Here are the companies making headlines before the bell:
1. Hershey: The chocolate maker saw a 1% decline after Morgan Stanley downgraded shares to underweight from equal weight due to weak consumer demand and high cocoa inflation impacting margins.
2. Rocket Lab: The stock rose approximately 1% as Citi reinstated coverage with a buy rating, highlighting improved liquidity conditions and a recent $515 million award by the Space Development Agency, indicating traction with the U.S. government.
3. Teva Pharmaceutical Industries: Shares surged 3% following an upgrade by Piper Sandler to overweight from neutral, citing Teva’s brand portfolio and improved capital structure positioning for recovery and expansion.
4. Lowe’s: The home improvement retailer gained 1.7% after JPMorgan raised its rating to overweight from neutral, anticipating Federal Reserve rate cuts to boost mortgage rates and benefit Lowe’s.
5. XPO: Shares of the shipping company dropped 2.4% after a downgrade by Morgan Stanley to underweight from equal weight, cautioning that optimism surrounding XPO’s acquisition of bankrupt Yellow Corp’s service centers may be overstated.
6. Urban Outfitters: Shares climbed over 2% following an upgrade from UBS ahead of the fourth-quarter earnings release, with expectations for an earnings beat and strong sales momentum.
7. Rivian Automotive: The stock declined by 3.5% after a downgrade from Barclays to equal weight from overweight, citing market slowdown in electric vehicles and profit risks for Rivian.
8. New York Community Bancorp: Shares rose 1.2% following an insider surge where executives bought shares, with Bank of America Securities maintaining a neutral rating but acknowledging leadership’s potential to turn around the firm.
9. Marqeta: Shares of the card issuing technology company surged 6.5% premarket following a Bank of America upgrade to buy from neutral, citing an oversold stock and favorable investment opportunities.
Source (CNBC)
