The AMC Empire 25 in Times Square is open as movie theaters in New York City reopen March 5, 2021 for the first time in a year after the coronavirus shutdown.
Angela Weiss | AFP | Getty Images
Check out the companies making headlines in midday trading.
AMC Entertainment – The cinema chain’s shares are up 30%. On Friday, a judge blocked a proposed settlement to the company’s stock conversion plan that would have allowed the company to issue more shares to pay off some of its debt. Separately, AMC said it recorded its largest attendance and admissions revenue in a single weekend since 2019, nodding to the hype surrounding the “Barbenheimer” phenomenon.
IMAX — The entertainment technology company gained about 6% as Universal’s “Oppenheimer” lured moviegoers to IMAX screens. Eric Wold, an analyst at B. Riley, said the over-indexing of IMAX screens in theaters in the wake of the pandemic reflects increasing consumer demand for the format.
Mattel – The toymaker gained 1.9% after a successful opening weekend of Barbie, the Warner Bros. film based on Mattel’s iconic doll.
Chevron – The energy stock rose 2.8% after the company released a stronger-than-expected preview of its earnings results. According to Refinitiv, Chevron reported adjusted earnings of $3.08 per share, beating Wall Street’s consensus estimate of $2.97 per share. The company’s board of directors is waiving the statutory retirement age for CEO Mike Wirth to give the company more time to find a successor. Chevron also appointed a new CFO.
Knight-Swift Transportation – Shares of the freight transportation company are up more than 1%. Late last week, the company released a weaker-than-expected second-quarter financial update. Knight-Swift reported adjusted earnings of 49 cents a share on sales of $1.55 billion. According to Refinitiv, analysts were expecting 55 cents a share on sales of $1.6 billion.
Intuitive Surgical – The healthcare stock is down 3.5%. Last week, the company reported better-than-expected earnings and sales for its most recent quarter. Intuitive Surgical reported adjusted earnings per share of $1.42 on sales of $1.76 billion. That compares to estimates of $1.33 per share and revenue of $1.74 billion, according to Refinitiv.
Domino’s Pizza – Domino’s Pizza shares rose 1.6%. The fast-food chain reported mixed quarterly results, including adjusted earnings of $3.08 per share, beating analysts’ forecast of $3.05 per share. Excluding currency effects, global retail sales grew 5.8% during the period, according to Domino’s.
Becton Dickinson — Shares of the medical technology company rose more than 6% after Raymond James upgraded Becton Dickinson to “outperform.” The company received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for its updated BD Alaris infusion system, which helps monitor patients’ vital signs and administer drugs, blood and other fluids.
Sirius The company said the move was due to technical factors, particularly high short interest as well as buying by investors ahead of the Nasdaq rebalancing.
Spotify — Shares of the music-streaming company fell 5.5% after Spotify announced price increases for its premium subscriptions. The company is expected to announce its quarterly results on Tuesday before the IPO.
Gilead Sciences — Shares of the biopharmaceutical company fell 4%. On Friday, the company announced that it was discontinuing the study of late-stage blood cancer treatment. Gilead noted that it expects no treatment revenue in 2023 and that the associated operating cost reductions in 2023 would be immaterial.
Estee Lauder – Shares of the beauty company fell 1.4% after Piper Sandler downgraded the stock to neutral from overweight, citing expectations of a slower recovery in China, weaker market share and lower brand preference among youth consumers.
– CNBC’s Hakyung Kim, Yun Li, Alex Harring and Samantha Subin contributed coverage