Stocks were falling Friday after the U.S. added far more jobs than expected in September. Economists had been forecasting a slowdown in hiring.
These stocks were making moves Friday:
Exxon Mobil
(XOM) is close to acquiring
Pioneer Natural Resources
(PXD), the shale-drilling company, in a takeover that could be worth roughly $60 billion, The Wall Street Journal reported. The deal could be finalized in the coming days, the Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Pioneer has a market capitalization of about $50 billion. An acquisition of Pioneer likely would be
Exxon’s
largest deal since its megamerger with Mobil in 1999, the Journal noted. Pioneer rose 9.3% to $234.95 and was the
S&P 500
‘s top performer on Friday. Exxon fell 3%.
AES
(AES) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at
UBS
and the price target was reduced to $13 from $22. Shares of the utility company fell 8.1% to $11.63 and were the worst performer in the
S&P 500.
Tesla
(TSLA) cut prices of its Model 3 and Model Y vehicles in the U.S., according to the electric-vehicle maker’s website. The Model 3 was reduced to $38,990 from $40,240, while prices on the Model Y long-range vehicle were cut to $48,490 from $50,490. The Model Y performance car was lowered to $52,490. The price cuts The price cuts follow
Tesla
‘s report of 435,059 deliveries in the third quarter, which missed analysts’ estimates. Tesla declined 3.2%.
Rivian Automotive
(RIVN) was down 1.3% after tumbling 22.9% on Thursday, the stock’s largest percentage drop on record. The plunge came after the EV truck maker issued disappointing guidance and announced plans to raise more funds.
Levi Strauss
(LEVI) said it was lowering its financial forecasts “given the ongoing uncertainty in the macro environment.” The jeans maker said it expected adjusted profit in the fiscal year to be “on the low end” of a prior forecast of between $1.10 and $1.20 a share. The company also forecast fiscal-year sales to be flat to up 1%, compared with previous expectations for growth of 1.5% to 2.5%.
Levi Strauss
was down 4.2%.
Aehr Test Systems
(AEHR) reaffirmed its fiscal 2024 guidance despite improved fiscal first-quarter profit and a revenue jump of 93%. Shares of the maker of semiconductor test and production burn-in equipment fell 18%.
U.S.-listed shares of
Philips
(PHG), the Dutch health-technology company, declined 9.1% after the Food and Drug Administration asked for additional testing of its recalled sleep and respiratory devices.
Apellis Pharmaceuticals
(APLS) jumped 6.9% to $42.38 after the stock was upgraded by
J.P. Morgan
to Overweight from Neutral and the price target was raised to $81 from $60.
Write to Joe Woelfel at [email protected]
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