All three major US stock indexes were up in late-morning trading Wednesday, as technology stocks led the way up and additional inflation data showed further cooling.
The US Producer Price Index fell by 0.3% in June, below expectations of a flat reading in a survey compiled by Bloomberg as of 7:25 a.m. ET and after a 0.6% increase in May. Core PPI, which excludes food and energy prices, rose by 0.2%, below the 0.3% gain expected and following a 0.1% gain in May.
In company news, Stripe and Advent International have offered to acquire PayPal (PYPL) for $60.50 per share in a deal that would value the company at over $53 billion, Reuters reported late Tuesday, citing two people familiar with the matter. Under the proposal, Stripe and Advent would each own a 50% stake in PayPal. The two payments firms have not received a response from PayPal but are seeking to advance talks in the coming weeks, the report said. PayPal shares were up 16.5% around midday.
ASML (ASML) reported Q2 earnings Wednesday of 7.58 euros ($8.66) per diluted share, up from 5.90 euros a year earlier but below the FactSet consensus analyst estimate of 8.59 euros. Second-quarter net sales were 9.33 billion euros, up from 7.69 billion euros a year ago but below the FactSet consensus of 10.44 billion euros. For Q3, the company said it expects sales of 11 billion euros to 12 billion euros, compared with the FactSet consensus of 11.70 billion euros. For full-year 2026, ASML expects sales of 43 billion euros to 45 billion euros, up from its previous guidance of 36 billion euros to 40 billion euros and above the FactSet consensus of 39.90 billion euros. ASML shares were down 0.7%.
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) reported fiscal Q2 adjusted earnings Wednesday of $2.90 per diluted share, up from $2.77 a year earlier and above the FactSet consensus of $2.85. Fiscal Q2 reported sales were $25.31 billion, up from $23.74 billion a year ago and above the FactSet consensus of $25.02 billion. For fiscal 2026, the company said it expects adjusted EPS of $11.60 to $11.75, up from its previous guidance of $11.45 to $11.65 and above the FactSet consensus of $11.59. Johnson & Johnson also lifted its full-year sales guidance to a range of $100.8 billion to $101.4 billion from $100.3 billion to $101.3 billion. Analysts expect $101.06 billion. Johnson & Johnson shares were down 1%.
Morgan Stanley (MS) reported Q2 earnings Wednesday of $3.46 per diluted share, up from $2.13 a year earlier and above the FactSet consensus of $2.89. Second-quarter net revenue was $21.35 billion, up from $16.79 billion a year ago and above the FactSet consensus of $19.67 billion. Morgan Stanley shares were down 0.7%.
BlackRock (BLK) reported Q2 adjusted earnings Wednesday of $13.91 per share, up from $12.05 a year earlier and above the FactSet consensus of $12.69. Second-quarter revenue was $7.08 billion, up from $5.42 billion a year ago and above the FactSet consensus of $6.73 billion. BlackRock shares were up 7.6%.
Elevance Health (ELV) reported Q2 adjusted earnings Wednesday of $7.45 per diluted share, down from $8.84 a year earlier but above the FactSet consensus of $6.21. Second-quarter operating revenue was $49.83 billion, up from $49.42 billion a year ago and above the FactSet consensus of $48.84 billion. The company raised its 2026 adjusted EPS outlook to at least $27 from $26.75, above the FactSet consensus of $26.87. Elevance shares were down 8.9%.
Price: 1769.64, Change: -6.00, Percent Change: -0.34
Comments