STOCK MARKET NEWS: Nasdaq, S&P lead winning week, railroad strike ahead? Queen Elizabeth tributes

Burger King, a division of Restaurant Brands International, plans to invest $400 million over two years to accelerate sales growth and drive U.S. franchisee profitability.

Under the “Reclaim the Flame” plan, Burger King will invest in premium branding to promote its Whopper. The company is also developing new flavor extensions, while focusing on employee training and rolling out kitchen enhancements.

Additionally, the brand will build up its Chicken Sandwich portfolio.

Restaurant Brands International owns Tim Hortons, Burger King, Popeyes and Firehouse Subs.

Alphabet Inc's health technology arm Verily said on Friday it had raised $1 billion in a funding round led by its parent.

Verily said it would consider investments in strategic partnerships, business development and acquisitions with the new funding.

Spun out of Google in 2015, Verily develops devices and software aimed at improving data collection, treatment, research and patient care.

Verily also said its president, Stephen Gillett, will be promoted to chief executive officer, while founder Andy Conrad will become executive chairman.

Chief Financial Officer Deepak Ahuja has decided to leave the company, it added.

Earlier in January, Verily announced a new tie-up in its search for sustainable revenue, saying it would study skin health and explore new products with cosmetics maker L'Oreal SA

Candy maker Hershey Co will spend $90 million to open two new production lines in a Mexican plant in the northern border state of Nuevo Leon, a representative for the company said on Thursday.

The expansion of the plant will increase output by 25%, according to a release from the state issued after an event at the plant.

The state said the investment will also generate 300 new jobs in addition to the 2,500 already employed at the plant, which makes hundreds of products.

"With this investment, we are likely to go from fourth place to third among Hershey's largest plants," Nuevo Leon Governor Samuel Garcia said at the event.

Americans are likely to see their premiums for many Affordable Care Act health-insurance plans rise sharply next year, though many consumers won’t pay more because Congress extended expanded premium financial help through 2025 as part of the Inflation Reduction Act enacted in August.

Cleveland-Cliffs has reached a tentative agreement with the United Steelworkers (USW) on a new 47-month labor contract for its legacy Mining and Pelletizing operations.

The contract will be effective on October 1 and will cover approximately 2,000 USW-represented employees at its Mining and Pelletizing locations in Northern Minnesota and in the Michigan Upper Peninsula.

The largest flat-rolled steel producer in North America has now reached two tentative multi-year labor agreements covering approximately 14,000 USW-represented employees, more than half of its total workforce.

Noted tech investor Cathie Wood is predicting the globe will face a number of recession surprises in the coming months.

Kroger Co raised its annual sales and profit forecasts on Friday as inflation-hit consumers drive up demand for groceries and household essentials at the cost of discretionary goods.

Grocery retailers tend to perform well in an economic turmoil as cash-strapped consumers prioritize spending on food and other essentials, with Kroger also benefiting from demand for its cheaper in-house items such as cheese and meats.

"We saw incredible engagement in our (private-label) brands during the quarter with identical sales growth of 10.2% compared to last year," Kroger Chief Executive Officer Rodney McMullen said.

Kroger reported a 56.5% jump in attributable profit to $731 million in the second quarter. Excluding one-off charges, it earned 90 cents per share, beating estimates of 83 cents a share.

Profit margins at Kroger, which has gas stations attached to many of its stores, were also likely helped by an increase in fuel prices, BMO Capital Markets analyst Kelly Bania said.

Kroger forecast adjusted same-store sales growth of 4% to 4.5% for fiscal 2022, compared with its prior outlook of a 2.5% to 3.5% increase.

The U.S. supermarket chain forecast annual earnings per share between $3.95 and $4.05, compared with its prior outlook of $3.85 to $3.95.Same-store sales, excluding fuel, climbed 5.8% in the second quarter, compared with estimates of a 4.6% rise, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

Tesla Inc is considering setting up a lithium refinery on the gulf coast of Texas, as it looks to secure supply of the key component used in batteries amid surging demand for electric vehicles.

The potential battery-grade lithium hydroxide refining facility, which Tesla touted as the first of its kind in North America, will process "raw ore material into a usable state for battery production", the company said in an application filed with the Texas Comptroller's Office.

A decision to invest in Texas will also be based on the ability to obtain relief on local property taxes, Tesla said.

Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk has previously said that Tesla may have to enter the mining and refining industry directly at scale as lithium prices surge.

Musk has also been vocal about the need for more players in the lithium refining industry. "You can't lose. It's licensed to print money," he had said at the company's second-quarter earnings call.

Securing a steady supply of battery components is seen critical for Tesla as it faces fierce competition in the fast-growing market for electric cars.

If approved, construction could begin in the fourth quarter of 2022 and would reach commercial production by the end of 2024, Tesla said in the application dated Aug. 22.

Under the plan, Tesla will ship the final product from the refinery by trucks and rail to various Tesla battery manufacturing sites supporting the supply chain for large-scale and electric vehicle batteries.

Zscaler jumped nearly 20% in Friday trading before giving back some gains. The cloud security company beat Wall Street revenue and profit expectations.

Fiscal fourth quarter revenue grew 61% year-over-year to $318.1 million. Analysts expected $305.4 million. Calculated billings increased 57% year-over-year to $520.4 million.

The GAAP loss from operations widened to $82.5 million from $67.4 million for the three months ended July 31.

Diluted non-GAAP net income per share was 25 cents, topping the estimate of 20 cents.

The company sees fiscal first quarter revenue of $339 million to $341 million and non-GAAP income from operations of $37 million to $38 million.

Full year 2023 revenue is estimated at approximately $1.49 billion to $1.50 billion. Non-GAAP income from operations is pegged at $173 million to $176 million.

A national U.S. railroad strike is looming and could cripple the economy already dealing with sky high inflation and supply chain issues in the post-pandemic recovery.

U.S. futures were trading higher to end the week, continuing a rally into a third day. The major futures indexes suggest a gain of 0.8% when the trading session begins.

Oil headed for a second straight losing week. Both benchmarks were down about 4% for the week.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures traded around $83.00 a barrel, after climbing 2% in the previous session.

Brent crude futures slipped to around $89.00 a barrel, after rising 1.3% on Thursday.

In Asia, Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 0.5%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng jumped 2.7% and China's Shanghai Composite added 0.8%.

On Thursday. investors heard from Fed Chair Jerome Powell who reaffirmed the central bank’s commitment to keep rates high as long as necessary to get inflation under control. Some market observers remain skeptical.

Stocks bounced back on Wall Street, keeping the major indexes on track for their first weekly gain in four weeks.

The S&P 500 rose 26.31 points, or 0.7%, to 4,006.18. The Dow swung from a 259-point loss to a gain of 193.24 points, closing at 31,744.52. The Nasdaq gained 70.23 points to 11,862.13. 

The yield on the 10-year Treasury, which influences interest rates on mortgages and other loans, was at 3.29% on Friday.

The U.S. economy is entering its second year of painfully high inflation.

Despite an aggressive interest rate campaign by the Fed and its chairman, Jerome Powell, prices may be slow to normalize, according to David Rubenstein, the billionaire investor and co-founder of The Carlyle Group.

In an interview last week, Rubenstein told FOX Business that he expects inflation to ease slightly by the end of the year, with the consumer price index likely dropping between 2% and 4%, depending on the Russian war in Ukraine and oil output by OPEC and OPEC+.

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Queen Elizabeth was known for many things that showed her identity. Her hats, her handbags, her horses and her love for cars – among other things.

Before becoming queen, the British monarch was a truck driver in the Auxiliary Territorial Service during World War II, and was known in healthier times to get behind the wheel of her Land Rover SUVs and go for a spin on one of the royal properties.

The British automaker saluted the queen in a tweet on Thursday saying, "The passing of Her Majesty The Queen has left everybody at Jaguar Land Rover deeply saddened, and our thoughts and condolences are with the Royal Family at this time."

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Intel will break ground today for its new computer chip facility in suburban Columbus, Ohio.

President Biden will be there for the event. In his State of the Union address last March, Biden envisioned the Intel plant as a model for a U.S. economy that revolves around technology, factories and the middle class. 

Intel had delayed groundbreaking on the $20 billion plant until Congress passed the bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act.

Oil prices headed for a second straight losing week. Both benchmarks were down about 4% for the week.

The market actually hit its lowest level since January at one point.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures traded around $83.00 a barrel, after climbing 2% in the previous session.

Brent crude futures slipped to around $89.00 a barrel, after rising 1.3% on Thursday.

The concern remains central banks' aggressive rate hikes and China's COVID-19 curbing demand.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration on Thursday said it expected U.S. crude output to rise by 540,000 barrels per day to 11.79 million bpd in 2022, down from an earlier forecast for a 610,000 bpd increase.

The average price of a gallon of gasoline slipped on Friday to $3.738, according to AAA. Thursday's price was $3.751. 

Gas has been on the decline since hitting a high of $5.016 on June 14.

Analysts and traders say wholesale gasoline prices are expected to keep falling in coming months as U.S. refiners overproduce fuel to try to rebuild low stocks of diesel and heating oil.

Diesel's price slipped to $5.029 per gallon.

Bitcoin was jumping by 7% around $20,000, in a rebound after trading lower in three of the last four days.

For the week, Bitcoin was trading lower by nearly 4% for the week as well as the month.

The cryptocurrency is down more than 58% year-to-date.

Ethereum was trading around $1,700 after gaining 3% in the past week.

Dogecoin was trading around 6 cents, after losing 2% in the past week.