Plus, Walgreens delivered better-than-expected earnings results, GM said its vehicle sales in the second quarter were slightly lower than expected, and Amazon is opening a “Development Center” in Helsinki to focus on new technology for autonomous delivery vehicles.
Stocks were stocks were mixed at the open on Thursday with the Dow adding 5 points, or less than 0.1%. The S&P 500 also traded less than 0.1% higher, while the Nasdaq dropped nearly 0.1%.
Tesla is expected to announce deliveries of around 201,000 for the second quarter on Friday, which would mark a milestone for the electric vehicle maker. “Tesla has health with a major chip shortage and logistics/freight issues (like other automakers) which could have translated into roughly 10K cars currently in transit globally,” Wedbush analyst Dan Ives said in a note. “We believe 200,000 is the line in the sand and right now it’s biased upside given stronger Europe and China demand.” Credit Suisse analyst Dan Levy sees deliveries coming in between 205,2000 and 210,000 vehicles. “While our expectation would require a record month for Tesla in June… we believe this is feasible given Tesla’s typical quarter-end wave,” Levy said.
Walgreens shares are down more than 6% this morning even after it reported better-than-expected earnings and raised its guidance. The pharmacy chain reported fiscal third quarter earnings of $1.51 on revenue of $34.03 billion, versus estimates for earnings per share of $1.17 on revenue of $33.76 billion. “This quarter’s results demonstrate continued momentum, and while challenges lie ahead, we are in a strong position to grow and innovate our core retail and pharmacy businesses for the future,” said CEO Rox Brewer.
GM said its vehicle sales in the second quarter were slightly lower than analysts expectations, with sales of 688,236 in the quarter. Still, the figure was up 39.7% fro a year earlier when the COVID pandemic shutdowns forced many dealerships to temporarily close. “Consumer demand for vehicles is also strong, but constrained by very tight inventories,” said GM chief economist Elaine Buckberg in a statement. “We expect continued high demand in the second half of this year and into 2022.”
Weekly jobless claims hit a pandemic-era low. The Labor Department reported first-time claims of 364,000 for the week ended June 26, marking a decline of 51,000 from the previous week. The last time there were fewer claims was the week of March 14, 2020, just as the U.S. was beginning to shut down due to the coronavirus and before the worst of the economic damage hit. The drop i claims is consistent with improving business conditions and companies’ efforts to increase headcount to meet demand as the economy recovers. Continuing claims for ongoing benefits rose to 3.47 million for the week ended June 19.
And Amazon said that it plans to develop new technology or its autonomous delivery vehicles in Helsinki, Finland. The company said in a blog post that the new “Development Center” would support Amazon Scout, which i a fully electric autonomous delivery robot that is already being tested in four U.S. locations. One of the primary goals at the Helsinki center will be to develop 3D software that “simulates the complexity of real life,” and ensures “Scout can navigate safely while making deliveries,” Amazon said. The company added that “the Amazon Scout team in Helsinki will grow over time. We’re now hiring engineers who are at the forefront of robotics and autonomous systems technology.”
Stocks We’re Watching
PDS Biotechnology Corp (NASDAQ: PDSB): PDS Biotechnology announced today that it has been added to the Russell Microcap Index at the conclusion of the 2021 Russell indexes annual reconstitution. “Inclusion in the Russell Microcap Index underscores the progress we are making towards potentially improving the effectiveness of cancer therapy and increasing shareholder value by progressing our three (3) Phase 2 clinical programs for our lead HPV-cancer immunotherapy PDS0101,” Dr. Frank Bedu-Addo, President and CEO of PDS Biotech, said in a press release. “Inclusion in the Index significantly benefits our Company and shareholders by elevating our visibility within the global investment community. We look forward to continuing to progress the clinical development of PDS0101 while also moving additional oncology pipeline products into human testing within the next year.”