The Market In 5 Minutes: Italy, ASCO, Roku And More

IN THE NEWS

Political worries about Italy and Spain gripped markets Tuesday, triggering sharp falls in stocks, a drop in the euro and big moves in bond markets: Link $

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) analysts are moving toward a sure consensus: growth is in the Services. The lessened emphasis on hardware has yielded new investment approaches: Link

A consolidation wave is sweeping across the marijuana industry, as companies aim to improve their competitive positioning and market share in an industry which offers a lot of promise: Link

With earnings season winding down, FDA decisions and ASCO data presentations will be some of the notable catalysts in the biotech sector this week: Link

Founders of highflying startups are increasingly wresting control of their companies from venture-capital backers and extracting huge pay packages tied to going public: Link $

Fed's Bullard warns against rate hikes: Link $

Maybe AT&T’s (NYSE: T) $85 billion merger with Time Warner (NYSE: TWX) is in trouble, after all: Link

ECONOMIC DATA USA S&P/CS HPI Composite - 20 n.s.a. (YoY) for Mar 6.80% vs 6.40% Est; Prior 6.80% The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index for May will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET. The Dallas Fed manufacturing index for May is schedule for release at 10:30 a.m. ET. The Treasury is set to auction 3-and 6-month bills at 11:30 a.m. ET. The Treasury will auction 4-week bills at 1:00 p.m. ET. ANALYST RATINGS Morgan Stanley upgrades Roku (NASDAQ: ROKU) from Underweight to Equal-Weight KBW upgrades Federated Investors (NYSE: FII) from Underperform to Market Perform HSBC downgrades Novartis (NYSE: NVS) from Buy to Hold Jefferies downgrades Infinera (NASDAQ: INFN) from Hold to Underperform

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NovoCure (NVCR) Expected to Announce Earnings of -$0.15 Per Share

Wall Street brokerages forecast that NovoCure (NASDAQ:NVCR) will report ($0.15) earnings per share (EPS) for the current quarter, according to Zacks Investment Research. Four analysts have made estimates for NovoCure’s earnings. The lowest EPS estimate is ($0.19) and the highest is ($0.11). NovoCure reported earnings per share of ($0.24) in the same quarter last year, which suggests a positive year over year growth rate of 37.5%. The firm is scheduled to issue its next quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 26th.

According to Zacks, analysts expect that NovoCure will report full-year earnings of ($0.60) per share for the current fiscal year, with EPS estimates ranging from ($0.86) to ($0.36). For the next financial year, analysts expect that the firm will report earnings of $0.32 per share, with EPS estimates ranging from ($0.33) to $1.02. Zacks’ earnings per share calculations are a mean average based on a survey of sell-side research firms that that provide coverage for NovoCure.

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NovoCure (NASDAQ:NVCR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 26th. The medical equipment provider reported ($0.23) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the Zacks’ consensus estimate of ($0.13) by ($0.10). NovoCure had a negative net margin of 33.12% and a negative return on equity of 56.70%. The business had revenue of $52.13 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $57.13 million.

A number of analysts have weighed in on NVCR shares. Deutsche Bank upgraded NovoCure from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their price target for the company from $23.80 to $19.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 19th. BidaskClub cut NovoCure from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Mizuho restated a “buy” rating and issued a $28.00 price target (up from $25.00) on shares of NovoCure in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Zacks Investment Research upgraded NovoCure from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $27.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 26th. Finally, Wedbush raised their price target on NovoCure from $29.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. The company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $27.75.

In other NovoCure news, Director Gabriel Leung sold 80,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.83, for a total transaction of $2,306,400.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Wilhelmus Cm Groenhuysen sold 30,470 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.58, for a total value of $840,362.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 480,333 shares of company stock worth $12,265,319. Corporate insiders own 15.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. purchased a new position in shares of NovoCure during the first quarter worth about $109,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP purchased a new position in shares of NovoCure during the fourth quarter worth about $211,000. UBS Group AG grew its holdings in shares of NovoCure by 379.2% during the first quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 9,809 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $214,000 after buying an additional 7,762 shares during the last quarter. Elkfork Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of NovoCure during the fourth quarter worth about $225,000. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of NovoCure during the fourth quarter worth about $271,000. 48.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

NovoCure traded down $0.20, reaching $30.35, during midday trading on Friday, Marketbeat.com reports. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 470,400 shares, compared to its average volume of 922,591. NovoCure has a fifty-two week low of $12.10 and a fifty-two week high of $31.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 6.32 and a quick ratio of 5.87. The stock has a market cap of $2.70 billion, a PE ratio of -43.36 and a beta of 3.07.

NovoCure Company Profile

NovoCure Limited is a commercial-stage oncology company. The Company is engaged in developing a cancer treatment centered on a therapy called TTFields, the use of electric fields tuned to specific frequencies to disrupt solid tumor cancer cell division. Its TTFields delivery system is used for the treatment of glioblastoma (GBM) and to advance programs testing of TTFields in multiple solid tumor indications through its clinical pipeline.

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China Cuts Car Tariffs, But That May Not Advance The 'America First' Theme

China’s Finance Ministry announced Tuesday it would slash tariffs on imported cars as part of its conciliatory trade negotiations with the United States.

Import tariffs will drop from 25 percent of vehicle wholesale value to 15 percent, and charges on car parts will drop from an average 10 percent to a standard 6 percent.

How Tariffs Affected Business

The previously high cost of exporting to China had long incentivized U.S. automakers to produce within Chinese borders and out of local factories.

In operation with Chinese joint venture partners, as mandated by the government, Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F), General Motors Company (NYSE: GM) and Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA), among others, helped transform China into the world’s leading auto manufacturer.

In 2017, the country produced nearly 23.6 million passenger cars against the U.S.’s 8.1 million, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers Association.

How Cuts Could Change Things

As it is, Ford plans to move Focus production to China in 2019, and Tesla will unveil a China plant later this year.

With rates still lingering far above the U.S.’s 2.5-percent tariff on cars, minivans and sports utility vehicles, the tax reduction isn’t likely to drive repatriation or affect U.S. automakers’ production choices, according to the New York Times.

In fact, The New York Times noted the more significant cut to car-part tariffs than to car tariffs cheapens the in-China assembly process, which may be a draw for producers.

At the same time, China’s fading requirements for foreign automakers to operate domestically through 50-50 joint venture partnerships may entice manufacturers to further increase their presence in the country. Tesla was reported last week to have registered a wholly owned company in Shanghai.

Related Links:

Ford Releases Big-Picture Strategy: 5 Things To Consider

Ford Maintains Its Fleet Sales As GM, Fiat Chrysler Scale Back

Daqo New Energy (DQ) Shares Sold by Boston Partners

Boston Partners reduced its stake in shares of Daqo New Energy (NYSE:DQ) by 36.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 56,977 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 32,859 shares during the quarter. Boston Partners owned about 0.54% of Daqo New Energy worth $2,789,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new stake in Daqo New Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $616,000. Millennium Management LLC purchased a new stake in Daqo New Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $6,321,000. Sensato Investors LLC purchased a new stake in Daqo New Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $739,000. Ellington Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in Daqo New Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $404,000. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Daqo New Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $262,000. 26.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Daqo New Energy opened at $64.87 on Friday, Marketbeat reports. Daqo New Energy has a fifty-two week low of $19.00 and a fifty-two week high of $72.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $684.95 million, a P/E ratio of 7.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 2.01.

Daqo New Energy (NYSE:DQ) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 8th. The semiconductor company reported $2.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.26 by $0.53. Daqo New Energy had a net margin of 27.28% and a return on equity of 27.20%. The firm had revenue of $103.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $96.75 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.32 earnings per share. Daqo New Energy’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.3% compared to the same quarter last year. analysts predict that Daqo New Energy will post 8.28 earnings per share for the current year.

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Tudor Pickering lowered shares of Daqo New Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 26th. Zacks Investment Research raised shares of Daqo New Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $64.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. Finally, ValuEngine lowered shares of Daqo New Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Daqo New Energy has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $64.50.

About Daqo New Energy

Daqo New Energy Corp., together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells polysilicon and wafers in the People's Republic of China. It operates through two segments, Polysilicon and Wafers. The company offers polysilicon to photovoltaic product manufacturers who further process its polysilicon into ingots, wafers, cells, and modules for solar power solutions.