisher Scientific beat revenue expectations with revenue of $10.71 billion, beating estimates of $10.65 billion.
Coinbase – The cryptocurrency exchange added 5% in the premarket with a rise in cryptocurrency prices, including a 5% rise in Bitcoins. HC Wainwright also initiated coverage of Coinbase with a buy rating and a $75 price target, representing a 34% upside from Tuesday’s close.
— CNBC’s Sarah Min, Samantha Subin, Alex Haring, Hakyung Kim, Yun Li and Michelle Fox Theobald contributed reporting.
