S&P 500, Nasdaq Rise as Google Stock Jumps on Antitrust Ruling

Macy’s Stock Soars on Unexpected Same-Store Sales Growth

3 minutes ago

Macy’s (M) shares jumped nearly 20% Wednesday after the biggest U.S. department store chain posted better-than-expected results and boosted its guidance on solid demand at its “Reimagine” namesake locations, as well as Bloomingdale’s and Bluemercury stores.

The company reported second-quarter adjusted earnings per share of $0.41—more than double what analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha were looking for. Revenue fell nearly 2% year-over-year to $5.0 billion, also above forecasts. Comparable sales were up 0.8%, while the Visible Alpha estimate was for a decline of 0.3%.

While sales at Macy’s stores were down 3.8%, comparable store sales rose 0.4%. At its 125 “Reimagine” stores, comparable sales were 1.1% higher. Sales and comparable sales rose at both Bloomingdale’s (4.6% and 3.6%, respectively) and Bluemercury (3.3% and 1.2%). 

The company slashed selling, general, and administrative expenses by $29 million to $1.9 billion, which came from the closure of Macy’s locations and cost-cutting strategies.

CEO Tony Spring said Macy’s had its strongest comparable sales growth in 12 quarters, adding that the performance reflected the firm’s “advantages of being a multi-brand, multi-category, omni-channel retailer.”

The company now sees full-year adjusted EPS of $1.70 to $2.05, compared to its earlier outlook of $1.60 to $2.00. It anticipates sales of $21.15 billion to $21.45 billion, versus the previous expectation of $21.0 billion to $21.4 billion.

Even with today’s sharp gains, shares of Macy’s remain more than 5% lower year-to-date.

-Bill McColl

Gold Hits New Record High: Key Price Levels Investors Need to Monitor

46 minutes ago

The price of gold (XAUUSD) surged to an all-time high Tuesday and continued to gain ground on Wednesday, amid renewed tariff uncertainty and expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates soon.

Spot gold was up 0.6% at $3,555 an ounce on Wednesday morning. The precious metal has gained about 35% since the start of the year, supported by central bank buying, tensions in the Middle East, and economic uncertainty.

Below, we take a closer look at gold’s chart and use technical analysis to point out key price levels worth watching.

Gold’s price consolidated within a five-month symmetrical triangle before breaking out from the pattern on Friday, potentially laying the groundwork for a continuation higher.

While the relative strength index moves toward overbought levels to signal strong price momentum, the indicator remains below 75, a reading that has coincided with minor retracements in the commodity after strong trending periods.

Importantly, increasing trading volume has accompanied recent buying, indicating heightened investor interest. 

Let’s identify a bullish price target to watch if gold prices continue their push higher and also point out important support levels worth monitoring during future pullbacks.

Investors can forecast a bullish target using the measured move technique, a study that analyzes chart patterns to project future price movements.

When applying the analysis to gold’s chart, we calculate the distance of the symmetrical triangle near its widest point and add that amount to the pattern’s top trendline. For instance, adding $500 to Friday’s close around $3,430 projects a bullish target of $3,930, about 11% above gold’s current trading levels.

During retracements, investors should initially monitor the $3,430 level. This location may provide support near Friday’s breakout point, which also closely aligns with several peaks on the chart stretching back to April.

Finally, bullion bulls’ inability to successfully defend this level could see gold revisit lower support around $3,150. The precious metal may attract buying interest in this region near the early April high and May swing low.

-Timothy Smith

Stock Futures Mostly Higher in Early Trading

1 hr 50 min ago

Futures contracts connected to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down about 0.2% in premarket trading.

S&P 500 futures rose about 0.3%.

Nasdaq 100 futures advanced nearly 0.7%.