U.S. stock market traded mixed in Friday morning ahead of talks between the U.S. and China.
Shares of Nordstrom Inc. (JWN, Financial) fell on Friday trading after the company posted first-quarter earnings of 51 cents on revenue of $3.47 billion, which was 5.8% higher than the comparable period. The company beat revenue expectations by $10 million and by 7 cents in earnings.
Gross profit, as a percentage of net sales, reached 34.1% but was 21 basis points lower when compared to the same period in fiscal 2017. This reflected higher occupancy expenses related to U.S. and Canada Rack openings in addition to planned pre-opening expenses associated with the Nordstrom Men's Store NYC.
Moreover, during the trimester the company repurchased 300,000 shares of its common stock for $13 million.
Looking ahead, Nordstrom's current expectations for fiscal 2018 are net sales between $15.2 bilion and $15.4 billion and earnings per diluted share (excluding the impact of any future share repurchases) to be $3.35 to $3.55.
Gainers
ā¢ Deere & Co. (DE, Financial)
ā¢ Sealed Air Corp. (SEE, Financial)
ā¢ Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD, Financial)
ā¢ Cerner Corp. (CERN, Financial)
Losers
ā¢ Campbell Soup Co. (CPB, Financial)
ā¢ Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT, Financial)
ā¢ General Mills Inc. (GIS, Financial)
ā¢ Micron Technology Inc. (MUāā¹)
Global markets
The main European stock markets traded mostly lower. The U.K.'s FTSE lost 0.22%, France's CAC retreated 0.10%, Germany's Dax fell 0.30% and Spain's Ibex slid 1.03%.
In Asia, markets closed in the green. Japan's Nikkei closed up 0.40%, ChinaĀ“s Shanghai jumped 1.24%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng advanced 0.34% but Indiaās BSE Sensex slid 0.86%.
Disclosure: The author holds no position in any stocks mentioned.
