Stock market today, Sept. 9, 2014: The U.S. stock markets were mixed Monday afternoon following a slide in energy prices.
Brent crude prices slipped below $100 per barrel in London for the first time in more than a year. This dragged down share prices of global producers and oil field service providers such as BP Plc. (NYSE ADR: BP), which was down more than 1.3%, and Schlumberger Ltd. (NYSE: SLB), which slipped by more than 2% on the day.
Gold prices slipped another 1% to hit a three-month low as the dollar continued its surge. The ongoing slide now threatens the traditionally strong seasonal surge that gold prices tend to experience in September. In the last 20 years, gold prices have increased 75% of the time in September, with an average gain of nearly 3%. Meanwhile, silver prices continued their downward slide, also nearing a three-month low.
Here's what you should know to make your Tuesday profitable:
The Big Reveal: Shares of Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) are ticking up this morning, ahead of the company's highly publicized meeting this afternoon. Analysts expect further updates on the release and marketing of the iPhone 6, the iWatch, and possibly new information on digital pay services. Last week, Apple was hit with a series of overinflated "threats," but here's why AAPL stock is headed higher despite the noise...
- Digital Boom: Shares of Facebook Inc. (Nasdaq: FB) were on the rise Monday, pushing the tech giant's market cap above $200 billion for the first time ever. Investors continue to gain confidence in the company's ongoing push into mobile advertising. The surge means the company ranks among the largest in the world by market cap.
- The Tech Boom Continues: Shares of Twitter Inc. (Nasdaq: TWTR) were up more than 2.5% on news the company was testing a "buy" button in some mobile tweets. The new icon enables users to purchase goods directly from a tweet. The company has begun testing the purchasing option with online partners such as Musictoday. The announcement was expected as Twitter is still chasing its rival Facebook, which released its own "buy" button on its site in July.
- Hungry for Profits: Shares of organic-food manufacturer Annie's Inc. (Nasdaq: BNNY) soared by more than 37% in post-market hours yesterday on news the company would be purchased by General Mills Inc. (NYSE: GIS). Within 10 days, General Mills plans to offer a tender for $46 per share, which represents a 51% premium over Annie's 30-day average. The deal is the latest in a wave of acquisitions in the food and agribusiness industry as large international manufacturers attempt to add healthy products to their portfolios.
- Bad Breach: The nation's largest home-improvement retailer Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD) officially acknowledged that its credit and debit card systems were breached as far back as April. The company said the attacks affected retail locations in both the United States and Canada. Home Depot did say, however, that no customers' credit card data or personal ATM pins were compromised. The breach also raised the profit potential for a number of cybersecurity investments.
- Earnings Reports: Stay tuned for earnings reports from Barnes & Noble Inc. (NYSE: BKS), Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc. (NYSE: KKD), Pep Boys-Manny Moe and Jack (NYSE: PBY), and Farmer Bros. Co. (Nasdaq: FARM).
- Today's Economic Calendar: Today's schedule features the weekly ICSC-Goldman Store Sales report, a speech by Federal Reserve Gov. Daniel Tarullo, and the NFIB Small Business Optimism Index.
- Full U.S. Economic Calendar September 9, 2014
- NFIB Small Business Optimism Index at 7:30 a.m.
- ICSC-Goldman Store Sales at 7:45 a.m.
- Redbook at 8:55 a.m.
- JOLTS at 10 a.m.
- Federal Reserve Gov. Daniel Tarullo speaks at 10 a.m.
- 4-Week Bill Auction at 11:30 a.m.
- 3-Yr Note Auction at 1 p.m.
NOW: Money Morning's Defense and Tech Specialist Michael Robinson sees Apple stock going much higher in the next two years. Now's the time to get a bargain on AAPL...
About the Author
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.