Ethan Brown, founder and chief executive officer of Beyond Meat, center, celebrates with his wife Tracy Brown, center left, and guests during the company’s initial public offering (IPO) at the Nasdaq MarketSite in New York, on Thursday, May 2, 2019.
Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Check out the companies making headlines in midday trading.
Beyond Meat — Shares of the alternative meat maker jumped more than 11% after the company announced an expansion of its Walmart distribution deal. Beginning next week, Beyond Meat’s products will be offered in more than 2,400 Walmart stores across the U.S., up from around 800 locations at present.
United Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines — Major airline stocks fell after two straight positive sessions amid rising concern that the coronavirus situation in the U.S. was worsening. Shares of United Airlines sank 4%, while American dropped 3.7% and Delta lost more than 2%. Former FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said Tuesday that the fall and winter would likely be “the most dangerous season” for the virus.
RH — Shares of RH popped more than 4% after Cowen upgraded the stock to outperform from market perform. The Wall Street firm said the furniture company is set to benefit from consumer investing more in their homes. The analyst also hiked his price target on the stock to $435 per share from $370 per share.
JPMorgan — Thef the bank’s stock ticked more than 1% lower on news JPMorgan is set to pay $920 million to resolve probes from three U.S. government agencies over its role in the alleged manipulation of metal and Treasury markets.
DraftKings, Penn National Gaming — Gaming stocks fell sharply following news of positive Covid-19 tests among NFL players and staff for the Tennessee Titans. Shares of Penn National were down 5.5%, while DraftKings’ shares were trading just above the flatline after being up 4.5% earlier in the session.
Nio – The China-based electric vehicle company jumped more than 5% after Deutsche Bank reiterated its buy rating and $24 price target on the stock. In a note titled “Becoming the next iconic auto brand?” the firm said Nio is “increasingly perceived by customers as a high-quality premium brand with best-in-class technology and service.”
Bristol-Myers Squibb — Shares of the pharmaceutical company rose more than 1.5% after Berenberg started covering the stock with a buy rating. The Wall Street firm said Bristol-Myers Squibb has an attractive valuation and drug pipeline.
Big Lots –Big Lots rose nearly 4% after the retailer provided a better-than-expected earnings forecast. The company said it expects its third-quarter comparable sales to increase to mid-teens, while its earnings per share will be in the range of $0.50 to $0.70, versus a Refinitiv estimate of $0.21.
Fitbit – Shares of Fitbit popped more than 6% after Reuters reported that Google is set to win EU antitrust approval for its $2.1 billion purchase of the fitness tracker maker. Google offered fresh concessions to the European Commission to address data privacy and other concerns, Reuters reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
Carnival, Norwegian Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean — Major cruise operators fell on fears about Covid-19 heading into the fall season. New York also reported an uptick in cases. Shares of Carnival fell 2.2%. Shares of Norwegian Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean dropped 0.8% and 2.8%, respectively.
— with reporting from CNBC’s Yun Li, Pippa Stevens, Jesse Pound and Fred Imbert.