In a significant development, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ, Financial) has reached a settlement agreement, agreeing to pay $149.5M to resolve opioid-related claims in Washington State. This settlement comes after the state's Attorney General, Bob Ferguson, declined a national settlement offer in 2021. The funds will primarily support opioid remediation efforts in the state. Meanwhile, Cardinal Health (CAH), Cencora (COR), and McKesson (MCK) were also implicated in the national settlement and have had to negotiate separate agreements with Washington State.
The semiconductor industry received a boost with ASML (ASML, Financial) reporting a strong fourth quarter, characterized by record orders and a 12.5% increase in sales year-over-year. The company's net profit also saw a 12.7% rise from the previous year. However, ASML cautioned that sales to China, its third-largest market, could be affected in 2024 due to new export restrictions from the U.S. and the Netherlands.
Netflix (NFLX, Financial) spurred positive sentiment in the market with a surge in its share price following a report of its best quarterly subscriber growth since the pandemic. This led to a rise in the Nasdaq Composite, with other tech giants like Meta Platforms (META, Financial) and Microsoft (MSFT, Financial) also seeing significant gains. Meta Platforms notably surpassed a $1T market valuation, while Microsoft joined Apple (AAPL, Financial) in the $3T market cap club.
BofA Securities released a report highlighting the S&P 500 stocks with the most and least short interest by hedge funds. The report also named the most overweight stocks by hedge funds, with Incyte (INCY, Financial), Bath & Body Works (BBWI, Financial), and TransDigm (TDG, Financial) among those with the highest net exposure.
In the aviation sector, Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes (GOL, Financial) is reportedly considering filing for bankruptcy, while Stellantis (STLA, Financial) announced plans to cut 600 jobs at its Mulhouse facility in France, citing increased competition in the electric vehicle market.
Blackstone (BX, Financial) is anticipated to release its Q4 results, with expectations of a slight increase in earnings and revenue from the previous quarter. Investors will be keen to observe how the firm's investment strategies have performed amidst challenging market conditions.
PayPal Holdings (PYPL, Financial) was placed on a downside 30-day catalyst watch by Citi, with concerns that it may take longer than expected for the company to return to gross profit transaction dollar growth.
B2Gold (BTG, Financial) saw its shares fall after forecasting lower gold production for FY 2024 and higher capital spending at its Goose project. The company's stock hit a near four-year low on the news.
Boeing (BA, Financial) is set to deliver a 737 Max jet to China, marking the first delivery to the country since the model was grounded in 2019. This is seen as a positive sign for Boeing's market presence in China.
Intel (INTC, Financial) is preparing to report its Q4 results, with analysts expecting an increase in both revenue and earnings. The focus will be on the company's guidance and its ability to navigate the semiconductor sector's headwinds.
US Steel (X, Financial) disclosed a previous acquisition offer before agreeing to a deal with Nippon Steel, while Kinder Morgan (KMI, Financial) continued its downward trend with a seventh consecutive session loss.
Plug Power (PLUG, Financial) saw its shares decline after a significant rally, following a downgrade by BMO Capital due to concerns over the path to profitability and government funding.
Tesla (TSLA, Financial) is gearing up to start production of a new mass-market electric vehicle, with expectations of high production volumes. The company is also set to report its Q4 earnings.
Piper Sandler provided insights on the "Magnificent 7" tech stocks, highlighting Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) and Meta Platforms (META, Financial) as attractive, while expressing caution on Tesla (TSLA, Financial).
The airline sector is in focus with upcoming earnings reports from Southwest Airlines (LUV, Financial) and American Airlines (AAL, Financial), which could impact the market's direction.
