-- Rothschild & Co. Redburn on Wednesday upgraded German life sciences company Bayer (BAYN.F) to buy from neutral and raised the price target to 56.00 euros from 40.00 euros.
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Financial stocks were higher late Thursday afternoon, with the NYSE Financial Index rising 1.3% and the State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) up 0.5%.The Philadelphia Housing Index climbed 1.6%, and the State Street Real Estate Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLRE) added 1.5%.Bitcoin (BTC-USD) rose 0.9% to $76,409, and the yield for 10-year US Treasuries decreased 2.8 basis points to 4.39%.In economic news, the core personal consumption expenditures price index, the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge, rose to 3.2% year-on-year in March from 3%, meeting expectations. It climbed 0.3% month-over-month, down from the 0.4% reported in February.US economic growth, measured by gross domestic product, rose by 2.0% in Q1 after a 0.5% gain in Q4, slower than a 2.3% increase expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.US initial jobless claims fell to 189,000 in the week ended April 25 from an upwardly revised 215,000 in the previous week, against expectations for a rise to 212,000 in a Bloomberg survey.In corporate news, Citigroup (C) is stepping back from physical trading in industrial metals and has notified a number of staff from the commodities team about potential redundancies, Bloomberg reported. Citi shares were up 0.2%.KKR (KKR) is considering selling the Flora Food Group spreads business, seeking to strike a deal at a valuation of up to $10 billion, the Financial Times reported. KKR shares climbed 4.8%.Mastercard's (MA) Q1 results outpaced Wall Street's estimates, but the company said that the Middle East conflict was impacting spending on cross-border travel. Its shares fell nearly 4%.AvalonBay Communities (AVB) and Equity Residential (EQR) have held discussions over a potential merger, which would be one of the biggest real estate deals ever, Bloomberg reported. AvalonBay shares were down 1.1%, and Equity Residential was fractionally lower.
Health care stocks rose late Thursday afternoon with the NYSE Health Care Index climbing 2.6% and the State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) adding 2.3%.The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) advanced 1.9%.In corporate news, UniQure (QURE) shares jumped past 16% after the company said it plans to submit a UK marketing authorization application in Q3 for AMT-130 to treat Huntington's disease.Axsome Therapeutics (AXSM) shares surged 12% after it said the US Food and Drug Administration approved Auvelity to treat agitation associated with Alzheimer's disease dementia.Eli Lilly (LLY) raised its full-year outlook and reported Q1 results above market estimates as sales of Mounjaro more than doubled. Lilly shares jumped past 10%.The US Food and Drug Administration is proposing to exclude tirzepatide, semaglutide and liraglutide from the 503B bulks list, finding no clinical need for outsourcing facilities to compound the drugs from bulk substances. Eli Lilly makes tirzepatide, marketed as Mounjaro for type 2 diabetes and Zepbound for chronic weight management. Novo Nordisk (NVO) makes semaglutide, marketed as Ozempic for type 2 diabetes and Wegovy for chronic weight management, and liraglutide, under the brand name Victoza for type 2 diabetes and Saxenda for chronic weight management. Novo shares rose past 5%.
Tech stocks rose late Thursday afternoon, with the State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) gaining 0.3% and the State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) advancing 4.5%.The Philadelphia Semiconductor index climbed 2%.In sector news, Anthropic is considering a new funding round that could value the company at more than $900 billion, potentially surpassing OpenAI as the world's most valuable AI startup, Bloomberg reported.In corporate news, Qualcomm's (QCOM) shares jumped 15% in Thursday trading, a day after the company posted better-than-expected fiscal Q2 adjusted earnings and revenue.Meta Platforms (META) fell past 7% after the company overnight raised its forecast for 2026 capital expenditures, overshadowing its Q1 earnings and revenue beat.Alphabet's (GOOGL) shares climbed 9% after the company overnight reported higher Q1 earnings and revenue that topped market expectations.Microsoft (MSFT) said Wednesday that it expects capital expenditures of $190 billion for the 2026 calendar year, including roughly $25 billion from higher component pricing. Its shares fell 3.8%.