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Markets Edge Higher as AutoZone Stumbles and Commodity Prices Diverge

MarketDash Editorial Team
13 hours ago
U.S. stocks posted modest gains midday Tuesday with major indexes up around 0.2%, while AutoZone shares tumbled 7% on disappointing earnings. Energy led sector gains while healthcare lagged, and commodities showed mixed signals with silver surging 4.5% as oil slipped.

U.S. markets held onto modest gains midway through Tuesday's session, with all three major indexes climbing around 0.2% as investors digested a mixed bag of corporate earnings and economic data.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.22% to 47,845.80, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.22% to 23,597.71. The S&P 500 gained 0.23% to reach 6,862.11.

Sector Movers: Energy Surges, Healthcare Stumbles

Energy stocks powered ahead with a 1.5% gain on Tuesday, making it the day's best-performing sector. On the flip side, healthcare stocks weighed on the broader market, slipping 0.4% to claim the laggard spot.

AutoZone Disappoints

The day's headline came from AutoZone, Inc. (AZO), which saw shares crater roughly 7% after the auto parts retailer delivered first-quarter results that fell short on both the top and bottom lines.

The company reported earnings per share of $31.04, missing the analyst consensus estimate of $32.37. Revenue came in at $4.629 billion—an 8.2% year-over-year increase—but still below the Street's expectation of $4.637 billion. Even growing sales couldn't satisfy investors when the bar was set higher.

Notable Gainers

Alexander & Baldwin, Inc. (ALEX) absolutely soared, rocketing 38% to $20.89 after announcing it will go private in a $2.3 billion all-cash transaction. Going-private deals tend to generate excitement, and this one certainly delivered for shareholders.

Exicure Inc (XCUR) surged 35% to $7.10 following positive news from its Phase 2 trial. The company announced that its completed trial evaluating burixafor combination with propranolol and granulocyte colony-stimulating factor for mobilizing hematopoietic progenitor cells in multiple myeloma patients undergoing autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation achieved its primary endpoint. That's a mouthful of medical terminology, but the bottom line is the trial hit its target.

Tronox Holdings plc (TROX) climbed 30% to $4.86 after revealing it received coordinated, non-binding and conditional Letters of Support/Interest from Export Finance Australia and the Export-Import Bank of the United States for up to $600 million in limited or non-recourse financing to support development of its rare earth supply chain.

Notable Decliners

Top Wealth Group Holding Ltd (TWG) plummeted 71% to $6.31 after announcing the pricing of its $5.04 million public offering of 720,000 units at $7.00 per unit. Dilution fears can hammer stocks, and this one got absolutely crushed.

Phreesia, Inc. (PHR) shares tumbled 21% to $15.80 following disappointing third-quarter results that clearly didn't sit well with investors.

SLM Corporation (SLM) dropped 16% to $25.86 after getting hit with a double dose of downgrades. Compass Point downgraded the stock from Buy to Sell and slashed its price target from $35 to $23, while Morgan Stanley downgraded from Overweight to Equal-Weight and lowered its target from $36 to $31.

Commodity Moves

The commodity space showed diverging trends on Tuesday. Oil traded down 1.1% to $58.23, while gold gained 0.7% to reach $4,248.20.

Silver was the standout performer, surging 4.5% to $61.005, even as copper moved in the opposite direction with a 2.2% decline to $5.3275.

International Markets

European markets ended mixed. The eurozone's STOXX 600 dipped 0.10%, while Spain's IBEX 35 Index rose 0.13%. London's FTSE 100 slipped 0.03%, Germany's DAX 40 advanced 0.49%, and France's CAC 40 fell 0.69%.

Asian markets closed mostly in the red on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei rose 0.14%, but Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 1.29%, China's Shanghai Composite declined 0.37%, and India's BSE Sensex fell 0.51%.

Economic Data

On the economic front, U.S. private employers added an average of 4,750 jobs per week during the four weeks ending November 22, according to recent data.

Meanwhile, U.S. job openings rose by 12,000 to 7.670 million in October, compared to 7.658 million in September. The labor market continues showing resilience, even if the pace of growth remains modest.

Back to News

Markets Edge Higher as AutoZone Stumbles and Commodity Prices Diverge

MarketDash Editorial Team
13 hours ago
U.S. stocks posted modest gains midday Tuesday with major indexes up around 0.2%, while AutoZone shares tumbled 7% on disappointing earnings. Energy led sector gains while healthcare lagged, and commodities showed mixed signals with silver surging 4.5% as oil slipped.

U.S. markets held onto modest gains midway through Tuesday's session, with all three major indexes climbing around 0.2% as investors digested a mixed bag of corporate earnings and economic data.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.22% to 47,845.80, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.22% to 23,597.71. The S&P 500 gained 0.23% to reach 6,862.11.

Sector Movers: Energy Surges, Healthcare Stumbles

Energy stocks powered ahead with a 1.5% gain on Tuesday, making it the day's best-performing sector. On the flip side, healthcare stocks weighed on the broader market, slipping 0.4% to claim the laggard spot.

AutoZone Disappoints

The day's headline came from AutoZone, Inc. (AZO), which saw shares crater roughly 7% after the auto parts retailer delivered first-quarter results that fell short on both the top and bottom lines.

The company reported earnings per share of $31.04, missing the analyst consensus estimate of $32.37. Revenue came in at $4.629 billion—an 8.2% year-over-year increase—but still below the Street's expectation of $4.637 billion. Even growing sales couldn't satisfy investors when the bar was set higher.

Notable Gainers

Alexander & Baldwin, Inc. (ALEX) absolutely soared, rocketing 38% to $20.89 after announcing it will go private in a $2.3 billion all-cash transaction. Going-private deals tend to generate excitement, and this one certainly delivered for shareholders.

Exicure Inc (XCUR) surged 35% to $7.10 following positive news from its Phase 2 trial. The company announced that its completed trial evaluating burixafor combination with propranolol and granulocyte colony-stimulating factor for mobilizing hematopoietic progenitor cells in multiple myeloma patients undergoing autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation achieved its primary endpoint. That's a mouthful of medical terminology, but the bottom line is the trial hit its target.

Tronox Holdings plc (TROX) climbed 30% to $4.86 after revealing it received coordinated, non-binding and conditional Letters of Support/Interest from Export Finance Australia and the Export-Import Bank of the United States for up to $600 million in limited or non-recourse financing to support development of its rare earth supply chain.

Notable Decliners

Top Wealth Group Holding Ltd (TWG) plummeted 71% to $6.31 after announcing the pricing of its $5.04 million public offering of 720,000 units at $7.00 per unit. Dilution fears can hammer stocks, and this one got absolutely crushed.

Phreesia, Inc. (PHR) shares tumbled 21% to $15.80 following disappointing third-quarter results that clearly didn't sit well with investors.

SLM Corporation (SLM) dropped 16% to $25.86 after getting hit with a double dose of downgrades. Compass Point downgraded the stock from Buy to Sell and slashed its price target from $35 to $23, while Morgan Stanley downgraded from Overweight to Equal-Weight and lowered its target from $36 to $31.

Commodity Moves

The commodity space showed diverging trends on Tuesday. Oil traded down 1.1% to $58.23, while gold gained 0.7% to reach $4,248.20.

Silver was the standout performer, surging 4.5% to $61.005, even as copper moved in the opposite direction with a 2.2% decline to $5.3275.

International Markets

European markets ended mixed. The eurozone's STOXX 600 dipped 0.10%, while Spain's IBEX 35 Index rose 0.13%. London's FTSE 100 slipped 0.03%, Germany's DAX 40 advanced 0.49%, and France's CAC 40 fell 0.69%.

Asian markets closed mostly in the red on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei rose 0.14%, but Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 1.29%, China's Shanghai Composite declined 0.37%, and India's BSE Sensex fell 0.51%.

Economic Data

On the economic front, U.S. private employers added an average of 4,750 jobs per week during the four weeks ending November 22, according to recent data.

Meanwhile, U.S. job openings rose by 12,000 to 7.670 million in October, compared to 7.658 million in September. The labor market continues showing resilience, even if the pace of growth remains modest.