STOCK MARKET NEWS: Twitter-Musk twist, Dow jumps as stock rally continues, job openings narrow

Hasbro has updated its 2022 financial guidance and announced a plan to grow profit 50% over three years.

The maker of toys and games including Transformers, PeppaPig, Play-Doh and Monopoly expects third quarter revenue to decline 15% due to a different revenue mix than last year. Revenue for 2022 is expected to be flat to slightly down.

The company set the following 2027 Financial Targets:

• Mid-single digit revenue compound annual growth rate (CAGR) that sets the company up to achieve $8.5B or greater in revenue

• Operating profit growth of 50% over the next three years, with plans to further expand operating profit margin to 20% by 2027

• Operating cash flow of $1 billion+ annually, accelerating over the period

• $250-$300M run rate cost savings by 2025

Amylyx Pharmaceuticals drug Relyvrio. (Amylyx Pharmaceuticals via AP)

Amylyx is filing for an initial public offering just days after the Food and Drug Administration approved its ALS drug Relyvrio, the company said in a regulatory filing.

The pharmaceutical company dedicated to the development of potential therapies for neurodegenerative diseases plans to sell six million shares at $29.75 per share.

Amylyx expects to raise net proceeds of $167 million ($192.2 million if underwriters exercise their full option to purchase additional shares).

The company plans to invest

• $100 million to fund production and commercialization activities,

• $30 million to fund the completion of its ongoing Phase 3 Phoenix clinical trial, and

• $20 million to fund its drug pipeline.

Any remaining proceeds will be used working capital and other general corporate activities.

FDA APPROVES AMYLYX ALS DRUG

MARKETS

Micron plans $100B computer chip factory in New York

Semiconductor maker Micron Technology announced plans Tuesday to invest up to $100 billion over the next 20-plus years to build a massive semiconductor factory in New York.

Micron Technology announced plans to invest $100 billion build the largest U.S. semiconductor fabrication facility.

The new megafab in Onondaga County, New York, whose county seat is Syracuse, will increase domestic supply of leading-edge memory and create nearly 50,000 New York jobs, including approximately 9,000 high paying Micron jobs.

The factory may eventually include 2.4 million square feet of cleanroom space — the size of approximately 40 football fields.

It will complement the company’s previously announced high-volume manufacturing fab in Boise, Idaho.

Site preparation work will start in 2023, construction will begin in 2024 and production output will ramp in the latter half of the decade.

Cars.com incoming CFO Sonia Jain (Photo: Cars.com)

Several stocks are rising after announcing C-suite changes.

• Small business communication and engagement platform Weave appointed Brett White as Chief Executive Officer. White joined Weave’s executive team as President and Chief Operating Officer in April after serving on the Board of Directors since June 2020.

• Automotive marketplace platform Cars.com reappointed former executive Sonia Jain as its chief financial officer with effect October 17. Sonia previously served as CFO of Redbox, overseeing finance, treasury, strategy and analytics, and mergers and acquisitions activities.

• Outdoor products maker Yeti Holdings said CFO will leave, effective October 28. The board has already commenced a search for a replacement.

Poshmark logo during the company's IPO at the Nasdaq Market Site in Times Square in New York City, Jan. 14, 2021. (Reuters/Brendan McDermid)

South Korean e-commerce company Naver Corp announced a $1.2 billion purchase of U.S. fashion resale platform Poshmark Inc but investors questioned the timing of its biggest acquisition amid a slowing economy and sent its shares tumbling.

Naver, which is also South Korea's top search engine, will pay $17.90 cash for each Poshmark share and acquire all of its outstanding stock in a foray into the U.S. e-commerce market.

Poshmark is the largest fashion consumer-to-consumer platform in North America, with 80 million registered users led by Millennial and Gen Z active users, Naver executives said in a conference call on Tuesday.

With Millennials and Gen Zers leaning toward value-driven consumption such as environmental protection, and with inflation squeezing wallets, Naver and Poshmark seek to lead "re-commerce" or consumer-driven resale — expected to be the next global trend after convenient e-commerce, or fast fashion, Naver CEO Choi Soo-Yeon told Reuters.

According to Activate Consulting, the $80 billion U.S. market in online fashion "re-commerce" is expected to grow by 20% annually to $130 billion by 2025.

The enterprise value of Poshmark is about $1.2 billion. Including consideration for Poshmark's cash, Naver's total investment is $1.6 billion, a Naver spokesperson said.

AirPower wireless charger along with other products during an Apple launch event in Cupertino, Calif., Sept. 12, 2017. (Reuters/Stephen Lam)

Apple will have to change the charger for its iPhones in the European Union from autumn 2024 to comply with new rules introducing a single charging port for most electronic devices.

The reform passed by an overwhelming majority in the European Parliament on Tuesday, the first of its kind anywhere in the world, potentially strengthens the EU's role as a global standard-setter on telephone technology. The vote confirmed an earlier agreement among EU institutions.

The new rules will make USB-C connectors used by Android-based devices the standard across the 27-nation bloc, forcing Apple to change its charging port for iPhones and other devices.

It will also apply to laptops from 2026, giving manufacturers longer to adapt, although many already use USB-C.

The deal also covers e-readers, ear buds and other technologies, meaning it may also have an impact on Samsung, Huawei and other device makers, analysts said.

Apple, Samsung and Huawei were not immediately available for comment.

F-150 Lightning XLT camping (Photo: Ford)

LIFESTYLE

Ford sales fell 8.9% in September after stellar July and August gains

Ford reported September sales that were down 8.9% compared to last year as supply chain issues continue to keep production below demand levels.

Ford electric vehicle sales tripled in September, up 197.3%, the second-largest U.S. automaker said. Ford’s share of the EV segment grew 3.1 percentage points over last year. In September, the F150 Lightning continued to be America’s best electric pickup. The ETransit was the best-selling EV van.

Total sales were 142,644 vehicles, down 8.9% year over year. Truck sales were down 18.3%. SUVs were up 0.9%.

Autonomous robots assemble an X model SUV at the BMW manufacturing facility in Greer, S.C., Nov. 4, 2019. (Reuters/Charles Mostoller)

Factory orders were flat in August after falling for two straight months, the Census Bureau reported today. Orders decreased less than $0.1 billion to $548.4 billion. This followed a 1.0% July decrease.

Shipments, up seventeen of the last eighteen months, increased $2.7 billion or 0.5% to $547.9 billion. This followed a 0.9% July decrease.

Unfilled orders, up twenty-four consecutive months, increased $5.3 billion or 0.5% to $1,132.1 billion. This followed a 0.7% July increase.

MARKETS

91% of CEOs see tougher recession: KPMG

Recessionary fears are top of mind for the nation's CEOs, many of whom are positioning their businesses for a sharper downturn.

America's CEO are growing more worried about the economy and believe the Federal Reserve is walking a tightrope in maneuvering this downturn.

Cryptocurrency prices were higher heading into Tuesday morning. (Getty Images)

Cryptocurrency prices for Bitcoin, Ethereum and Dogecoin were all higher early Tuesday. 

At approximately 4:45 a.m. ET, Bitcoin was trading at nearly $20,000 (+1.87%), or higher by more than $365.

 For the week, Bitcoin was trading higher by nearly 2.21%. For the month, the cryptocurrency was slightly less than 1%. 

Ethereum was trading at approximately $1,351 (+2%), or higher by more than $26.50. 

For the week, Ethereum was trading lower by slightly more than 0.60%. For the month, it was trading lower by approximately 14.85%.

Dogecoin was trading at $0.060576 (+0.26%), or her by approximately $0.000157.  For the week, Dogecoin was lower by nearly 1%. For the month, the crypto was lower by nearly 3.65%.

Gasoline prices rose overnight while diesel prices fell slightly. (gasprices.aaa.com)

The recent run of gasoline price increases nationwide continued on Tuesday’s as the price for a gallon of gasoline nationwide edged up to $3.805. On Monday, the price was $3.799. On Sunday, the price was $3.796, according to AAA. 

One week ago, the price of a gallon of gasoline nationwide was $3.747. One month ago, the price was $3.789. One year ago, the price of a gallon of gasoline stood at $3.20. 

Gasoline hit an all-time record high on June 14 of $5.016, approximately 16 weeks ago.

Meanwhile, diesel fell on Tuesday to $4.863. On Monday, diesel sold for $4.87 per gallon. On Sunday, the price was at $4.873 a gallon. 

One week ago, the price of a gallon of diesel nationwide was $4.89. One month ago, the price was $5.072. One year ago, the price of a gallon of diesel stood at $3.356.

Six energy experts penned a letter to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., on Tuesday expressing concern about the US following European energy policies.. (Reuters)

A group of energy and environment experts are sounding the alarm on U.S. climate policy and pointing to Europe's crisis as an example of "blindly" abandoning energy security. 

In a letter Tuesday, the coalition of six experts urged congressional Republican leaders — Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. — to consider how green policies have contributed to the energy crisis in Europe.

They added that the crisis proves the U.S. lawmakers need to bolster, not "compromise," energy security. 

"The actual environmental benefits of 'green' energy are few and far between, if there are any at all. Yet its economic and national security impact is immeasurably negative," the experts wrote in the letter. "Compromising American energy security for the sake of climate alarmism is more than a misstep, it is a catastrophic error – just look at Europe." 

"Defending our nation’s energy economy and independence must be a priority," they continued. "Europe’s energy crisis sits as a clear and present warning of what may lie ahead if we continue down this road, let us not follow them blindly into the same disaster." 

In recent months, European consumers and businesses have been hit with massive energy bills due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which upended global oil and gas markets due to Russian producers' dominance, and an aggressive transition to green energy sources like wind and solar pushed by several major European nations. 

Amid the crisis, Europeans have been forced to take drastic measures to conserve energy and keep bills low while governments have imposed rationing rules and introduced relief programs. The letter noted that the crisis has forced manufacturing plants to close and will likely lead to major blackouts throughout the winter in Germany. 

"For political reasons, Europe chose to rely on renewable energy and also oil from hostile sources — in this case being Russia," James Taylor, the president of think tank Heartland Institute, told FOX Business in an interview. "

Here we have in the United States, we're being told by the environmental left, by the administration, that we should choose the same path, that we should be focusing on renewable energy. That's just a terrible path." 

"In Europe, you see electricity prices that are approximately double what they are here in the United States," he continued. "That, again, is because of the choices that they have made for renewable energy and relying on a hostile nation. We're setting ourselves up for the same thing, which would definitely be a bad idea."

US stocks were moving higher overnight with the Dow up by almost 350 points around 5 a.m. ET. (Associated Press)

U.S. stocks were moving higher early Tuesday morning, one day before OPEC+ is scheduled to meet in Vienna to discuss cuts in oil production and on the day job openings and factory orders reports are to be released.

On Monday, Wall Street soared to its best day in months in a widespread relief rally after some unexpectedly weak data on the economy raised the possibility that the Federal Reserve won't have to be so aggressive about hiking interest rates. 

The S&P 500's leap of 2.6% to 3,678.43 was its biggest since July, the latest swing for a scattershot market that’s been mostly falling this year on worries about a possible global recession. 

The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 2.7%, to 29,490.89, and the Nasdaq composite gained 2.3% to 10,815.43. 

Stocks took their cue from the bond market, where yields fell to ease some of the pressure that's been battering markets this year.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury, which helps set rates for mortgages and many other kinds of loans, fell to 3.62% from 3.83% late Friday. It got as high as 4% last week after starting the year at just 1.51%. 

A report on U.S. manufacturing came in weaker than expected, along with data showing a drop off in construction spending from July to August. That may seem discouraging, but could mean the Federal Reserve can ease off on raising interest rates to beat down the high inflation damaging households’ finances. 

By raising rates, the Fed is making it more expensive to buy a house, a car or most anything else purchased on credit. The hope is to slow the economy just enough to starve inflation of the purchases needed to keep prices rising so quickly. The Fed has already pulled its key overnight interest rate to a range of 3% to 3.25%, up from virtually zero as recently as March.

Most traders expect it to be more than a full percentage point higher by early next year. But stresses are building in financial markets and corporate profits have weakened as central banks around the world hike rates in concert. 

Meanwhile, Asian shares rose Tuesday, encouraged by a rally in U.S. shares after some weak economic data raised hopes that the Federal Reserve might ease away from aggressive interest rate hikes. 

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 added 2.8% in afternoon trading to 26,959.25. South Korea's Kospi gained 2.5% to 2,209.98. 

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 jumped 3.8% to 6,699.30 after its central bank boosted its benchmark interest rate for a sixth consecutive month to a nine-year high of 2.6%.

The Reserve Bank of Australia’s increase of a quarter percentage point to the cash rate was smaller than those at recent monthly meetings. When the bank lifted the rate by a quarter percentage point at its board meeting in May, it was the first rate hike in more than 11 years. It’s now at its highest point since August 2013, when the bank cut the rate from 2.75% to 2.5%. 

Markets in Hong Kong and Shanghai were closed for holidays. 

“Asian equities were positive on Tuesday after a corrective session as traders eye potentially oversold market conditions,” Anderson Alves at ActivTrades said in a report.

Oil prices were higher Tuesday as expectations OPEC+ may cut production at its meeting Tuesday in Vienna. (Getty Images)

Oil prices edged higher on Tuesday as expectations that OPEC+ may agree to a large cut in crude output when it meets on Wednesday offset concerns about the global economy. 

Brent crude futures rose 46 cents, or 0.5%, to $89.32 per barrel by 0629 GMT after gaining more than 4% in the previous session. U.S. crude futures rose 30 cents, or 0.4%, to $83.93 a barrel. The benchmark gained more than 5% in the previous session, its largest daily gain since May. 

Oil prices rallied on Monday on renewed concerns about supply tightness. Investors expect that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies, known collectively as OPEC+, will cut output by more than 1 million barrels per day (bpd) at their first in-person meeting since 2020 on Wednesday. 

Voluntary cuts by individual members could come on top of this, making it their largest cut since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, OPEC sources said. 

"Despite everything going on with the war in Ukraine, OPEC+ has never been this strong and they will do whatever it takes to make sure prices are supported here," said Edward Moya, a senior analyst with OANDA, in a note. 

OPEC+ has boosted output this year after record cuts put in place in 2020 due to demand destruction caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. But in recent months, the organization has failed to meet its planned output increases, missing in August by 3.6 million bpd. 

The production cut being considered was justified by the sharp decline in oil prices from recent highs, said Goldman Sachs, adding that this reinforced its bullish oil view. 

Oil prices have dropped for four straight months as COVID-19 lockdowns in top oil importer China curbed demand while interest rate hikes and a soaring U.S. dollar pressured global financial markets.

Major central banks have embarked on the most aggressive round of rate rises in decades, sparking fears of a global economic slowdown. 

U.S. crude oil stocks were estimated to have increased by around 2 million barrels in the week to Sept. 30, a preliminary Reuters poll showed on Monday.