V - Why J.C. Penney Ctrip.com International and MoneyGram International Jumped Today
The stock market posted solid gains on Wednesday as the benchmark indexes powered through key levels once again. Investors expect to see some of the headwinds they've had to deal with start to ease in the coming months -- among them, trade tensions and relatively high U.S. benchmark interest rates compared to those in the rest of the developed world. Moreover, good news from some influential stocks improved overall market sentiment. J.C. Penney (NYSE: JCP), Ctrip.com International (NASDAQ: CTRP), and MoneyGram International (NASDAQ: MGI) were among the day's top performers. Here's why their stocks did so well.
Shares of J.C. Penney picked up another 24%, gaining more ground as investors kept reacting to the long-struggling department store chain's latest efforts to try to attract customers. Penney said on Tuesday that it would launch an in-store shop featuring a new outdoor apparel category using its in-house St. John's Bay brand as well as American Threads and Hi-Tec. Chief Merchant Michelle Wlazlo estimated the addressable market for the outdoor recreation industry at $900 billion, and the retailer believes it can claim its fair share of that business. Penney has worked hard to turn things around, but it'll take time to see if its strategies prove effective.
Image source: J.C. Penney.