Stocks mixed as Nvidia falls; FedEx, Rivian rise

Rivian shares surge after receiving $5 billion investment from Volkswagen

47 minutes ago

Rivian (RIVN) shares surged 20% in intraday trading on Tuesday following news that German automaker Volkswagen (VWAGY) plans to invest $5 billion in the electric vehicle (EV) startup as part of a joint venture to build industry-leading vehicle software.

Volkswagen will invest an initial $1 billion in the EV maker and is expected to invest an additional $4 billion in the company by 2026, the auto makers said in a joint statement late Tuesday.

“This partnership is expected to not only bring our software and related regional architecture to an even broader market through Volkswagen Group's global reach, but it is also expected to help us secure our capital needs for substantial growth,” Rivian founder and CEO RJ Scaringe said in the statement.

The joint venture comes after Ford (F) exited its majority stake in the EV company last year, and scrapped its initial plan to co-develop plug-in cars with California-based Rivian.

Check here for more details on price levels in the coming days.

-Timothy Smith

General Mills down as sales drop due to 'challenging operating environment'

1 hour 45 minutes ago

Shares of General Mills ( GIS ) fell Wednesday after the consumer foods giant reported lower-than-expected revenue and gave soft forecasts for lower prices and volumes.

The maker of Cheerios cereal, Betty Crocker cake mix and Blue Buffalo pet food reported fiscal 2024 fourth-quarter sales of $4.71 billion, a 6.3% decline from a year earlier and below the $4.85 billion consensus estimate of analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha. Adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $1.01 were 2 cents above forecasts.

North American retail sales fell 6.9% to $2.85 billion. Pet sales fell 8.1% to $602.1 million, while international sales fell 10.4% to $667.5 million. The only unit with positive growth was North American foodservice, whose revenue rose 4.4% to $589 million.

Overall volume declined 2 percentage points, while North American retail and pet volumes declined 6 and 7 percentage points, respectively.

Shares of General Mills fell more than 4% on Wednesday afternoon, pushing them into negative territory this year.

-Bill McCall

FedEx leads S&P 500 gain as Wall Street cheers cost cuts

2 hours 39 minutes ago

FedEx (FDX) was the best-performing stock in the S&P 500 by a wide margin on Wednesday morning after the delivery and logistics company reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings on Tuesday.

The company reported revenue of $22.1 billion for the fourth quarter of 2024, up from the year-ago period and slightly above analysts' expectations, according to estimates compiled by Visible Alpha.

Net income came in at $1.47 billion, or $5.94 per share, down from $1.54 billion, or $6.05 per share, in the same period a year earlier but above analysts' estimates. Excluding one-time items, adjusted earnings rose nearly 10% to $5.41 per share.

Subramaniam said, “These results are unprecedented in this current environment, reflecting the continued implementation of our Drive initiatives and our resolve to transform FedEx while delivering outstanding service to our customers.” Fedex's Drive program focuses on increasing profitability by cutting costs.

FedEx shares rose more than 14% to nearly $293 on Wednesday morning, their highest level in nearly 3 years.

—Naomi Buchanan

Stocks making the biggest moves in early trade

3 hours 27 minutes ago

Benefit:

• Rivian (RIVN): Shares of Rivian surged more than 29% in extended trading Tuesday after it announced it received a $5 billion investment from German automotive giant Volkswagen.
• FedEx (FDX): The package shipping giant jumped more than 12% after reporting a rise in earnings in results released after the bell on Tuesday, along with the company's plans to cut costs to handle lower demand from the peak of the pandemic.
• Vista Outdoor (VSTO): Shares of the company behind outdoor and firearms brands such as Camelback and Remington rose 9% on news that MNC Capital raised its acquisition offer to $3.2 billion, competing with a $2 billion offer by a Czechoslovak group for Kinetic Group, one of Vista's subsidiaries.

disadvantages:

• General Mills (GIS): Shares of the snack food and cereal giant fell more than 4% after it released an earnings report as sales estimates came in below expectations.
• Sanofi (SNY): Shares of the French pharmaceutical giant fell 3% on Tuesday after reports broke that it is considering selling or spinning off its consumer health division, which sells products such as Icy Hot.
• Trump Media (DJT): Shares of the former president's media company continued to fluctuate, falling 2% Wednesday morning after gaining 8.5% on Tuesday ahead of the first presidential debate on Thursday night.

Stock futures fall ahead of Nvidia shareholder meeting

4 hours 18 minutes ago

Futures contracts tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.2% in early trading on Wednesday.

S&P 500 futures fell 0.2%.

Nasdaq 100 futures were also trading 0.2% lower.