GM workers with the UAW Local 2250 union strike outside the General Motors Wentzville Assembly Plant in Wentzville, Missouri, Sept. 15, 2023.
Michael B. Thomas | Getty Images
Check out the companies making headlines in midday trading.
General Motors, Ford, Stellantis — Shares of Ford was near flat, while General Motors gained 0.9% and Stellantis was up 2.2% as a targeted strike by the United Auto Workers began. Workers walked off the job at several assembly plants belonging to the three automakers Thursday night after a key deadline to settle a new labor contract passed.
Planet Fitness — Shares slid 15.9% after the gym chain’s board pushed out CEO Chris Rondeau. CNBC reported that Rondeau’s employees were shocked by the decision. Board member Craig Benson, known for his role as the former governor of New Hampshire, is the interim CEO.
Nucor — The steelmaker fell 6.1% after offering worse-than-expected guidance for third-quarter earnings, with the company pointing to pricing and volume challenges. Nucor expects earnings of between $4.10 to $4.20 per shares, while the analysts polled at LSEG (formerly Refinitiv) forecasted $4.57.
PTC therapeutics – The therapeutics stock plunged 29.8% following a negative opinion from the European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use on a PTC drug for nonsense mutation Duchenne muscle dystrophy. Raymond James downgraded its stock from outperform to underperform after the news.
Core and Main – The infrastructure stock fell 4.1% the day after it announced that it was launching a secondary offering. The sale of 18 million Class A Shares by the selling shareholders will take place simultaneously with the purchase of 3.1 Million Class A Shares. The partnership interests of a company’s unit will also be purchased.
Arm holdings — Shares fell 4.5% in its second public session. Needham Investment Banking started coverage on the stock as hold, without a target price. This was after Arm’s debut which valued the company at around $60 billion. Needham analyst Charles Shi warned, however, the stock’s valuation already “looks filled.” “
Insulet, Dexcom — Shares of the diabetes-focused health-care companies fell Friday after Bloomberg News reported Thursday afternoon that Apple has selected a new leader for its team working to develop a noninvasive blood sugar monitoring device. Shares of Insulet shed 2.9%, while Dexcom sank 5.1%.
Chipmakers — Chip equipment stocks ASML Holding, KLA, Lam Research and Applied Materials all dropped following a report that Taiwan Semiconductor is telling vendors to delay deliveries due to demand concerns. U.S.-listed shares of Taiwan Semiconductor lost 2.4%.
Adobe — Shares of the Photoshop maker dropped 4.2% following Adobe’s fiscal third-quarter earnings Thursday. The company’s earnings and revenue were better than expected, and its forward guidance was in line with Street expectations. While Goldman Sachs and Bank of America reiterated buy ratings, JPMorgan remained neutral, citing macroeconomic headwinds and a high premium for Adobe’s pending acquisition of Figma for $20 billion.
Apellis Pharmaceuticals — The biopharmaceutical company advanced 2.6% following a Wells Fargo upgrade to overweight from equal weight. The bank said Apellis has a favorable risk/reward ahead of third-quarter earnings.
DoorDash — Shares of the food delivery company fell 2.5% after MoffettNathanson downgraded the stock to market perform from outperform. Wall Street firm says the resumed loan repayments creates bookings risks for food delivery. Axis Capital — This insurance stock rose by 3.1% after Bank of America upgraded it to buy from underperform. Redburn Atlantic Equities became less bearish on Estee Lauder. The stock rose nearly 1%. The firm upgrades shares to neutral from sell, saying the company was feeling technical benefits as customer ordering patterns normalize.
Casella Waste Systems
— The waste stock traded about 1.6% higher after getting initiated by Goldman Sachs at buy. Goldman Sachs called the company “a compounder with pricing”. “-CNBC’s Yun Li and Jesse Pound contributed to the reporting. Samantha Subin, Pia Sing, Brian Evans, and Lisa Kailai Han also contributed.