All three major US stock indexes were up in late-morning trading Thursday, a day after the Federal Reserve left the federal funds rate at the current range of 4.25% to 4.50% but slowed the pace of the runoff in Treasury securities in its portfolio.
In company news, Accenture (ACN) reported fiscal Q2 earnings of $2.82 per diluted share on Thursday, up from $2.63 a year earlier and above the consensus estimate of analysts surveyed by FactSet calling for $2.78. Fiscal Q2 revenue was $16.66 billion, up from $15.8 billion in the year-ago period and above the FactSet consensus of $16.62 billion. The company expects fiscal 2025 EPS of $12.55 to $12.79, compared to its previous guidance of $12.43 to $12.79. Analysts expect $12.71. For fiscal Q3, Accenture expects revenue of $16.9 billion to $17.5 billion, compared to the FactSet consensus of $17.21 billion. Chief Executive Julie Sweet said Thursday on a call with analysts that Accenture's revenue is being hurt by the Trump administration's efforts to slash US federal government costs, which have slowed "many new procurement actions." Accenture shares were down 6.1% around midday.
QXO (QXO) has agreed to acquire Beacon Roofing Supply (BECN) for $124.35 per share in cash in a deal valuing Beacon at around $11 billion. The companies expect the deal to close by the end of April, subject to a majority of Beacon shares tendering in the offer and other conditions. QXO shares were up 2.1%, while those of Beacon were up 1.9%.
The Trump administration is poised to grant Chevron (CVX) at least 30 extra days to stop its Venezuela operations, Bloomberg reported Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. Chevron shares were down 0.2%.
The European Union is delaying its proposed 50% tariff on American whiskey until mid-April, according to media reports. Shares of Brown-Forman (BF.A), the maker of Jack Daniels, were up 0.5%.
Tela (TSLA) is recalling roughly 46,000 Cybertrucks to fix the cant rail, a stainless-steel exterior trim panel that may "deaminate and detach from the vehicle," according to a notification from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on Wednesday. Tesla shares were down 2.2%.
Meta Platforms (META) said Thursday that advertisers must disclose when artificial intelligence is used to crate or alter political or social issue advertisements as part of the company's efforts to fight misinformation ahead of Canada's federal election this year. Meta shares were up 4.0%.
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