Stocks waver after key data as Micron slips

long live5 updates

• Thursday, June 27, 2024 at 7:08 am PDT

  Pending home sales decline in May

  High home prices and high mortgages keep prospective buyers out of the housing market.

  Pending home sales — a forward-looking indicator of home sales based on contract signings — fell 2.1% in May from the previous month, according to National Institute of Realtors data. Year-over-year, they fell 6.6%, data released Thursday showed.

  The Midwest and South recorded a drop in contract signings in May from the previous month. North East and West regions recorded gains. All regions across the country recorded losses in operations on a year-on-year basis.

  “The market is in an interesting phase with rising inventory and subdued demand,” NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said in a statement. “Supply and demand dynamics suggest home price appreciation will ease in the coming months. Inevitably, more inventory in a job-creating economy will lead to more home buying, especially when mortgage rates fall.”

  Mortgage rates are at their lowest average in three months, but that’s still not enough to attract buyers. About 95% of mortgage borrowers have interest rates below current market rates, and nearly 80% have rates more than 2 percentage points above market rates, according to Goldman Sachs data.

  Looking ahead, Yun expects “moderately low mortgage rates, higher home sales and stabilizing home prices.”

• 

  Thursday, June 27, 2024 at 7:05 am PDT

  Walgreens gets 24% lower guidance due to “challenging” pharmacy trends, weak consumer

  Walgreens shares fell 24% to their lowest level since 1997 after the drugstore chain cut its fiscal 2024 revenue guidance, citing “challenging pharmacy industry trends and a worse-than-expected U.S. consumer environment.”

  “Our customers have become increasingly selective and price-sensitive in their purchases,” Walgreens Boots Alliance CEO Tim Wentworth said during the company’s earnings call Thursday morning.

  Management pointed out that 25% of the company’s stores do not currently contribute to the long-term strategy and that “changes are imminent”.

  Walgreens said it plans to close a “significant portion” of its underperforming stores over the next three years.

  It expects adjusted earnings per share for the year to come in between $2.80 and $2.95, with a range of $3.20 to $3.35.

• 

  Thursday, June 27, 2024 at 6:48 am PDT

  Netflix helps push Meta Nasdaq into green territory

  Communications stocks lifted the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) into positive territory with a 0.3% gain shortly after the market opened on Thursday.

  Netflix ( NFLX ) and Meta ( META ) both advanced more than 1%, helping the tech heavyweights lift from just below the flatline.

  The S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose 0.2%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) was little changed.

  Meanwhile, shares of chip giant Nvidia ( NVDA ) sparked a broader market rally this year as Micron’s ( MU ) sales forecast failed to woo investors with the AI ​​craze.

• 

  Thursday, June 27, 2024 at 6:35 am PDT

  Stocks waver at open as investors weigh economic data, Micron caps tech rally

  Stocks opened slightly lower on Thursday as investors weighed economic data released earlier in the day.

  The S&P 500 (^GSPC) was little changed, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell 0.1%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite ( ^IXIC ) fell slightly below the flatline.

  Real gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 1.4% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2024. Third evaluation The Bureau of Economic Development released Thursday morning. The print was slightly higher than the previous reading of 1.3%, but shows slower growth after 2022.

  The initial weekly jobless claims reading was 233,000, down 6,000 from the previous week. According to Labor Department data.

  On the corporate front, chipmaker Micron’s ( MU ) sales forecast for the current quarter met expectations, but failed to satisfy investors looking for better performance from AI-connected companies. Shares fell about 4% in early trading. AI chip company Nvidia ( NVDA ) also fell nearly 1% at the open.

• 

  Thu, Jun 27, 2024 at 2:24 pm PDT

  Why Levi’s quarter bothers me

  Shares of pre-market Levi’s ( LEVI ) are down 15% following earnings.

  I think it deserves it for two reasons.

  First, sales in China were down 10% from the previous year. I have been in conversation with many latecomers who have recently visited China. One theme is that Chinese consumers are feeling the dark side and are not spending as much as in years past. That mood is affecting demand for Levi’s jeans, Starbucks ( SBUX ) coffee and — according to General Mills’ ( GIS ) earnings call yesterday — Haagen Dazs ice cream.

  It is difficult to see the inflection point in China.

  The same goes for Levi’s wholesale or supermarket business. Sales were down 4% from the previous year. The company’s commentary suggests that wholesale demand will not pick up until 2025.

  I plan to raise some of my concerns with Levi’s CFO Harmit Singh today at 10:30 a.m. ET on Yahoo Finance. To the music!