Disney shares dip after franchise-low debut for 'Star Wars' prequel

Shares of Disney fell Tuesday after its latest "Star Wars" movie failed to bring the crowds and revenue analysts had expected for Memorial Day weekend.

The stock fell more about 1 percent and are now down 6 percent for 2018.

The Disney-produced "Solo: A Star Wars Story" delivered a franchise-low $83.3 million in North American ticket sales over the three-day weekend. Over four days, the movie brought in $101 million. This was about $40 million light of revenue expectations, according to FBR Capital Markets analyst Barton Crockett.

"All else equal, this suggests the Star Wars movie is pacing close to breakeven, a 2% headwind for our Disney estimates," Crockett said in a note to clients Tuesday.

Last week, revenue forecasts had been as high as $150 million for the four-day debut of "Solo."

The movie marked the lowest opening for a Disney-produced film in the Star Wars franchise. Until then, "Rogue One" had been Disney's lowest-grossing Star Wars film, bringing in $155 million in its 2016 debut. "The Last Jedi" brought in $220 million, while "The Force Awakens" brought in $248 million, according to Box Office Mojo.

The company paid $4 billion in 2012 to buy the franchise from Star Wars creator LucasFilm.

The recent box office weakness could be mitigated by an advertising lift from the upcoming seven-game NBA conference finals and strength in Disney's Marvel movies franchise, FBR's Crockett said.

Oxford Immunotec Global (OXFD) Earns Daily Media Impact Rating of 0.16

Media stories about Oxford Immunotec Global (NASDAQ:OXFD) have been trending somewhat positive this week, Accern Sentiment reports. The research group identifies negative and positive news coverage by analyzing more than 20 million news and blog sources. Accern ranks coverage of publicly-traded companies on a scale of negative one to positive one, with scores nearest to one being the most favorable. Oxford Immunotec Global earned a coverage optimism score of 0.16 on Accern’s scale. Accern also assigned news articles about the company an impact score of 46.0770924946309 out of 100, meaning that recent news coverage is somewhat unlikely to have an effect on the company’s share price in the immediate future.

Here are some of the media stories that may have effected Accern Sentiment’s rankings:

Get Oxford Immunotec Global alerts: Oxford Immunotec��s T-SPOT庐.TB Test Included in the World Health Organization��s First-Ever Essential Diagnostics List (nasdaq.com) Oxford Immunotec Announces Launch of the Accutix�� Brand (finance.yahoo.com) Oxford Immunotec Announces Launch of the Accutix(TM) Brand (finance.yahoo.com) Zacks: Analysts Expect Oxford Immunotec Global PLC (OXFD) Will Post Quarterly Sales of $28.55 Million (americanbankingnews.com) Oxford Immunotec’s T-SPOT庐.TB Test Included in the World Health Organization’s First-Ever Essential Diagnostics List (finance.yahoo.com)

Shares of Oxford Immunotec Global opened at $14.23 on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports. The stock has a market capitalization of $368.29 million, a PE ratio of -10.46 and a beta of -0.33. The company has a quick ratio of 5.04, a current ratio of 5.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. Oxford Immunotec Global has a 52-week low of $10.00 and a 52-week high of $19.51.

Oxford Immunotec Global (NASDAQ:OXFD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 1st. The company reported ($0.40) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of ($0.45) by $0.05. The business had revenue of $21.37 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.96 million. Oxford Immunotec Global had a negative return on equity of 43.51% and a negative net margin of 34.13%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.36) EPS. equities research analysts expect that Oxford Immunotec Global will post -0.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

OXFD has been the subject of a number of research reports. BidaskClub raised Oxford Immunotec Global from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 5th. Zacks Investment Research raised Oxford Immunotec Global from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $14.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, March 9th. BTIG Research set a $19.00 price objective on Oxford Immunotec Global and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 1st. Finally, ValuEngine raised Oxford Immunotec Global from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. The stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $17.40.

In other news, Director Richard A. Sandberg sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.77, for a total value of $38,310.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 18,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $229,860. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 6.61% of the company’s stock.

Oxford Immunotec Global Company Profile

Oxford Immunotec Global PLC, a diagnostics company, focuses on developing and commercializing proprietary tests for underserved immune-regulated conditions. Its development activities principally focus on the areas of infectious diseases, transplantation, autoimmune and inflammatory disease, and immune-oncology.

Somewhat Favorable Press Coverage Somewhat Unlikely to Impact TriCo Bancshares (TCBK) Stock Price

News articles about TriCo Bancshares (NASDAQ:TCBK) have trended somewhat positive on Sunday, Accern Sentiment reports. The research group scores the sentiment of media coverage by analyzing more than twenty million news and blog sources in real-time. Accern ranks coverage of companies on a scale of negative one to one, with scores closest to one being the most favorable. TriCo Bancshares earned a media sentiment score of 0.19 on Accern’s scale. Accern also gave news stories about the financial services provider an impact score of 46.135433392334 out of 100, indicating that recent media coverage is somewhat unlikely to have an impact on the stock’s share price in the near term.

Shares of TriCo Bancshares opened at $39.24 on Friday, MarketBeat reports. TriCo Bancshares has a 12-month low of $33.36 and a 12-month high of $43.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $901.34 million, a PE ratio of 18.87, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24.

Get TriCo Bancshares alerts:

TriCo Bancshares (NASDAQ:TCBK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 26th. The financial services provider reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.03. TriCo Bancshares had a net margin of 17.99% and a return on equity of 10.06%. The firm had revenue of $57.28 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $58.89 million. analysts anticipate that TriCo Bancshares will post 2.72 earnings per share for the current year.

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 29th. Investors of record on Friday, June 15th will be paid a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.73%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 14th. TriCo Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.69%.

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on TCBK. Raymond James lowered their price target on shares of TriCo Bancshares from $44.00 to $43.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 8th. Zacks Investment Research raised shares of TriCo Bancshares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 25th. Sandler O’Neill reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $44.00 price target on shares of TriCo Bancshares in a report on Friday, March 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $44.00 price target on shares of TriCo Bancshares in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, BidaskClub raised shares of TriCo Bancshares from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. TriCo Bancshares currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.60.

About TriCo Bancshares

TriCo Bancshares operates as a bank holding company for Tri Counties Bank that provides commercial banking services to retail customers and small to medium-sized businesses. It accepts demand, savings, and money market accounts, as well as time deposits; and provides residential and commercial real estate mortgage, consumer, commercial, agricultural, and real estate construction loans.

Ask a Fool: Can I Contribute to Both a Roth IRA and a 401(k)?

Q: I have a 401(k) plan at work. Am I still able to contribute to a Roth IRA?

Roth eligibility has nothing to do with whether you have access to an employer's retirement plan or not. This only matters if you want to use a traditional IRA.

In order to contribute to a Roth IRA, your income must be under a certain threshold. If you are married and file a joint tax return, your adjusted gross income (AGI) must be $189,000 or less to make the maximum Roth IRA contribution, which for 2018 is $5,500 if you're under 50 or $6,500 if you're 50 or older. If your AGI is greater than $189,000 but less than $199,000, you may be able to make a partial Roth contribution. And if your AGI is $199,000 or higher, you can't contribute to a Roth IRA at all.

If your tax filing status is single, head of household, or married filing separately and you didn't live with your spouse, the thresholds are $120,000 for a full contribution and $135,000 for the complete phase-out. If you are married filing separately and you lived with your spouse at any point during the year, the thresholds drop to $0 and $10,000.

If you earn too much to contribute directly, there's a work-around known as the "backdoor method." Basically, there's a loophole that says that anyone, regardless of income, can convert a traditional IRA into a Roth IRA. So you could potentially contribute to a traditional IRA and immediately convert the account into a Roth IRA if that's what you want to do.

Top 5 Biotech Stocks To Own For 2018

tags:ARQL,BIIB,ALNY,AMGN,

Support for medical marijuana is at an all-time high in the U.S. The first marijuana plant-based prescription drug is on the verge of winning FDA approval for treating two rare forms of epilepsy. But could cannabis-based drugs target more common indications that affect millions of Americans? Maybe so.

A recent survey uncovered some intriguing news about how some individuals are using marijuana. These results could hint at the potential for biotechs to develop cannabinoids that can treat a problem that affects nearly 40 million Americans.� � �

Image source: Getty Images.

Older adults and marijuana

It's not just younger adults who support legalization of medical marijuana. In April, the AARP reported findings from a survey that found 80% of Americans between the ages of 50 and 80 either strongly or somewhat support the use of marijuana with a physician's consent. Only 6% of these older individuals actually used marijuana themselves, though.

Top 5 Biotech Stocks To Own For 2018: ArQule Inc.(ARQL)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on ArQule (ARQL)

  For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

• [By Maxx Chatsko]

  Shares of development-stage biopharma ArQule (NASDAQ:ARQL) rose nearly 17% today after the company announced two appointments to its management team in two newly created positions. Dr. Marc Schegerin will serve as senior vice president, corporate strategy, communication, and finance. Dr. Shirish Hirani will serve as senior vice president, program management and product planning.�

• [By Logan Wallace]

  BidaskClub upgraded shares of ArQule (NASDAQ:ARQL) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Saturday.

  A number of other research firms have also issued reports on ARQL. Roth Capital upped their price target on ArQule from $5.00 to $6.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 17th. Leerink Swann upgraded ArQule from a market perform rating to an outperform rating in a research report on Thursday, April 5th. Zacks Investment Research lowered ArQule from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 4th. ValuEngine upgraded ArQule from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 2nd. Finally, B. Riley set a $4.00 price target on ArQule and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Monday, March 26th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, The stock currently has an average rating of Buy and an average target price of $4.69.

Top 5 Biotech Stocks To Own For 2018: Biogen Idec Inc(BIIB)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Chris Lange]

  Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB) is expected to report its first-quarter results early on Tuesday. The consensus forecast calls for $5.92 in earnings per share (EPS) and revenue of $3.15 billion. Shares of Biogen ended last week at $263.02. The consensus analyst price target is all the way up at $371.97. The 52-week trading range is $244.28 to $370.57.

• [By Brian Orelli]

  Shares of Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IONS) ended the day down 10.6% after an earnings report�from partner Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB) started the day on a sour note. Then shares dropped even further midday after data was released�for IONIS-HTTRx, a treatment for Huntington's disease. Biogen managed to end the day in the green, up 1.1%.

• [By Chris Lange]

  Short interest in Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB) increased to 3.86 million shares from the previous 3.45 million. The stock recently traded at $287.00, within a 52-week range of $244.28 to $370.57.

• [By Chris Lange]

  Ionis Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: IONS) shares made a handy gain on Friday after the firm announced an expanded strategic collaboration with Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB). Through this partnership, these companies are planning to tackle and develop novel antisense drug candidates for a broad range of neurological diseases.

• [By ]

  What should investors do with shares of Celgene (CELG) , Biogen Idec (BIIB) , Gilead Science (GILD) and Regeneron (REGN) ? Cramer once proclaimed these high-fliers his "four horsemen of biotech," but lately they've lost all of their traction, with Celgene down 21%, Biogen off 14%, Gilead down 9% and Regeneron off 23% so far this year.

Top 5 Biotech Stocks To Own For 2018: Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc.(ALNY)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Brian Orelli]

  The delay in an FDA decision for Tegsedi puts it behind competitor Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ALNY), which expects to hear from the FDA by Aug. 11 for its hATTR drug patisiran. But Sarah Boyce, the president at Akcea Therapeutics, doesn't think a few months will really matter: "We don't really feel that's going to have any impact and the drugs will be close enough together from a launch perspective. So not really [going] to make any adjustments, and we're very well prepared to be ready to launch following approval."

• [By Max Byerly]

  Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ALNY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.41) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.47) by $0.06. The business had revenue of $21.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $35.23 million. Alnylam Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 36.81% and a negative net margin of 565.20%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($1.25) earnings per share. equities analysts anticipate that Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -6.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

• [By Brian Orelli]

  Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ALNY) released first-quarter results last week, but all eyes were looking forward as the company waits for a potential approval of its hereditary TTR amyloidosis (ATTR) drug, patisiran.

Top 5 Biotech Stocks To Own For 2018: Amgen Inc.(AMGN)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Chris Lange]

  Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) saw its short interest fall to 9.79 million shares from the previous level of 10.46 million. Shares were last seen at $170.00, in a 52-week trading range of $152.16 to $201.23.

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  Wayne Hummer Investments L.L.C. trimmed its position in shares of Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 11.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,311 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 303 shares during the period. Wayne Hummer Investments L.L.C.’s holdings in Amgen were worth $394,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

• [By Cory Renauer]

  There's a lot for investors to like about�Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) and�Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB). Both of these biotech stocks have produced tremendous returns over the past couple of decades, and the businesses they represent still generate enormous profits.�

• [By Todd Campbell]

  When a brand new class of cholesterol-lowering drugs called PCSK9 inhibitors won Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval in 2015, it was heralded as the biggest advance in battling heart disease since the invention of statins. The launch of PCSK9 inhibitors was accompanied by billion-dollar-plus predictions for sales. However, revenue has fallen far shy of blockbuster status, leaving drugmakers Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN), Regeneron Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:REGN), and Sanofi SA (NYSE:SNY) in the lurch.

• [By Chris Lange]

  Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) is waiting for the FDA to review its Biologics License Application (BLA) for Aimovig (erenumab) for the prevention of migraine in patients experiencing four or more migraine days per month. The FDA has set a PDUFA date for May 17.

Hot Blue Chip Stocks To Invest In 2018

tags:h,HD,ZGNX,ACLS,CBAN,ZAIS,

Much has been made of the stock market��s record-setting performance since President Donald Trump won the race for the White House back in November.

Read: Yellen may have the clearest explanation for the stock market��s record run

But Dow Jones��s data team offers more insight into how Trump stacks up compared with other presidents in their first 30 days in office, a milepost Trump hits on Feb. 19. The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, +0.02% has returned 4.02% as of Friday��s close, which would make the Dow��s performance in the Trump era��s first month the sixth best in percentage terms behind Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1945, after his fourth victorious campaign for the presidency, when blue chips climbed by 4.1%.

Hot Blue Chip Stocks To Invest In 2018: Boot(h)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Motley Fool Staff]

  Hyatt Hotels (NYSE:H) Q1 2018 Earnings Conference CallMay. 3, 2018 11:30 a.m. ET

  Contents: Prepared Remarks Questions and Answers Call Participants Prepared Remarks:

  Operator

• [By Logan Wallace]

  Hydro One (TSE:H) – Analysts at National Bank Financial decreased their FY2019 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Hydro One in a research report issued on Tuesday, May 15th. National Bank Financial analyst P. Kenny now anticipates that the company will post earnings per share of $1.37 for the year, down from their prior estimate of $1.40. National Bank Financial currently has a “Sector Perform” rating and a $23.00 target price on the stock.

• [By Shane Hupp]

  Shares of Hyatt (NYSE:H) have received a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the eighteen analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seven have given a hold recommendation and ten have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $80.42.

Hot Blue Chip Stocks To Invest In 2018: Home Depot, Inc. (HD)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Demitrios Kalogeropoulos]

  At some point there will be a pullback in the cyclical home improvement market, and that slump will likely stall Home Depot's (NYSE:HD) multiyear expansion. But there's no reason to think that downturn is imminent -- or even close.

• [By Jeremy Bowman, Leo Sun, and Steve Symington]

  To take advantage of that potential boom, we asked three of our retail writers for their top picks for May. See why they recommend Dollar General (NYSE:DG), Tanger Factory Outlet Centers (NYSE:SKT), and Home Depot (NYSE:HD).

• [By Lisa Levin]

  Home Depot Inc (NYSE: HD) reported better-than-expected earnings for its first quarter, while sales missed estimates.

  Home Depot posted Q1 earnings of $2.08 per share on sales of $24.947 billion. Analysts expected earnings of $2.06 per share on sales of $25.22 billion. Sales at stores open at least a year increased 4.2 percent.

• [By ]

  TD Ameritrade is part of a beta program for Apple's business chat feature, which also includes companies like Home Depot (HD) and Marriott International (MAR) .

• [By Jim Crumly]

  As for individual stocks, Home Depot (NYSE:HD) slipped on a sales miss and AZZ (NYSE:AZZ) finally closed the books on a tough year.

  Image source: Getty Images.

Hot Blue Chip Stocks To Invest In 2018: Zogenix, Inc.(ZGNX)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sean Williams]

  The other concern is that while it may be the first to market in treating Dravet syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, another experimental therapy is nipping at its heels. In September, Zogenix (NASDAQ:ZGNX) announced surprisingly strong phase 3 data for ZX008, a low-dose fenfluramine that absolutely blew away the placebo in Dravet syndrome patient testing. Zogenix's lead compound led to a 72.4% reduction in convulsive seizure frequency over a 14-week period, compared to the 17.4% reduction for placebo patients.

• [By Sean Williams]

  But what's interesting about Epidiolex is that its first-to-market advantage may not hold up for too long. You see, Zogenix (NASDAQ:ZGNX)�also is developing a treatment for Dravet syndrome, known as ZX008, that it plans to test on LGS patients soon. In phase 3 Dravet syndrome trials, Zogenix's lead drug wound up demonstrating a 72.4% reduction in convulsive seizure frequency over the 14-week treatment period relative to baseline. This more than quadrupled the 17.4% reduction in convulsive seizure frequency seen in placebo patients.

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on Zogenix (ZGNX)

  For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

• [By Sean Williams]

  Back in September, drug developer Zogenix (NASDAQ:ZGNX) announced data from ZX008 in late-stage trials that absolutely wowed Wall Street. ZX008, which is a low-dose fenfluramine, led to a 72.4% reduction in seizure frequency from baseline over a 14-week testing period. This compared very favorably with a 17.4% reduction in seizure frequency from baseline observed with the placebo.

• [By Logan Wallace]

  DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale bought a new stake in Zogenix (NASDAQ:ZGNX) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 14,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $575,000.

Hot Blue Chip Stocks To Invest In 2018: Axcelis Technologies Inc.(ACLS)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By ]

  3. Axcelis Technologies (Nasdaq: ACLS)
  It is the technical price pattern that first caught my eye with this $800 million market cap small cap. �Shares dropped to a $22.00 low in mid-February but have since been slowly and steadily moving higher toward resistance at both the 50- and 200-day SMAs. In and of itself, this is not enough impetus to get long. However, when combined with the fundamental picture, a compelling long thesis emerges.

Hot Blue Chip Stocks To Invest In 2018: Colony Bankcorp Inc.(CBAN)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  Media stories about Colony Bankcorp (NASDAQ:CBAN) have trended somewhat positive this week, according to Accern. The research group identifies positive and negative media coverage by monitoring more than 20 million news and blog sources in real time. Accern ranks coverage of companies on a scale of negative one to one, with scores closest to one being the most favorable. Colony Bankcorp earned a daily sentiment score of 0.02 on Accern’s scale. Accern also gave news stories about the financial services provider an impact score of 48.3992787299045 out of 100, indicating that recent media coverage is somewhat unlikely to have an effect on the company’s share price in the near term.

Hot Blue Chip Stocks To Invest In 2018: ZAIS Group Holdings, Inc.(ZAIS)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  Gp Zgp (NASDAQ:ZAIS) major shareholder Z Acquisition Llc bought 6,500,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $4.10 per share, with a total value of $26,650,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 6,500,000 shares in the company, valued at $26,650,000. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Major shareholders that own more than 10% of a company’s stock are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

Trouble in Big Food: America's cereal, soda and soup companies are in turmoil

America's cereal, soda and soup companies are having a rough 2018.

General Mills (GIS), Campbell Soup (CPB), Hershey (HSY) and Pepsi (PEP) are all failing to convince investors they have a plan to navigate shoppers' changing tastes.

The consumer staples sector is at the back of the pack in the S&P 500, down 13% this year. It's on track for its worst year in a decade.

On Friday, Campbell plunged 12%, its worst day since 1999, after CEO Denise Morrison abruptly retired. Campbell announced a review of its entire lineup, including soup, leaving the door open for breaking up the 149-year-old company.

It's part of a broader problem. Large consumer goods brands lost market share to small competitors from 2011 to 2016 for the first time in 50 years, according to Jim Brennan, a senior partner at Boston Consulting Group.

"The threat is everywhere," Brennan said at a recent AllianceBernstein conference.

Is pricing power gone?

2018 has been a perfect storm for Big Food. Sales growth is stalling while oil, freight, raw material, steel and aluminum costs rise.

In the past, inflation wouldn't have been a major issue for these legacy brands. Their size, supply chain, and enormous TV advertising budgets allowed them to muscle out competitors and maintain higher prices.

"You didn't have tons of competition, and the superior economics just continued," Brennan said. "It was a pretty nice gig."

But they don't have that luxury anymore. Their business models and pricing power are crumbling as the retail and grocery industries consolidate, consumer allegiances fade, and low-budget digital advertising campaigns sway shoppers.

Walmart (WMT), Amazon (AMZN), Target (TGT), and Kroger (KR) are waging a price war that has spread to the rest of the retail and grocery industry. The pricing battle has changed shoppers' expectations of how much a box of cereal or a bar of soap costs.

If suppliers don't play ball on prices, Walmart can put products in the back of the store where shoppers can't find them. Amazon can send them to the bottom of its search pages.

Older players caught flat-footed

The growth of retailers' cheaper private labels and discount stores like Dollar General, Dollar Tree and Germany's Aldi have limited big players' ability to raise prices.

Amazon, for example, is building out a stable of its own food and household essentials. It launched Wag, a dog food line, earlier this month.

Mass-produced brands are not the only game in town anymore. Scale is less important in the digital age when an entrepreneur with a new idea can reach a huge audience online through a viral ad on YouTube or Facebook (FB).

"Amazon provides a valuable platform for small brands to gain traction," said Bill Duffy, an associate director at consulting firm Gartner L2. "Brands no longer have to coordinate with local grocers and large chains to get visibility in store."

Household care producers have also been caught flat-footed. Clorox (CLX), Procter & Gamble (PG), Kimberly- Clark (KMB) and Colgate-Palmolive (CL) are each down around 20% this year as investors question their strategies.

Nimble players have undercut big brands' prices and tailored their marketing to fresher, organic trends. Analysts point to KIND and RXBar snacks, LaCroix sparkling water, Halo Top ice cream, Dollar Shave Club razors and Seventh Generation laundry detergent as examples of startups that capitalized on shoppers' preference for natural ingredients in food and household care products.

Buying out the competition

These companies have attempted to reshape their lineups and scoop up newer rivals to boost sales.

Over the past year, General Mills bought pet food company Blue Buffalo for $8 billion, Campbell acquired Snyder's-Lance snacks for $5 billion, and Hershey purchased SkinnyPop popcorn-maker Amplify Snack Brands for $1.6 billion.

Two weeks ago, Oreo-maker Mondelez bought Tate's cookies for $500 million.

But corporate shopping sprees alone are not enough. Acquisitions can raise corporate debt and hit profits.

"Do you go out and buy growth at the expense of earnings?" questioned Raymond James analyst Joseph Altobello.

As if these challenges weren't enough, the industry faces another headache: higher interest rates.

Consumer staples stocks are considered safety plays that offer large dividends. However, they are less appealing to investors in an environment where bonds offer similar returns with little of the same risks.

"A lot of these stocks are viewed as bond proxies," Altobello said. "That's great when rates are falling, but the same math works just as well in reverse."

Top 5 China Stocks To Invest In Right Now

tags:APDN,OHRP,WPZ,LFUS,NEE, Twenty-five years ago, I experienced my first "Melt Up" as an investment professional...   It. Was. Awesome.   And then...   It. Was. Awful.   There's nothing like actually putting your hand on that hot stove to really feel the fire. And I was right in the middle of the fire...   In late 1993, I was a young stockbroker in the U.S., specializing in international stocks.   I didn't know it yet... but man, oh man, I was in the right place at the right time.   It might sound hard to believe, but the big story in 1993 was China... Investors absolutely had to get in.   As a young stockbroker, I quickly learned that you almost never get incoming calls from strangers looking to open an account with you.  

Top 5 China Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Applied DNA Sciences Inc(APDN)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Shane Hupp]

  Ascent Capital Group (NASDAQ: ASCMA) and Applied DNA Sciences (NASDAQ:APDN) are both small-cap industrial products companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, valuation, dividends, risk, profitability, earnings and institutional ownership.

• [By Max Byerly]

  These are some of the media headlines that may have effected Accern Sentiment’s rankings:

  Get Applied DNA Sciences alerts: Applied DNA Sciences’ (APDN) CEO James Hayward on Q2 2018 Results – Earnings Call Transcript (seekingalpha.com) Edited Transcript of APDN earnings conference call or presentation 3-May-18 8:30pm GMT (finance.yahoo.com) Applied DNA Sciences: Fiscal 2Q Earnings Snapshot (finance.yahoo.com) Applied DNA Sciences (APDN) Stock Rating Upgraded by ValuEngine (americanbankingnews.com) Applied DNA Reports Fiscal Second Quarter 2018 Financial Results (finance.yahoo.com)

  A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Maxim Group set a $5.00 price target on shares of Applied DNA Sciences and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 6th. ValuEngine raised shares of Applied DNA Sciences from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd.

Top 5 China Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Ohr Pharmaceuticals, Inc.(OHRP)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Ohr Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: OHRP) dropped nearly 83% Friday to post a new 52-week low of $0.35 after closing at $2.02 on Thursday. The stock’s 52-week hig is $2.18. Volume was around 32.6 million, more than 30 times the daily average of around 1.2 million. The company reported that topline data from a clinical study failed to meet its primary endpoint.

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Ohr Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: OHRP) traded down about 3% Wednesday and posted a new 52-week low of $0.31 after closing Tuesday at $0.32. The 52-week high is $2.18. Volume was over 10 million, more than 4 times the daily average of around 2.4 million shares. The company had no specific news.

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Ohr Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: OHRP) dropped nearly 13% Tuesday to post a new 52-week low of $0.24. Shares closed at $0.27 on Friday and the stock’s 52-week high is $2.18. Volume was around 1 million, about a third of the daily average of about 3.3 million. The company had no specific news Tuesday.

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Ohr Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: OHRP) dropped more than 10% Tuesday to post a new 52-week low of $0.35 after closing at $0.39 on Monday. The stock’s 52-week high is $2.18. Volume was around 7.55 million, nearly 4 times the daily average of around 2.1 million. The company had no specific news.

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Ohr Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: OHRP) dropped more than 11% Thursday to post a new 52-week low of $0.31 after closing at $0.35 on Wednesday. The stock’s 52-week high is $2.18. Volume was around 5.5 million, more than double the daily average of around 2.3 million. The company had no specific news.

• [By Shane Hupp]

  OHR Pharmaceutical Inc (NASDAQ:OHRP)’s share price hit a new 52-week high and low on Thursday . The company traded as low as $0.18 and last traded at $0.19, with a volume of 5632 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $0.19.

Top 5 China Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Williams Partners L.P.(WPZ)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  Barclays set a $46.00 price target on Williams Pipeline Partners (NYSE:WPZ) in a research note published on Saturday. The brokerage currently has a hold rating on the pipeline company’s stock.

• [By Shane Hupp]

  Williams Pipeline Partners LP (NYSE:WPZ) – US Capital Advisors decreased their Q3 2018 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Williams Pipeline Partners in a research note issued to investors on Monday, May 14th. US Capital Advisors analyst B. Followill now forecasts that the pipeline company will post earnings per share of $0.39 for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $0.41. US Capital Advisors also issued estimates for Williams Pipeline Partners’ Q4 2018 earnings at $0.45 EPS and FY2019 earnings at $1.87 EPS.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  The stock market stayed in a pretty narrow range on Thursday, climbing early in the session but then slowly drifting lower through the afternoon hours. In the absence of major news, investors largely looked forward to key events like trade negotiations among the world's largest economies. Other financial markets saw mixed moves as well, with 10-year Treasury yields climbing above 3.1% while oil prices stayed comfortably above $70 per barrel. Despite the quiet day, some companies had good news that pushed their shares sharply higher. World Wrestling Entertainment (NYSE:WWE), Chesapeake Energy (NYSE:CHK), and Williams Partners (NYSE:WPZ) were among the best performers on the day. Below, we'll look more closely at these stocks to tell you why they did so well.

• [By Matthew DiLallo]

  Natural gas pipeline giant Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) announced today that it agreed to acquire the rest of its master limited partnership (MLP) Williams Partners (NYSE:WPZ) that it didn't already own in a $10.5 billion deal. Not to be outdone, Canadian energy infrastructure giant Enbridge (NYSE:ENB) made an offer to acquire its namesake MLP Enbridge Energy Partners (NYSE:EEP), along with the rest of its publicly traded entities, including Spectra Energy Partners (NYSE:SEP). These transactions have big implications not only for investors in these entities but for those who own other pipeline companies, too.

Top 5 China Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Littelfuse Inc.(LFUS)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  BidaskClub upgraded shares of Littelfuse (NASDAQ:LFUS) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Friday morning.

  Several other equities analysts have also commented on LFUS. ValuEngine raised Littelfuse from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Thursday, May 3rd. Barrington Research reissued a hold rating on shares of Littelfuse in a report on Tuesday, May 1st. Finally, Zacks Investment Research lowered Littelfuse from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Wednesday, April 4th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Littelfuse has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $212.75.

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  Littelfuse (NASDAQ:LFUS) Director John E. Major sold 1,648 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.86, for a total value of $355,737.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 26,254 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,667,188.44. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  Littelfuse (NASDAQ:LFUS) was upgraded by stock analysts at ValuEngine from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Thursday.

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  Littelfuse (NASDAQ: LFUS) and ABB Group (NYSE:ABB) are both computer and technology companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership, dividends and earnings.

Top 5 China Stocks To Invest In Right Now: NextEra Energy, Inc.(NEE)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Lisa Levin] Companies Reporting Before The Bell United Technologies Corporation (NYSE: UTX) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $1.51 per share on revenue of $14.62 billion. The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $0.46 per share on revenue of $7.31 billion. Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $2.07 per share on revenue of $11.93 billion. Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $1.11 per share on revenue of $31.22 billion. Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE: LMT) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $3.42 per share on revenue of $11.28 billion. The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE: SHW) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $3.15 per share on revenue of $3.94 billion. Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $5.92 per share on revenue of $3.15 billion. 3M Company (NYSE: MMM) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $2.52 per share on revenue of $8.26 billion. JetBlue Airways Corporation (NASDAQ: JBLU) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $0.2 per share on revenue of $1.75 billion. Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $1.13 per share on revenue of $5.49 billion. Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE: HOG) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $0.88 per share on revenue of $1.25 billion. Corning Incorporated (NYSE: GLW) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $0.3 per share on revenue of $2.50 billion. Centene Corporation (NYSE: CNC) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $1.88 per share on revenue of $13.28 billion. The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE: TRV) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $2.77 per share on revenue of $6.75 billion. Wipro Limited (NYSE: WIT) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $0.07 per share on revenue of $2.16 billion. PACCAR Inc (NASDAQ: PCAR) is projected to
• [By Logan Wallace]

  FDx Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) by 3.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 23,657 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 842 shares during the quarter. FDx Advisors Inc.’s holdings in NextEra Energy were worth $3,864,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  Pendal Group Ltd grew its stake in shares of NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) by 3.3% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 682,686 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 21,713 shares during the quarter. NextEra Energy accounts for approximately 1.4% of Pendal Group Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Pendal Group Ltd’s holdings in NextEra Energy were worth $111,503,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

• [By Shane Hupp]

  US Bancorp DE lessened its position in shares of NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) by 3.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 547,192 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 18,808 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE owned about 0.12% of NextEra Energy worth $89,372,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Western Digital (WDC) Expected to Post Quarterly Sales of $5.06 Billion

Analysts expect that Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) will report $5.06 billion in sales for the current quarter, Zacks Investment Research reports. Six analysts have made estimates for Western Digital’s earnings, with the highest sales estimate coming in at $5.08 billion and the lowest estimate coming in at $5.05 billion. Western Digital posted sales of $4.84 billion during the same quarter last year, which would indicate a positive year-over-year growth rate of 4.5%. The company is scheduled to report its next earnings report on Thursday, July 26th.

On average, analysts expect that Western Digital will report full-year sales of $20.59 billion for the current financial year, with estimates ranging from $20.58 billion to $20.61 billion. For the next fiscal year, analysts forecast that the firm will report sales of $21.25 billion per share, with estimates ranging from $20.05 billion to $22.92 billion. Zacks Investment Research’s sales averages are a mean average based on a survey of research firms that follow Western Digital.

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Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 26th. The data storage provider reported $3.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $3.31 by $0.32. Western Digital had a net margin of 0.98% and a return on equity of 34.22%. The firm had revenue of $5.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.93 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.39 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year.

WDC has been the topic of several analyst reports. ValuEngine lowered shares of Western Digital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 2nd. Zacks Investment Research upgraded shares of Western Digital from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $108.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 30th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Western Digital from $92.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 27th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Western Digital to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 2nd. Finally, Mizuho restated a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 price target (up previously from $105.00) on shares of Western Digital in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. The stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $111.40.

Shares of Western Digital stock opened at $86.52 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 2.39 and a quick ratio of 1.76. Western Digital has a 1 year low of $83.52 and a 1 year high of $85.97. The firm has a market cap of $24.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 1.04.

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 29th will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 28th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. Western Digital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.32%.

In related news, CFO Mark P. Long sold 7,026 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.64, for a total transaction of $693,044.64. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 211,817 shares in the company, valued at $20,893,628.88. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Srinivasan Sivaram sold 10,865 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.71, for a total transaction of $942,104.15. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 103,251 shares in the company, valued at $8,952,894.21. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 141,014 shares of company stock worth $13,277,976. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Atlantic Trust Group LLC boosted its position in Western Digital by 7.7% during the first quarter. Atlantic Trust Group LLC now owns 33,686 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $3,107,000 after acquiring an additional 2,409 shares during the last quarter. Her Majesty the Queen in Right of the Province of Alberta as represented by Alberta Investment Management Corp boosted its position in Western Digital by 17.3% during the first quarter. Her Majesty the Queen in Right of the Province of Alberta as represented by Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 176,700 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $16,304,000 after acquiring an additional 26,100 shares during the last quarter. NEXT Financial Group Inc acquired a new position in Western Digital during the first quarter worth about $226,000. Private Capital Group LLC boosted its position in Western Digital by 1,981.0% during the first quarter. Private Capital Group LLC now owns 2,081 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $193,000 after acquiring an additional 1,981 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sentinel Trust Co. LBA boosted its position in Western Digital by 5.3% during the first quarter. Sentinel Trust Co. LBA now owns 42,320 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $3,905,000 after acquiring an additional 2,125 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.69% of the company’s stock.

Western Digital Company Profile

Western Digital Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and sells data storage devices and solutions worldwide. It offers performance hard disk drives (HDDs) that are used in enterprise servers, data analysis, and other enterprise applications; capacity HDDs and drive configurations for use in data storage systems and tiered storage models; and enterprise solid state drives (SSDs), including NAND-flash SSDs and software solutions that are designed to enhance the performance in various enterprise workload environments.

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