Business

A shopper walks by an American Eagle store on November 21, 2023 in Glendale, California. Justin Sullivan | Getty ImagesAmerican Eagle issued weak holiday guidance on Wednesday and cut its full-year forecast as it contends with value-seeking consumers who are only willing to spend during key shopping moments. The apparel retailer narrowly missed Wall Street's expectations on the top line, but beat on the bottom line. Here's how American Eagle performed during its third fiscal quarter compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:Earnings per share: 48 cents adjusted vs. 46 cents expectedRevenue: $1.29 billion vs. $1.30 billion expectedThe company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Nov. 2 was $80 million, or 41 cents per share...

There are several places investors can find income these days in the market. Attractive yields have lured investors into bonds this year, with the 10-year Treasury yield remaining above 4%. Americans have also flooded into cash-equivalent accounts like money market funds, which had a total $6.68 trillion in total assets as of the 6-day period ended Nov. 26, according to the Investment Company Institute . However, money market yields are expected to fall alongside Federal Reserve interest-rate cuts. For instance, the Crane 100 list of the 100 largest taxable money funds was once over 5% this year. As of Tuesday, it was 4.44%. In this environment, UBS favors diversified fixed-income strategies. Yet another way to bring in income is by buying dividend-paying equities, such as those with high ...

France's Prime Minister Michel Barnier (C) looks on during a session of questions to the government at The National Assembly in Paris, on December 3, 2024. Julien De Rosa | Afp | Getty ImagesThe French government has been toppled in a vote of no confidence Wednesday, plunging the euro zone's second-largest economy into a period of deep political uncertainty.A total of 331 lawmakers from both the leftwing New Popular Front (NFP) alliance and the far-right National Rally (RN) supported a no-confidence motion in the country's lower house, far exceeding the 288 votes needed to pass the motion.Motions had been tabled by both the left and rightwing blocs on Monday after Prime Minister Michel Barnier used special constitutional powers to force a social security budget bill through Parliament with...

The man at the centre of negotiations over a Gaza ceasefire has told Sky News Donald Trump wants a deal done before he takes power in January. Speaking exclusively to Sky's The World with Yalda Hakim, the prime minister of Qatar expressed cautious optimism but said it required "maximum pressure" on all parties to end the fighting. Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al Thani said Mr Trump's advisers and the incoming administration have said they want the situation resolved by his 20 January inauguration."We are trying to coordinate with them our efforts, and all of us, we agree, and we are hoping to get over this situation before the president comes to the office," he said.The prime minister said the Trump team "want this to be resolved now - today even". Mr al Thani also defended Hamas be...

Marc Benioff, CEO of Salesforce, appears on a panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Jan. 18, 2024.Stefan Wermuth | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesShares of Salesforce popped more than 8% Wednesday, a day after the company reported third-quarter results that exceeded analysts' estimates for revenue and guidance and showed strong promise for its artificial intelligence offerings.Salesforce's revenue grew 8% year over year to $9.44 billion in its third quarter, up from the $9.34 billion expected by LSEG. The company's net income was $1.5 billion in the quarter, up 25% from $1.2 billion a year ago.Salesforce raised revenue guidance to between $37.8 billion and $38 billion for its fiscal 2025, up slightly from $37.7 billion to $38 billion it had previously reported. The new range...

Presidential candidate and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis speaks to a crowd on June 2, 2023 in Gilbert, South Carolina.Sean Rayford | Getty ImagesPresident-elect Donald Trump is considering replacing embattled defense secretary choice Pete Hegseth with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, according to two sources familiar with the decision-making. DeSantis is "very much in contention," one source said.Another told NBC News that Trump and DeSantis directly spoke about the issue."Trump talked to the governor and wants him to do it," a source familiar with the conversation told NBC News on Tuesday night.NBC News reported Tuesday that Hegseth's nomination is in jeopardy because as many as six GOP senators are wavering in their support for him.The Wall Street Journal first reported Tuesday night that DeSa...

Private payrolls growth was less than expected in November, reflecting a slowing labor market, according to a report Wednesday from ADP.Companies added 146,000 jobs on the month, below the downwardly revised 184,000 in October and less than the Dow Jones estimate for 163,000.Education and health services led job creation, adding 50,000 positions on the month. That was followed by construction with 30,000 new jobs, trade, transportation and utilities with 28,000 additions, and the other services category, which contributed 20,000 jobs.Manufacturing lost 26,000 positions on the month. Businesses with fewer than 50 employees also reported a drop of 17,000.Wage growth accelerated, by 4.8%, a faster gain than October, the first time that has happened in 25 months."While overall growth for the m...

Washington, D.C.'s attorney general sued Amazon on Wednesday, accusing the company of covertly depriving residents in certain ZIP codes in the nation's capital from access to Prime's high-speed delivery.The lawsuit from AG Brian Schwalb alleges that, since 2022, Amazon has "secretly excluded" two "historically underserved" D.C. ZIP codes from its expedited delivery service while charging Prime members living there the full subscription price. Amazon's Prime membership program costs $139 a year and includes perks like two-day shipping and access to streaming content."Amazon is charging tens of thousands of hard-working Ward 7 and 8 residents for an expedited delivery service it promises but does not provide," Schwalb said in a statement. "While Amazon has every right to make operational cha...

Check out the companies making headlines before the bell: Salesforce — Shares rallied more than 12% after the enterprise software company posted a third-quarter revenue beat. Salesforce reported $9.44 billion in revenue, better than the $9.35 billion expected by analysts, according to LSEG. Subscription revenue also beat analyst expectations. Dollar Tree — The stock rose more than 4% following the discounter's better-than-expected third-quarter results . Dollar Tree earned $1.12 per share on revenue of $7.56 billion. That's better than the LSEG consensus estimates of $1.07 per share on $7.44 billion in revenue. The company also announced that CFO Jeff Davis would step down from his role. Pure Storage — Shares surged 21% after Pure Storage beat fiscal third-quarter estimates and highlighted...

Don't be surprised if Roku gets scooped up by a competitor in 2025, according to Needham. "The top 6 reasons to acquire Roku (our view) include its installed base, unique data sets, pricing power, shelf space, buy vs build advantages, and the fact that it's now the only scaled CTV platform that can be purchased," wrote analyst Laura Martin. She expects the company to be bought for a "large premium" over the next 12 months as Republicans take control of regulatory agencies. Shares popped about 5% before the bell. Despite a 17% year-to-date slump, Martin holds a buy rating and $100 price target, reflecting 32% upside from Tuesday's close. The potential buyers include a slew of streamers such as Netflix , connected TV advertising companies such as The Trade Desk , retailers and large language...