Benzinga - by Avi Kapoor, Benzinga Staff Writer.
U.S. stocks traded mostly higher toward the end of trading, with the Dow Jones index gaining over 300 points on Wednesday.
The Dow traded up 0.78% to 39,589.55 while the NASDAQ fell 0.02% to 16,312.74. The S&P 500 also rose, gaining, 0.36% to 5,222.18.
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Leading and Lagging Sectors
Utilities shares jumped by 2% on Wednesday.
In trading on Wednesday, communication services shares fell by 0.5%.
Top Headline
Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ: CTAS) reported better-than-expected third-quarter financial results and raised FY24 guidance.
Cintas posted GAAP earnings of $3.84 per share, beating market estimates of $3.59 per share. The company’s quarterly sales came in at $2.406 billion, versus expectations of $2.386 billion, according to data from Benzinga Pro.
Cintas increased FY24 annual revenue expectations from $9.48 billion-$9.56 billion to $9.57 billion-$9.60 billion (estimate: $9.56 billion). The firm raised EPS outlook from $14.35-$14.65 to $14.80-$15.00 (estimate: $14.60).
Equities Trading UP
Lixte Biotechnology Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: LIXT) shares shot up 44% to $3.2571 after the company announced the publication of pre-clinical data on its lead clinical compound, LB-100.
Shares of MariaDB plc (NYSE: MRDB) got a boost, surging 91% to $0.4311 after Progress Software announced that it is possibly considering an offer for the company.
PaySign, Inc. (NASDAQ: PAYS) shares were also up, gaining 19% to $4.01 after the company announced better-than-expected fourth-quarter results.
Equities Trading DOWN
Gamida Cell Ltd. (NASDAQ: GMDA) shares dropped 83% to $0.0591 after the company reported fourth-quarter results and disclosed the commencement of a restructuring process.
Shares of Direct Digital Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: DRCT) were down 38% to $16.36 after the company reported worse-than-expected fourth-quarter financial results.
Velo3D, Inc. (NYSE: VLD) was down, falling 42% to $0.3339 after the company reported worse-than-expected fourth-quarter financial results.
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Commodities
In commodity news, oil traded down 0.5% to $81.19 while gold traded up 0.6% at $2,211.80.
Silver traded up 0.3% to $24.705 on Wednesday, while copper fell 0.2% to $4.0000.
Euro zone
European shares were higher today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 rose 0.13%, London’s FTSE 100 rose 0.01% while Spain’s IBEX 35 Index rose 1.09% The German DAX rose 0.50% French CAC 40 rose 0.25% while Italy’s FTSE MIB Index rose 0.21%.
The economic sentiment indicator in the eurozone climbed to a three-month high level of 96.3 in March, while services confidence indicator rose to 6.3 from 6 a month ago. The consumer confidence indicator in the eurozone increased by 0.6 points to a reading of -14.9 in March.
Spain posted a current account surplus of €5,127 million in January, higher than the €2,340 million surplus recorded in year-ago period, while consumer price inflation rate accelerated to 3.2% year-over-year in March. The construction output in Italy surged by 14.8% year-over-year in January, while consumer confidence indicator in France climbed to 91 in March.
Asia Pacific Markets
Asian markets closed mixed on Wednesday, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 gaining 0.90%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index falling 1.36%, China’s Shanghai Composite Index dipping 1.26% and India’s S&P BSE Sensex gaining 0.73%.
Profits earned by Chinese industrial firms jumped by 10.2% year-over-year to CNY 914.06 billion during the first two months of the year.
Economics
U.S. mortgage applications declined by 0.7% on the week ending March 22, 2024.
Crude oil inventories in the U.S. increased by 3.165 million barrels in the week ended March 22, compared to market estimates of a 1.275 million decline, the Energy Information Administration said.
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