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business newsTicker Shock: Jumping on Wells Fargo's Bandwagon?
Thursday's top stories and stocks with potential to move.
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The wind felt as if it was at my back with the huge rush of energy I had. That is, until I tripped over the laundry basket in the dark hallway, cut my foot and woke the rest of the house.
Hope it's not one of those days.
Asian stocks rose overnight. The Hang Seng was up nearly 3% and the Nikkei was up better than 3%. Europe was in positive territory earlier this morning as well. And here in the US, we're currently trading higher.
Here's what I’m focused on this morning:
Wells Fargo (WFC):
The big news this morning (and what's driving the futures) is Wells Fargo, and more specifically, that it expects first-quarter earnings of about $0.55 a share. Not too shabby, because the Street was at $0.23.
The shares look like they’ll soar after the open. In pre-market activity, they're north of $19.
I’m super-reluctant to chase the stock here or jump on the financials bandwagon simply based on this news. While I'm optimistic over the longer haul, I still think it's way too early to jump in with full force.
Note that there was some insider activity in March, but at much lower prices.
Hot Topic (HOTT):
Yes, it is.The California-based retailer came out with its March comp numbers - which were up a healthy 7.1%
Not bad, because the Associated Press reports that the Street was looking for a 5.4% bump up.
And the good news doesn’t end there. The company also raised the bar for the first quarter. In fact, the following was in the release:
“The company raised its first-quarter earnings guidance to the range of $0.01 to $0.02 per diluted share based upon a high-single-digit comparable store sales increase for the first quarter. Previous guidance for the company was in the range of a net loss of $0.01 to net earnings of $0.01 per diluted share based upon a comparable store sales increase in the mid-single-digit percentage range.”
Good news in retail is pretty sparse these days folks, and I like what I’m hearing. I think the shares could move higher. That said, as I’ve mentioned in a previous article, Ticker Shock: Three Reasons Why Yahoo Is Underpriced, keep an eye out, because if these guys disappoint, I think the stock will get battered like a screen door in a hurricane.
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