TheChek News Flow

Closing Market Summary: Record Territory In Sight Following Fourth Straight Victory

Stocks advanced for a fourth straight session on Tuesday, with the S&P 500 climbing 0.3% to 2858. The benchmark index is now within 0.5% of its January 26 record high. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.3% as well, and the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.5%.

The S&P 500 largely trended sideways from start to finish, keeping between +0.2% and +0.5%. Gains were broad-based, with seven of eleven sectors finishing in the green. Economically-sensitive groups led the way, with energy (+0.7%) and industrials (+0.7%) being the top performers.

The top-weighted information technology sector got off to a good start, but fell back in line with the broader market as Apple (AAPL 207.11, -1.96, -0.9%) dropped for the first time since its July 31 earnings release -- which fueled a wave of buying, helping to push the company's market cap above $1 trillion.

Four sectors finished in negative territory, with consumer staples (-0.6%) being the weakest performer. Dean Foods (DF 8.04, -1.43, -15.1%) weighed on the space after its above-consensus earnings and revenues were overshadowed by disappointing guidance for FY18.

In other earnings news, Marriott (MAR 124.43, -4.85, -3.8%), Weight Watchers (WTW 78.53, -13.68, -14.8%), and Zillow (ZG 49.40, -9.60, -16.3%) all tumbled after reporting their quarterly results, while Emerson (EMR 74.66, +3.04, +4.2%), Etsy (ETSY 43.84, +1.41, +3.3%), and Mosaic (MOS 31.70, +1.60, +5.3%) advanced.

Tesla (TSLA 379.57, +37.58, +11.0%) became the focal point of an otherwise quiet session after Elon Musk tweeted that he's considering taking the company private for $420/share and has already secured funding to do so. Shares were halted after an initial spike, but added to their gains when trading resumed, hitting an 11-month high.

Away from equities, Treasuries tumbled on Tuesday, sending yields higher across the curve, with the benchmark 10-yr yield jumping three basis points to 2.97%. Meanwhile, the U.S. Dollar Index slipped from a 13-month high, dropping 0.2% to 95.00, and the CBOE Volatility Index slid 3.1% to 10.92 -- its lowest level since January.

Reviewing Tuesday's economic data, which was limited to the June Consumer Credit report and the June Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey:

• The Consumer Credit report for June showed an increase of $10.2 billion (consensus $15.5 billion). May credit growth was revised to $24.3 billion from $24.6 billion.
• The June Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey showed that job openings increased to 6.662 million from a revised 6.659 million (from 6.638 million) in May.

Looking ahead, Wednesday's lone economic report, the weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index, will cross the wires at 7:00 AM ET.

• Nasdaq Composite +14.2% YTD
• Russell 2000 +10.0% YTD
• S&P 500 +6.9% YTD
• Dow Jones Industrial Average +3.7% YTD

After Hours Summary: AAOI +27%, DDD +19%, MTCH +14%, HDP +12% are higher, while CUTR -15%, TWNK -13%, PZZA / KRO -10%, CAR -7% are lower following earnings/guidance

After Hours Gainers:

Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to earnings/guidance: AAOI +26.6%, DDD +18.6%, MTCH +13.9%, HDP +11.9%, ALRM +9%, NVTA +8.8%, SFLY +7.8%, WK +6.7%, INGN +6.4%, BOOT +5.9%, PLT +5.1% (light volume), PTCT +5.1% (light volume), INFN +4.7%, TPC +4.7% (light volume), OPK +4.4%, BE +3.6%, CYBR +3.4%, TRHC +3.3%, TWO +3.1%, ALB +2.9%, DXC +2.2%, FOSL +2.2%, HALO +2.2% (light volume), DIOD +2.1% (light volume), AAXN +2%, NEWR +1.5%

Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to news: INSM +6.7% (FDA Advisory Committee voted 12 to 2 in favor of the safety and effectiveness of ALIS for the treatment of NTM lung disease), SESN +6.2% (appoints Dr. Thomas Cannell CEO), IAC +4.5% (ahead of earnings and following MTCH results), SCG +3.7% (to appeal the Order of the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina denying SCE&G's Motion for Preliminary Injunction), SSYS +2.5% (on DDD results), LITE +2.2% (following AAOI/ INFN results and ahead of its own earnings release), FNSR +1.8% (following AAOI/INFN results), MTSI +0.7% (ticking higher following Chairman insider buy disclosure), DDS +0.5% (light volume; initiated with Outperform at Wedbush)

After Hours Losers:

Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to earnings/guidance: CUTR -15.1%, TWNK -12.8%, BECN -12.7%, PZZA -10.4%, KRO -10.2%, CAR -7.1%, JAZZ -6.6%, BOFI -6.5% (light volume), PE -6.2%, EVH -5.9%, XEC -5.5% (light volume), CWH -5.4%, VSLR -5.4%, QTWO -4.7%, ICHR -4.1%, FTK -3.8%, LC -2.4%, DIS -1%

Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to news: AMPE -65.7% (after hosting call to update BLA preparation and discloses FDA letter which stated that the single AP-003-A study alone does not appear to provide sufficient evidence of effectiveness to support a BLA), NIHD -9.2% (to sell $75mln aggregate principal amount of convertible senior notes due 2023), PGNX -7.4% (proposed underwritten public offering of common stock), TRTX -2.7% (commences underwritten public offering of 7 mln shares of its common stock), MEDP -2.3% (announces secondary offering of 4.5 mln shares of common stock by selling shareholders), MXWL -1.7% (proposed public offering of 6.0 mln shares of common stock), KHC -1.5% (attributed to block trade pricing), SABR -1.1% (announces secondary public offering of 15.0 mln shares of common stock by selling stockholders), KREF -0.9% (launches offering of 5 mln shares of common stock)