U.S. stocks were in positive territory on Monday, the start of a crucial week in which the Federal Reserve will make a decision regarding the interest rate. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.08% to 25,870, the S&P 500 Index gained 0.24% to 2,829 and the Nasdaq Composite Index rose 0.19% to 7,703.
Shares of Lumber Liquidators Holdings Inc. (LL, Financial) declined as much as 8% on Monday after the company announced fourth-quarter results. Revenue grew 3.5% from the prior-year quarter to $268.99 million, falling $3.6 million short of expectations. The company reported earnings of 17 cents per share, beating estimates by 1 cent.
During the quarter, the gross profit rose $3.9 million to $96 million. The gross margin inched up 30 basis points to 35.7%.
Looking ahead to full-year 2019, total revenue growth is expected to be in the mid-single digits. The company projects the adjusted operating margin in the range of 1.9% to 2.4%.
For the first quarter, it expects comparable store sales growth in the negative low-single digits and an adjusted gross margin between 34.5% and 35%.
Gainers
- National-Oilwell Varco Inc. (NOV, Financial)
- Edwards Lifesciences Corp. (EW, Financial)
- Advance Auto Parts Inc. (AAP, Financial)
- Halliburton Co. (HAL, Financial)
- Concho Resources Inc. (CXO, Financial)
Losers
- Becton Dickinson and Co. (BDX, Financial)
- ResMed Inc. (RMD, Financial)
- Davita Inc. (DVA, Financial)
- Boeing Co. (BA, Financial)
- Medtronic PLC (MDT, Financial)
Global markets
The main European stock markets traded mostly higher. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 rose 0.98%, France's CAC 40 swelled 0.14%, Germany's Dax lost 0.25% and Spain's IBEX 35 gained 0.72%.
In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 0.62%, India’s BSE Sensex advanced 0.19%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng climbed 1.37% and China's Shanghai Composite shot up 2.47%.
Disclosure: The author holds no positions in any stocks mentioned.
