DJIA Today, Aug. 22, 2014: U.S. stocks were mixed on Friday as U.S. Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen's speech in Jackson Hole, Wyo., failed to beat back renewed geopolitical concerns in eastern Ukraine. This morning, NATO announced that Russia was building up a strong troop presence on the eastern border of Ukraine, while another convoy entered the country, stirring the hornets' nest that has dampened investor sentiment for several months.
In Jackson Hole, Yellen flashed a more hawkish tone than usual in her comments today, stating that the Fed should begin to discuss when it should raise interest rates. Yellen said the economy is moving closer to the central bank's goals of stabilizing inflation and producing full employment.
Here's the scorecard from today's trading session:
Now, here are the top stories from the stock market today:
Apple Surges: Shares of Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) hit another 52-week intraday high this session on news that its suppliers are struggling to procure enough screens to meet anticipated demand for the iPhone 6 in September. The new devices will feature a larger display to rival the popular Samsung Galaxy S Series. The company continues to rally since its seven-for-one stock split.
Caffeine Jolt: Shares of Keurig Green Mountain Inc. (Nasdaq: GMCR) soared to a new 52-week intraday high, jumping more than 13% today, on news that it has signed a licensing agreement with food and agribusiness giant Kraft Foods Group Inc. (Nasdaq: KRFT). The deal will feature Kraft's coffee brands like Maxwell House, McCafe, and Gevalia distributed in Keurig's one-cup packets.
A Big Buy: In a deal that would double the company's power generation output, Dynegy Inc. (NYSE: DYN) has agreed to purchase 12,500 megawatts of coal and gas generation assets from Duke Energy Corp. (NYSE: DUK) and Energy Capital Partners. The deal is expected to be in the range of $6.25 billion, which includes a $2.8 billion deal for Duke Energy's retail business and an ownership share in 11 of the company's power plants. The deal sent shares of Dynegy up 8.75% on the day, while Duke shares were relatively unchanged.
Strong Beat: Shares of Foot Locker Inc. (NYSE: FL) gained nearly 3% on the day after the company reported positive second-quarter earnings. The stock reached an all-time high during the trading session, but retreated a bit in the afternoon. The company announced that earnings increased by 39%, hitting $0.64 per share for the quarter. Wall Street expected a more modest $0.54 per share.
Retail Woes: After a busy Thursday of earnings reports from U.S. retail companies, Women's apparel retailer Ann Inc. (NYSE: ANN) saw shares drop more than 3% on news that the company offered a weaker-than-expected third-quarter outlook, despite beating second-quarter earnings estimates.
Now our experts share some of the most important investment moves to make based on today's market trading - for Money Morning Members only:
The Apple-IBM Deal Has One Clear Winner: You: Apple Inc. vs. International Business Machines Corp. was one of the bitterest tech rivalries of the past 30 years. But now, the two are joining forces in a bold new pact. It's a good deal for both companies... And today Defense & Tech Specialist Michael A. Robinson reveals which stock will end up as the better buy - and make it a great deal for you...
Profit from the World's Largest E-Commerce Market: Mainland China has leapfrogged the United States to become the biggest e-commerce market on Earth. We wanted you to hear about some of the best new opportunities - so you can reap the biggest payoffs...
This Northern Metals Boom Will Give Us More Than 10 Times the Returns of the S&P 500: In the last three years, junior miners have, as a group, lost about 58%, while the S&P 500 is up 52%. But it's looking increasingly like we're entering a brand new boom phase, with junior gold miners up as much as 45.8% this year - with a lot more in store... Here are two to consider...
Garrett Baldwin is a globally recognized research economist, financial writer, consultant, and political risk analyst with decades of trading experience and degrees in economics, cybersecurity, and business from Johns Hopkins, Purdue, Indiana University, and Northwestern.