A cup of Starbucks coffee sits on a coffee shop table.
Joel Boh | Reuters
Take a look at the companies making headlines in midday trading.
Starbucks: Shares rose 5.5% after the coffee chain raised its long-term financial forecast on Tuesday and said it expects double-digit growth for revenue and earnings per share as it makes changes to their cafes.
Nikola: Nikola jumped 6.8% after BTIG upgraded the stock to buy to neutral, saying the electric vehicle company is “well positioned” to get a boost from truck decarbonisation.
Nucor – Shares fell 11.3% after the steelmaker issued disappointing guidance for its third quarter, saying it expects earnings to be between $6.30 and $6.40 per diluted share .
Twilio: Shares of Twilio rose 10% after the company said it was laying off 11% of its workforce, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The cloud communications software company, which aims to break even by 2023, said the layoffs are part of a broader restructuring plan to improve operating margins, reduce operating costs and create a better sales capacity
Moderna: Moderna rose 6.2% after CEO Stéphane Bancel said the company is open to supplying Covid-19 vaccines to China, according to a Reuters report.
Coterra Energy, APA — Shares of energy companies jumped as oil prices rose. Coterra Energy and APA rose 7.2% and 6.7%, respectively.
Coty: Shares of the beauty company rose 3.3% after Bank of America reinstated Coty coverage to a buy rating, calling it a “turnaround story.”
Johnson & Johnson: Shares of the health care company rose 2.1% after it announced it will buy back up to $5 billion of its common stock. The move comes ahead of the Inflation Reduction Act’s 1 percent tax on buybacks, which will take effect in 2023. Johnson & Johnson does not expect to take on debt to fund the buyback program, the company said.
SoFi Technologies: Shares of the consumer finance app rose 5.8% after Bank of America upgraded the stock to buy from neutral, saying it could benefit from the end of the student loan payment moratorium . The bank also said SoFi’s high-profile NFL-aligned marketing investments are good for driving growth and user engagement.
Block: The payment stock fell 1.5% after Evercore ISI downgraded Block to underperform from outperform and cut its price target, saying challenges are mounting for the company.
Union Pacific, CSX – Both stocks fell on Wednesday as railroad companies deal with a possible strike that could limit service. Union Pacific fell 3.7%, while CSX fell 1.1%.
Merck – Shares rose 1.6% after Berenberg upgraded Merck to buy from hold, saying in a note on Tuesday that the pharmaceutical stock is a solid “low risk” pick in its sector.
– CNBC’s Samantha Subin, Michelle Fox Theobald and Tanaya Macheel contributed reporting
