Stocks opened in positive territory following a report China would ease import prices and work on making itself more open to foreign investment. The market tacked on gains during the morning while the Dow and S&P each eclipsed their all-time highs. The day's economic data was also favorable, suggesting the economy remains a tailwind. ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., jobless claims fell 3,000 to 201,000 in the week ended September 15, marking a third week that initial claims make a new 48-year low. The leading economic indicator index rose 0.4% to 111.2 in August, which was another new record high. Existing home sales were flat at an annual rate of 5.34M in August, breaking a string of four consecutive monthly declines. The Philly Fed index bounced 11.0 points to 22.9 in September, erasing most of the 13.8 point drop seen last month. COMPANY NEWS: Amazon (AMZN) shares rose about 1% after the company unveiled a litany of Alexa-based products at a company event. Among the new products shown were an all-new Echo Dot, all-new Echo Plus, all-new Echo Show, and the Echo Auto, a device that brings Alexa capabilities to cars. In addition, the company unveiled a new subwoofer speaker called the Echo Sub as well as the AmazonBasics Microwave... Wells Fargo (WFC) was in focus after CEO Tim Sloan said he sees company headcount decreasing 5%-10% in the next three years. Additionally, Wells Fargo chair Betsy Duke told CNBC that a New York Post report that the bank approached Gary Cohn to become its next CEO to replace Sloan is "completely false"... General Electric (GE) fell 3% after GE Power CEO Russell Stokes said in a blog post on LinkedIn that the company recently identified an "oxidation issue" that impacts the lifespan of blades in its HA-Class turbines... Disney (DIS) announced that ESPN+, its direct-to-consumer subscription streaming service, has surpassed one million paying subscribers in just over five months since its April 2018 launch. Meanwhile, the company is going to have its fight for Sky (SKYAY) decided this weekend as the U.K.'s Takeover Panel said it will commence a one-day auction for the British television service. Each of Sky, Comcast (CMCSA), 21st Century Fox (FOXA), and Disney, which is acting in concert with Fox, has agreed to the terms of the auction procedure, the Takeover Panel said... Shares of Under Armour (UAA) closed 6.5% higher after the company provided an update on its restructuring plan and announced a roughly 3% cut to its workforce. MAJOR MOVERS: Among the noteworthy gainers was Corbus Pharmaceuticals (CRBP), which surged over 53% higher after the company licensed the exclusive worldwide rights to develop, manufacture and market drug candidates from more than 600 compounds targeting the endocannabinoid system and CNBC's Jim Cramer said that the company will be appearing tonight on his "Mad Money" program to discuss its cannabis plans. Also higher was Amicus (FOLD), which gained 7% after it acquired a gene therapy portfolio of ten AAV programs for $100M. Among the notable losers was Stitch Fix (SFIX), which dropped 11.5% after Piper Jaffray analyst Erinn Murphy downgraded the stock to Neutral from Overweight. Also lower were Thor Industries (THO) and Red Hat (RHT), which fell a respective 13% and 6% after reporting quarterly results. INDEXES: The Dow rose 251.22, or 0.95%, to 26,656.98, the Nasdaq gained 78.19, or 0.98%, to 8,028.23, and the S&P 500 advanced 22.80, or 0.78%, to 2,930.75.
