2023-05-24 12:18:10 ET
Major market averages fell during Wednesday's noon session as debt ceiling negotiations dragged on.
Looking at specific stocks, Palo Alto Networks ( NASDAQ: PANW ), retailers Abercrombie & Fitch ( NYSE: ANF ) and Urban Outfitters ( NASDAQ: URBN ) stock climbed on reporting better-than-expected quarterly earnings, while Agilent Technologies ( NYSE: A ) and Xpeng ( NYSE: XPEV ) slid on weak forecasts.
Meanwhile, Ocugen ( NASDAQ: OCGN ) shares plunged on an equity raise.
In other news, Sarepta Therapeutics ( NASDAQ: SRPT ) plunged as the FDA needed more time to review its muscular dystrophy drug.
Gainers
Palo Alto Networks ( PANW ) shares surged as much as 9% after the network security company reported upbeat Q3 results. It also raised the low end of its full-year revenue forecast. Wells Fargo analyst Andrew Nowinski, who has an overweight rating on the stock, boosted his per-share price target to $265 from $250, noting the "significant" increase in both the company's operating margins and free cash margin outlook, at 23% and 38%, respectively.
Abercrombie & Fitch ( ANF ) shares jumped more than 27% after the company reported better-than-expected Q1 earnings results and boosted its sales outlook. The company now sees full-year net sales growth of +2% to +4% vs. the prior outlook of +1% to +3%.
Urban Outfitters ( URBN ) stock gained about 17% after the retailer topped Q1 expectations . Based upon the positive results, Barclays analyst Adrienne Yih upgraded the stock to Buy and hiked her price target to $38 from $27. “On the back of URBN’s across-the-board solid 1Q23, we upgrade shares to Overweight based on positive inflections in our sales-to-inventory risk and inventory productivity metrics combined with positive sales growth,” she told clients. “We believe URBN is among the best positioned in a slowing macro consumer backdrop.”
Decliners
Agilent Technologies ( A ) shares slipped about 8% despite strong Q2 results as KeyBanc downgraded the the company on its guidance cut. The company lowered its FY2023 guidance for revenue to $6.93B-$7.03B from $7.03B-$7.10B ($7.09B consensus) and non-GAAP EPS to $5.60-$5.65 per share from $5.65-$5.70 per share ($5.69 consensus).
Xpeng ( XPEV ) stock fell as much as 12% on missing the consensus mark in Q1 and issuing a disappointing Q2 outlook . The company expects total revenues in the range of RMB4.5B ($638.3M) to RMB4.7B ($666.7M), representing a year-over-year decrease of approximately 36.8% to 39.5% and falling well below the analyst consensus that anticipated over $1B in revenue for the year.
Ocugen ( OCGN ) shares slumped 36% after the company launched an underwritten public offering of its common stock. Net proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes, capital expenditures, working capital, and general and administrative expenses. Volume and terms have yet to be determined.
Sarepta Therapeutics ( SRPT ) dropped nearly 12% after it announced that the FDA would require additional time to review its marketing application for SRP-9001, a gene therapy targeted at certain patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD).
To keep track of Wall Street's biggest winners and losers throughout the session, head over to Seeking Alpha's On The Move section .
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Hot Stocks: ANF, URBN and PANW rise on earnings; A, XPEV fall on weak outlooks; OCGN slides