Stocks have slipped in morning trading as investors continue to seek more confidence that the trade fight between the U.S. and China can move toward some sort of standstill if not a more robust resolution. Stocks have rallied recently to record highs as the earnings season and economic data have assuaged fears about how the prolonged trade fight is impacting economic growth, but with the majority of the earnings season now completed, investors' attention returns to trade news. Additionally, the U.S. bond market was closed in observance of Veterans Day, which is likely thinning out volume for stocks, although they are trading on a normal schedule.
ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., no economic data of note was reported given the holiday.
COMPANY NEWS: KKR (KKR) has formally approached Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) about what could be the biggest-ever leveraged buyout, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter. This morning's news about KKR's approach comes on the heels of reports last week that Walgreens has hired investment bank Evercore Partners (EVR) to explore whether such an LBO deal to go private would be feasible and could be negotiated.
In a regulatory filing late in the trading day on Friday, Southwest (LUV) disclosed that based on continued uncertainty around the timing of the return to service of Boeing's (BA) grounded 737 MAX, the company plans to proactively remove the MAX from its flight schedule through March 6, 2020. American Airlines (AAL) also said it intends to extend Boeing 737 MAX cancellations until early March, Reuters reported. This morning, Boeing said in an emailed statement to media outlets that the company continues to target FAA certification of the MAX flight control software updates during this quarter. "Based on this schedule, it is possible that the resumption of MAX deliveries to airline customers could begin in December, after certification, when the FAA issues an Airworthiness Directive rescinding the grounding order. In parallel, we are working towards final validation of the updated training requirements, which must occur before the MAX returns to commercial service, and which we now expect to begin in January," Boeing stated. Boeing shares have risen over 3% after the company gave more clarity on its MAX expectations.
Alibaba Group's (BABA) 11.11 shopping festival, otherwise known as 'Singles' Day,' ended with a record $38.4B in gross merchandise volume, according to preliminary data shared via the company's Alizila news website.
In M&A news, OpenText (OTEX) announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Carbonite (CARB) for $23 per share in cash. Following the deal announcement, Carbonite shares have jumped 24%, while OpenText shares trading in New York are up 2%.
MAJOR MOVERS: Among the noteworthy gainers was Agenus (AGEN), which rose 7% after it entered into a license agreement with UroGen Pharma (URGN) to treat urinary tract cancers. UroGen shares were 2% higher after the news. Also higher was Plug Power (PLUG), which gained 8% after Roth Capital analyst Craig Irwin upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral and raised his price target on the shares to $6 from $3.
Among the notable losers was MyoKardia (MYOK), which dropped 13% after it announced 48-week data from its PIONEER-OLE study. Also lower was Scientific Games (SGMS), which fell 10% after Susquehanna analyst Joseph Stauff downgraded the stock to Neutral from Positive.
INDEXES: Near midday, the Dow was down 30.12, or 0.11%, to 27,651.12, the Nasdaq was down 23.10, or 0.27%, to 8,452.21, and the S&P 500 was down 9.35, or 0.30%, to 3,083.73.
Walgreens Boots Alliance
+3.56 (+6.01%)
Boeing
+9.45 (+2.70%)
Alibaba
-2.32 (-1.24%)
KKR
+0.1 (+0.34%)
Carbonite
+4.5 (+24.47%)
OpenText
+0.82 (+1.97%)
Agenus
+0.27 (+7.56%)
UroGen Pharma
+0.58 (+2.46%)
Plug Power
+0.215 (+7.90%)
MyoKardia
-7.47 (-12.45%)
Scientific Games
-3.19 (-10.10%)