Signage for Shake Shack Inc. is displayed on a glass door at the company’s restaurant in Shanghai, China, on Thursday, Jan. 24, 2019.
Qilai Shen | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Check out the companies making headlines in midday trading:
Novavax — The biotech stock soared 29% after the company announced that it was awarded $1.6 billion in funding from the federal government to help develop its Covid-19 vaccine candidate. The company said it could possibly deliver the vaccine by the end of the year.
Facebook, Netflix, Microsoft, Apple – The strength in Big Tech led the Nasdaq Composite to another all-time high. Shares of Facebook gained nearly 3%, while Apple, Microsoft, Google-parent Alphabet and Netflix rose at least 1% each. Microsoft, Netflix, Amazon and Facebook all hit new intraday highs during Tuesday’s session. Amazon traded 0.2% higher at a record, after topping $3,000 apiece for the first time on Monday.
Shake Shack — Shares of the restaurant chain fell more than 5% on Tuesday after the company announced its sales numbers for the second quarter, which showed a 49% decline in same-store sales compared with last year. The company said that the speed of its sales recovery is uncertain due to the “ongoing volatility related to COVID-19” and that stores that reopened in June still saw “significantly reduced sales volumes.” The company also said that nationwide protests and the associated curfews took a bite out of second-quarter sales.
United, American, Delta and Southwest Airlines — Shares of the major U.S. airline companies fell across the board in midday trading as another wave of coronavirus angst checked travel stocks. United and American each dropped 5%, Delta lost 3% and JetBlue shed 2.5% as investors grew more worried about Covid-19 infections and government efforts to restrict transit and business. Southwest also declined by 2.5%. Airlines have been one of the hardest-hit industries as people refrain from vacations and non-essential travel.
Tesla — Shares of the electric vehicle maker rose more than 2% to hit an all-time intraday high. Morgan Stanley auto analyst Adam Jonas raised his base case price target and bull case target on the stock to $740 and $2,070 respectively, although he did reiterate his underweight rating based on longer-term concerns.
Carnival, Norwegian Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean Cruises — Shares of cruise lines dropped on Tuesday as investors ditched riskier stocks on concerns about an uptick in coronavirus cases. Shares of Norwegian Cruise Line fell 2.5% and shares of Carnival Corp. dropped 3.5%. Royal Caribbean ticked 2.1% lower.
Nikola — Shares of the battery-electric and hydrogen-powered truck maker slid more than 9% after RBC initiated coverage on the stock with a sector perform rating. “Still more of a business plan than business … truck specs look attractive, but real-world driving/tech applications unproven. As such, biz model economics are illustrative,” the firm said. RBC’s $46 target is about 6% below where the stock closed on Monday.
Gap, Kohl’s, Nordstrom — Shares of retailers ticked lower on Tuesday as an increase in coronavirus cases in the U.S. worried investors about reopening plans. Gap fell nearly 3%, and Kohl’s and Nordstrom both lost more than 2%. TJX Companies and Best Buy lost more than 1%.
MGM Resorts, Las Vegas Sands, Wynn Resorts — Casinos stocks fell on Tuesday as coronavirus spread dented sentiment. MGM Resorts and Wynn Resorts lost about 1% each and Las Vegas Sands fell nearly 2%.
— With reporting from CNBC’s Pippa Stevens, Yun Li, Jesse Pound and Tom Franck.