The U.S. stock market advanced on Thursday, with the three indexes making modest gains, ahead of labor data which showed that initial jobless claims fell in June.
Shares of Five Below Inc. (FIVE, Financial) jumped in Thursday trading after the company posted first-quarter earnings per share of 35 cents on revenue of $296.3 million, which was 27.2% higher than the comparable period.The company beat revenue expectations by $5.23 million and earnings by 3 cents.
Further, the company opened 33 new stores and ended the trimester with 658 stores in 32 states. This represents an increase of 19.0% from the end of the same quarter of fiscal 2017. Operating income increased by 93.3% year-over-year to $24.7 million from $12.8 million.
Looking ahead, the company expects for the second quarter of fiscal 2018 net sales to be in the range of $332 million to $335 million. Also, net income is expected to be in the range of $20.0 million to $21.2 million, with a diluted income per common share range of 36 cents to 38 cents.
Gainers
• Qualcomm Inc. (QCOM, Financial)
• Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD, Financial)
• Apache Corp. (APA, Financial)
• Ralph Lauren Corp. (RL, Financial)
Losers
• Kellogg Co. (K, Financial)
• General Mills Inc. (GIS, Financial)
• Conagra Brands Inc. (CAG, Financial)
• Seagate Technology PLC (STX, Financial)
Global markets
The main European stock markets traded mixed. The U.K.'s FTSE gained 0.14% and Spain's Ibex jumped 0.36%, but Germany's Dax retreated 0.16% and France's CAC dipped 0.14%.
In Asia, markets closed in the green. Japan's Nikkei rose 0.87%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 0.81% and India’s BSE Sensex climbed 0.81%, but China's Shanghai fell 0.18%.
Disclosure: The author holds no position in any stocks mentioned.
