(Updated with index futures, First Republic Bank details, Baidu and Groupon forecourt prices)
PARIS, March 17 (Reuters) –
Top stocks to watch on Friday on Wall Street, where futures on major indices suggest an open down from
0.63% for the Dow Jones, from
0.65% for the Standard & Poor’s 500 and
0.24% for the Nasdaq
* FIRST REPUBLIC BANK, which announced a suspension of the dividend, fell 12.1% in pre-market trading on Friday after jumping 10% the day before in the session following the announcement of $ 30 billion in aid of several large American banks which are trying to avoid a domino effect after the bankruptcy of several banking establishments last week. The regional bank PACWEST BANCORP dropped 5.2%, while its competitor WESTERN ALLIANCE advanced 1.7%. Big banks JPMORGAN CHASE, BANK OF AMERICA and WELLS FARGO gained 0.2% to 1.5%.
* FEDEX jumped 11.6% in premarket trading as the group raised its earnings per share forecast for this year to a range of $13.80-14.40 from a previous estimate of 12.50-13, $50.
* AMGEN on Thursday announced plans to cut 450 jobs, or less than 2% of its workforce, the lab’s second layoff plan this year, amid growing pressure on drug prices and high inflation.
* MERCK & CO shed nearly 1% in off-hours trading after news that its treatment for metastatic non-small cell lung cancer failed in a clinical trial.
* BAIDU gains 5.2% in pre-market after obtaining a permit for a robot taxi service in Beijing by the authorities.
* UNITED STATES STEEL rose 4.8% in pre-market after the publication of a forecast for adjusted net profit in the first quarter above analysts’ expectations.
* GROUPON fell 6.3% in pre-market after the publication of an adjusted net loss per share in the fourth quarter of 0.38 dollar against a profit of 0.18 dollar a year earlier. (Written by Claude Chendjou, edited by Blandine Hénault and Kate Entringer)
©2023 Thomson Reuters, all rights reserved. Reuters content is the intellectual property of Thomson Reuters or its third party content providers. Any copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters. Thomson Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. “Reuters” and the Reuters Logo are trademarks of Thomson Reuters and its affiliated companies.