Fed's George (hawk, dissenting voter): Fed should slowly raise rates to avoid overheating economy
- raising rates sooner rather than later would help Fed avoid creating volatiliy
- expects moderate pace of growth, continued job gains
- 4.9% jobless rate is near natural rate; substantial gains achieved in the last year
- not much room for oil price appreciation
--> FL -1.90% pre open 165k shares traded
Foot Locker On Call sees Q4 comps up mid-single digits, in-line w/ expectations
- Foot Locker Canada led stores division followed by Champs sports, both low double-digit sales gains
- Mid-single digit comps for Foot Locker in the US,
- Foot Locker in Europe and Asia and Footaction also achieved msd comps
- lady foot locker comped down low-single
- apparel down double digits
- stores softer in Germany than other markets
- Eastbay sales declined hsd
- Footwear up mid-single digits
- asp and units were both up in the quarter
- Men's apparel up msd, kids apparel up double digits
- QTD comps up msd, in-line w/ expectations for Q4 comps to be up mid-single digits for the quarter
Caterpillar reports October 2016 retail data; Total Machines Worldwide fell 18% YoY vs a 17% decline in the prior month, Total Energy & Transportation was unchanged from the prior month (92.78)
Total Machines (October 2016 vs September 2016)
- Asia Pacific +12% vs +3%
- EAME: -14% vs -17%
- Latin America: -24% vs -23%
- North America: -16% vs -23%
- World: -12% vs -18%
Total Energy & Transportation (October 2016 vs September 2016)
- Power Gen -33% vs -26%
- Industrial -29% vs -28%
- Transportation -32% vs -44%
- Oil and gas -21% vs -15%
- Total -28% vs -25%
Gapping down
In reaction to disappointing earnings/guidance:ANF -11.1%, GPS -6.7%, FL -1.9%, AMAT -1.1%,
Select metals/mining stocks trading lower: MTL -6.7% (volatile week in iron ore prices), GOLD -2.9%, SBGL -2.9%, AG -2.9%, AEM -2.5%, CDE -2.4%, HMY -2.4%, HL -2.2%, RIO -2.1%, VALE -2.1%, PAAS -1.9%, IAG -1.9%, MT -1.7%, SSRI -1.5%, BHP -1.4%, TS -1.4%,
Other news:
- KTOS -11.1% (intends to offer and sell shares of its common stock in an underwritten public offering pursuant to an effective shelf registration statement; size not disclosed)
- EMES -5.7% (prices upsized underwritten public offering of 3.4 mln common units representing limited partner interests at $10.00/common unit)
- RGC -4.7% (to sell 13,000,000 shares of Class A common stock by Anschutz Corporation and certain of its affiliates)
- ACRS -2.4% (prices upsized public offering of 4 mln shares of its common stock at $22.75/share)
- NFLX -0.7% (following report Amazon (AMZN) will launch Prime Video worldwide)
Analyst comments:
- FSLR -2.2% (downgraded to Sell from Neutral at UBS)
- CAFD -1.5% (initiated with a Underperform at Credit Suisse)
A merger between advertising group Havas (HAVA.PA) and French media giant Vivendi (VIV.PA) could "make sense", Havas Chief Executive Officer Yannick Bollore said on Friday, underscoring the mutual benefit for a tie-up between the groups.
"It is an assumption that makes sense," Bollore said in an interview on the sidelines of Morgan Stanley's annual Tech, Media and Telecom (TMT) conference in Barcelona. "It would be a development project rather than a cost saving project," he added.
"Big content could bring a lot to advertising and advertising could bring a lot to Vivendi's entertainment world," Bollore said.
Bollore insisted there were no formal talks currently between Vivendi and Havas.
He declined to comment on the form or timetable for such a deal, even though some investors and analysts are continuing to speculate on a tie-up, with Exane BNP Paribas publishing a note on Friday which saw a Vivendi/Havas merger as a possibility for the second quarter of 2017.
Havas, the world's fifth-largest advertising company, is 60 percent-owned by Bollore's father, French tycoon Vincent Bollore. Vincent Bollore owns a stake of more than 20 percent in Vivendi, and is also Vivendi chairman.
Vincent Bollore has repeatedly said that Vivendi and Havas, should work more closely together, with a potential merger down the road.
"Never say never", Vivendi's chief executive Arnaud de Puyfontaine said on Wednesday, in a response to a question on a possible merger with Havas.
Asked about the potential risk of a conflict of interest in a Havas-Vivendi tie-up, Yannick Bollore said that the risk existed, but that it was "minimal".
Vivendi accounts for 0.05 percent of Havas' revenues and Havas' clients represent less than 1 percent of Vivendi's revenues, added Yannick Bollore, who sits on Vivendi's board.