A roundup of some of the North American equities making moves in both directions today
On the rise
Iamgold Corp. (IMG-T) jumped 4 per cent in early afternoon trading Tuesday after a group of equity analysts raised their ratings for the stock. On Monday, shares of the Toronto-based miner finished just over 20 per cent higher after announcing it will not proceed with the construction of its Côté Gold project in Ontario.
Shares of SNC-Lavalin Inc. (SNC-T) rebounded slightly, sitting up 5.5 per cent. On Monday, the construction and engineering firm plummeted 27.8 per cent after cutting its 2018 profit forecast, citing a problem with a project in its mining and metallurgy unit and a weak outlook for its energy business.
MEG Energy Corp. (MEG-T) rose 0.7 per cent after receiving an upgrade by an equity analyst at Morgan Stanley.
TransCanada Corp. (TRP-T) was 2.2 per cent higher after a Globe and Mail report that it has hired RBC Capital Markets Inc. to manage the planned sale of a majority stake in Coastal GasLink, a $6.2-billion pipeline project that has been the target of protests.
TSX-listed gold stocks jumped in afternoon trade on Tuesday as the precious metal climbed to an eight-month high. Spot gold was up 0.5 per cent to US$1,310.49 per ounce as of 1:44 p.m. ET, having hit its highest since May 15 at US$1,311.67 in the session. Yamana Gold Inc. (YRI-T) was up 2.9 per cent, while Barrick Gold Corp. (ABX-T) and B2Gold Corp. (BTO-T) sat 4 per cent and 2.3 per cent higher, respectively.
Pfizer Inc. (PFE-N) increased 2.2 per cent despite releasing a forecast for 2019 profit and sales that fell below Wall Street estimates on Tuesday. The company’s fourth-quarter 2018 financial narrowly exceeded expectations. "2018 was highlighted by solid financial performance, shareholder-friendly capital allocation, the strengthening of our pipeline and the formation of our new commercial structure designed to transition the company to a period post-2020 where we expect a higher and more sustained revenue growth profile,” said chief executive officer Albert Bourla.
A day after suffering its worst single-day drop since August 2011, Caterpillar Inc. (CAT-N) rose 2.4 per cent. On Monday, Caterpillar, seen by many as a bellwether for global industrials, fell 9.1 per cent after its quarterly profit missed Wall Street estimates.
Shares of Apple Inc. (AAPL-Q) were up 0.1 per cent ahead of the release of its quarterly financial results after market close on Tuesday. On Jan. 3, the tech giant slashed its projected revenue to US$84-billion (from US$93-billion), blaming China’s slowing economy.
On the decline
Cascades Inc. (CAS-T) fell 4.2 per cent in the wake of Monday’s announcement that its fourth-quarter results for its Tissue Group, scheduled to be released on Feb. 28, were “negatively impacted by several unforeseen non-recurring events.”
Metro Inc. (MRU-T) was down 0.5 per cent despite raising its quarterly dividend (to 20 cents from 18 cents) with the release of its first-quarter financial results. The grocery and drug store company reported earnings of 67 cents for the quarter, missing the consensus expectation on the Street by a penny.
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA-Q) suffered a second consecutive day of losses, sitting down 4.3 per cent. The stock lost 13.8 per cent on Monday after reducing its fourth-quarter guidance.
After weaker-than-anticipated earnings reports, shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ-N) and Harley-Davidson Inc. (HOG-N) fell 2.4 per cent and 7.7 per cent, respectively.
David Leeder