US equities look set to open higher in Thursday morning trading but off best pre-market levels.
Oil down, gold down and Bitcoin (BTC) up.
Here are some of today’s trending stocks:
Weber Inc (NYSE: WEBR)
Weber Inc (NYSE: WEBR) is trending after the stock closed at $8.63 on Wednesday, gaining more than 10.36% on its opening price.
The WEBR share price is up nearly 17.5% in pre-market trading. This marks an optimistic turn after enduring a prolonged downward trend since October 2021. However, the company has not released any news, and the share price rise appears to result from a short squeeze on the stock.
Weber, Inc. manufactures outdoor cooking equipment, and the WEBR IPO took place in August 2021.
Last month several Wall Street analysts cut their price targets on WEBR stock, and FactSet analysts have a Hold rating. Over the past year, Weber Inc (WEBR) has traded between $5.72 and $20.44.
F-Star Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ: FSTX)
F-Star Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ: FSTX) stock is up 70% in pre-market trading after rising 11.17% in yesterday’s session. The reason for the optimistic rise is news that F-star is to be acquired by InvoX Pharma.
F-star Therapeutics is a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company developing cancer treatments. It is based in the UK.
invoX Pharma is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sino Biopharm, a global top 40 pharmaceutical company incorporated in March 2021.
The proposed all-cash acquisition is worth around $161m. It is thought that F-Star is a good fit to accelerate invoX’s strategy to build Sino Biopharm’s International Biopharmaceutical R&D Platform outside China.
Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE: DRI)
Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE: DRI) reported its Q4 and fiscal year earnings.
Q4 Highlights include:
Total Sales: $2.6bn (up 14.2% Y/Y)
Diluted Net EPS: $2.24 (down 19.7% Y/Y)
Net Earnings: $282m
EBITDA: $431m
FY2022 Highlights:
Total Sales: $9.63bn (up 33.8% Y/Y)
Diluted Net EPS: $7.40 (up 54% Y/Y)
Net Earnings: $955m
EBITDA: $1.5bn
Rick Cardenas, Darden President & CEO, said:
“We had a strong quarter despite experiencing high inflation, and fiscal 2022 was a solid year... As we begin our new fiscal year, our focus remains on driving profitable sales, investing in the guest experience and simplifying operations. Darden’s strategy, and our strong balance sheet, positions us well regardless of the operating environment.”
The DRI share price is up 1.2% in pre-market trading.
Accenture Plc (NYSE: ACN)
Accenture Plc (NYSE: ACN) released its Q3 earnings this morning. The management consulting company is involved in cutting-edge investment themes such as decarbonization and the metaverse.
Q3 Highlights include:
Total Revenues: $16.2bn (up 27% Y/Y)
EPS: $2.79 (up 16% Y/Y)
Free Cash Flow: $2.9bn
Share Repurchases: $927m
Dividends Paid: $614m
Unfortunately, Accenture’s Q4 guidance came in below expectations as it expects inflation to affect its bottom line. The company projects Q4 revenue of between $15bn and $15.5bn, while analysts expected $15.7bn.
The ACN share price is down 3.3% in pre-market trading.
Smart for Life Inc (NASDAQ: SMFL)
The Smart for Life Inc (NASDAQ: SMFL) share price is up 40% in pre-market trading today on partnership news. The diet and nutrition subscription box company has partnered with Milk Dust which will manufacture a nutrient-dense protein explicitly made for breastfeeding mothers.
Smart for Life’s Doctors Scientific Organica division has accelerated the production of Milk Dust.
Katie Pickett, Milk Dust’s Founder and President, said:
While breast feeding is not a panacea to the infant formula scarcity, we have seen increased demand for our Milk Dust formula and we are thrilled to be helping moms across the United States, and through our recent expansion in the UK and Europe,
Milk Dust satisfies sugar cravings with clean, nutrient-dense protein made specifically for postpartum healing, nourishment, and lactation and is designed to help mothers bring back their pre-pregnancy figure. Now, three years later, the powder has been able to help over 50,000 moms with their milk supply.
Darren Minton, CEO of Smart for Life, stated:
Milk Dust is a fantastic product that has seen more awareness by moms through online channels and social media. Our FDA-certified manufacturing facility in Florida has the capacity to ramp up production of the Milk Dust line of products and we are excited to continue our partnership with the Milk Dust team as they continue to help pave the way in nutrition for breastfeeding mothers.
