The three major U.S. equity indexes closed lower on Monday. The Dow Jones industrials ended the day down 1.45%, the S&P 500 closed 1.54% lower and the Nasdaq retreated 1.58%. All 11 sectors closed lower, with real estate (−2.8%) and energy (−2.74%) falling the most. Consumer staples and cyclicals (−0.31% and −0.6%, respectively) posted the smallest losses.
The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index is due Tuesday morning. The consensus November estimate calls for a reading of 100.0, down from 102.5 in October. On Wednesday, the U.S. Energy Information Administration releases its weekly report on the country’s petroleum inventories. But the big economic events come later, with the weekly report on claims for unemployment benefits and the October report on personal consumption expenditures (PCE) on Thursday, and the nonfarm payrolls report for November due Friday.
The three major indexes traded mixed in Tuesday’s premarket session.
China’s leading online entertainment platform for children and teens, Bilibili, reported quarterly results before markets opened on Tuesday that we better than analysts expected. The adjusted loss per share was smaller by more than 4%, and revenue was higher by about 2.4%. Year over year, revenue was up 11.3%, but the per-share loss was larger this year. The company issued downside guidance for the current quarter, but investors reacted more favorably, boosting the share price by more than 8% in Tuesday’s premarket.
CrowdStrike and Hewlett Packard Enterprise are set to report quarterly results after markets close Tuesday, and Frontline, KE Holdings and Nordic American Tankers will share their quarterly results Wednesday morning.
Here is a preview of four companies set to post quarterly results later on Wednesday.
24/7 Wall St.Okta
Enterprise software company Okta Inc. (NASDAQ: OKTA) has seen its share price sink by nearly 78% over the past 12 months. Earlier this month, Okta launched its security suite for the U.S. military and Pentagon-approved partners. Now the company just has to sell the product widely throughout the large and lucrative U.S. defense establishment. The stock has bounced by around 14% from a new 52-week low set earlier this month, largely on the strength of this new product offering.
Of 33 analysts covering the stock, 19 have a Buy or Strong Buy rating and another 13 rate the shares at Hold. At a recent price of around $50.20 a share, the implied upside on the stock based on a median price target of $70.50 is about 40.4%. At the high price target of $130.00, the upside potential is nearly 160%.
Third-quarter revenue is forecast at $465.35 million, which would be up 3.0% sequentially and by 32.7% year over year. Okta is expected to post a loss per share of $0.24 for the quarter, 14 cents worse than the prior quarter’s loss and 17 cents worse than the year-ago loss. For the full 2023 fiscal year ending in January, analysts are looking for a loss per share of $0.73, compared with a year-ago loss of $0.46 per share, on sales of $1.82 billion, up 40.2%.
Okta is not expected to post a profit in 2023 or 2024. At the current share price, the multiple for estimated 2025 earnings of $0.29 per share is 171.8. The stock’s 52-week trading range is $44.12 to $244.18, and Okta does not pay a dividend. Total shareholder return for the past year is negative 77.6%.
Pure Storage
Shares of storage technology firm Pure Storage Inc. (NYSE: PSTG) have dropped about 8% over the past 12 months. The company is poised to post a GAAP earnings per share (EPS) profit in the current fiscal year, a first for the firm. Free cash flow for the past 12 months totals $540 million, and the company has repaid some $250 million in debt during the same period. Pure Storage has beaten the adjusted EPS consensus estimate in the past 13 consecutive quarters.
Of 20 brokerages covering the firm, 16 have a Buy or Strong Buy rating and the other four rate the shares at Hold. At a share price of around $29.50, the potential upside based on a median price target of $39.00 is 32.2%. At the high price target of $47.00, the upside potential is 59.3%.
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