We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.
You are being directed to ZacksTrade, a division of LBMZ Securities and licensed broker-dealer. ZacksTrade and Zacks.com are separate companies. The web link between the two companies is not a solicitation or offer to invest in a particular security or type of security. ZacksTrade does not endorse or adopt any particular investment strategy, any analyst opinion/rating/report or any approach to evaluating individual securities.
If you wish to go to ZacksTrade, click OK. If you do not, click Cancel.
It’s the biggest morning of the week in terms of economic data — at least in range, if not impact — with October PPI results joining U.S. Retail Sales, also for October, and Empire State manufacturing for November, in addition to more retail earnings for fiscal Q3. The Dow has gained +72 points as of this hour, the S&P 500 is up +14, the Nasdaq +90 (leading the way yet again) and the small-cap Russell 2000 +4 points.
October Producer Price Index (PPI) numbers fell notably to -0.5% from a downwardly revised +0.4% the previous month, and well off the +0.1% analysts were expecting. This is the lowest monthly print since April 2020’s -1.2%, which was the heart of the Covid-based meltdown. Core (ex-food & energy costs) month over month dropped to 0.0% from +0.2% anticipated, and ex-food, energy and transportation came in at +0.1%. So we see some of these more volatile metrics had a lot to do with the low headline figure.
Year over year, wholesale PPI prices are down to +1.3% — not the lowest we’ve seen in this cycle: that would be the +0.3% and +1.2% we saw in June and July of this year, respectively, but reversing the upward trajectory of the past couple months of PPI year over year. Core year over year reached +2.4%, 30 basis points (bps) below expectations. You’d have to go back to January of 2021 for a lower read on this metric. Ex-food, energy and transportation was the only print going the other direction: +2.9% from +2.8% analysts were looking for.
Retail Sales for October came in at -0.1%, slightly hotter than the -0.2% expected, but this follows an upwardly revised +0.9% the previous month. Ex-autos came in +0.1%, slightly raised from the 0.0% expected but well lower than the upwardly revised +0.8% for September. Ex-autos & gas was also +0.1%. Control was in-line with expectations at +0.2%, well off the upwardly revised +0.7% previously.
Empire State manufacturing data showed a big upward surprise for November: +9.1%, the best print since April’s 10.8 and well above the -3.0 anticipated and October’s -4.6. This is the fifth positive month so far in 2023 for manufacturing productivity in New York State. We look for higher numbers in the coming months to present something of a bounce-back for the region after a very tough year.
Target (TGT - Free Report) shares are up +14% in today’s pre-market by beating and raising in its Q3 earnings report ahead of the opening bell today: earnings of $2.10 per share easily surpassed the $1.48 expected — and a swing to the positive from the year-ago $1.54 per share, on $25.4 billion in revenues, which outpaced the $25.24 billion expected. Next quarter guidance for earnings per share is currently a range of $1.90-2.60, now putting the previous Zacks consensus estimate of $2.16 on the bottom half of expectations. Look for Target’s Zacks Rank #4 (Sell) to improve in the coming days. Questions or comments about this article and/or author? Click here>>
See More Zacks Research for These Tickers
Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:
Image: Bigstock
PPI Drops Nearly 100bps, Target Beats & Raises
It’s the biggest morning of the week in terms of economic data — at least in range, if not impact — with October PPI results joining U.S. Retail Sales, also for October, and Empire State manufacturing for November, in addition to more retail earnings for fiscal Q3. The Dow has gained +72 points as of this hour, the S&P 500 is up +14, the Nasdaq +90 (leading the way yet again) and the small-cap Russell 2000 +4 points.
October Producer Price Index (PPI) numbers fell notably to -0.5% from a downwardly revised +0.4% the previous month, and well off the +0.1% analysts were expecting. This is the lowest monthly print since April 2020’s -1.2%, which was the heart of the Covid-based meltdown. Core (ex-food & energy costs) month over month dropped to 0.0% from +0.2% anticipated, and ex-food, energy and transportation came in at +0.1%. So we see some of these more volatile metrics had a lot to do with the low headline figure.
Year over year, wholesale PPI prices are down to +1.3% — not the lowest we’ve seen in this cycle: that would be the +0.3% and +1.2% we saw in June and July of this year, respectively, but reversing the upward trajectory of the past couple months of PPI year over year. Core year over year reached +2.4%, 30 basis points (bps) below expectations. You’d have to go back to January of 2021 for a lower read on this metric. Ex-food, energy and transportation was the only print going the other direction: +2.9% from +2.8% analysts were looking for.
Retail Sales for October came in at -0.1%, slightly hotter than the -0.2% expected, but this follows an upwardly revised +0.9% the previous month. Ex-autos came in +0.1%, slightly raised from the 0.0% expected but well lower than the upwardly revised +0.8% for September. Ex-autos & gas was also +0.1%. Control was in-line with expectations at +0.2%, well off the upwardly revised +0.7% previously.
Empire State manufacturing data showed a big upward surprise for November: +9.1%, the best print since April’s 10.8 and well above the -3.0 anticipated and October’s -4.6. This is the fifth positive month so far in 2023 for manufacturing productivity in New York State. We look for higher numbers in the coming months to present something of a bounce-back for the region after a very tough year.
Target (TGT - Free Report) shares are up +14% in today’s pre-market by beating and raising in its Q3 earnings report ahead of the opening bell today: earnings of $2.10 per share easily surpassed the $1.48 expected — and a swing to the positive from the year-ago $1.54 per share, on $25.4 billion in revenues, which outpaced the $25.24 billion expected. Next quarter guidance for earnings per share is currently a range of $1.90-2.60, now putting the previous Zacks consensus estimate of $2.16 on the bottom half of expectations. Look for Target’s Zacks Rank #4 (Sell) to improve in the coming days.
Questions or comments about this article and/or author? Click here>>