Investors should brace for yet another volatile trading week in the United States, where COVID-19 continues to spread at a time when investors were hoping for a rapid economic recovery.
Shares fell sharply Friday after Texas reversed some of its reopening measures as coronavirus cases continued to rise there. Florida, where new COVID-19 cases hit record highs on Friday, banned drinking at bars again in an effort to slow the spread.
Closed 730.05 points lower, or 2.8%, while slipped 2.4%. It was the second weekly decline for the big average within three weeks. The Dow and S&P 500 fell 3.3% and 2.9% for the week, respectively, and lost 1.9% over the same period.
Aside from the still-spreading contagion and its impact on markets, here are three separate stocks we'll focus on in the coming week:
1. Facebook
Social media giant Facebook (NASDAQ 🙂 is back in the headlines, but unfortunately for the wrong reasons.
Shares of the Menlo Park, California-based company fell more than 8% on Friday after a series of large advertisers announced they were halting their social media ad spend on Facebook after the social media colossus failed to deliver hate speech from its platform.
Global brands participating in this boycott include Unilever (NYSE :), Coca-Cola Company (NYSE :), Levi Strauss (NYSE :), Honda (NYSE 🙂 and Verizon (NYSE :). The effort was launched in mid-June by a group of civil rights organizations asking advertisers to pause their ad spending in the month of July. The organizations include the Anti-Defamation League, the NAACP, Sleeping Giants, Color of Change, Free Press and Common Sense.
Facebook critics have said that the world's largest social media platform has been unable to curb hateful language and disinformation about its properties. On Friday, Mark Zuckerberg attempted to control the damage by announcing that the company would label political speeches that violate the rules and take other measures to prevent voter repression and protect minorities from abuse.
If the campaign against Facebook accelerates, it could increase sales pressure on Facebook shares that had risen 18% before the current crisis began. The shares closed at $ 216.08 to end trading week.
2. Micron Technology
Chipmaker Micron Technology (NASDAQ 🙂 will report the fiscal profit for the third quarter of 2020 on Monday, June 29, after closing. The storage chip manufacturer has made an estimated $ 0.75 earnings per share on $ 5.26 billion in revenue.
Weekly chart of micron technology
Micron delivered a strong sales forecast in the May earnings update. The company recently told investors that it has experienced the worst slump in the memory chip industry.
Before the coronavirus outbreak, Wall Street predicted a recovery in demand as the market for computer and smartphone components grew again. In April, Goldman Sachs lowered Micron's shares to neutral by buying, saying at the time that the company's valuation fully reflected its growth prospects.
But upcoming results from Micron, the largest US memory chip manufacturer, may give investors some insight into how the semiconductor industry is performing, especially when most of the global economy is facing recession. On Friday, the stock closed at $ 48.49, after falling more than 1% during the day.
3. Nike
Shares of heavyweight Nike (NYSE 🙂 sportswear may remain under pressure for the next week after the company faces a surprising loss. The world's largest athletic brand had disappointing fiscal fourth quarter sales hurt by the shuttered stores in the United States and much of the world amid the pandemic.
Revenue decreased 38% to $ 6.31 billion in the period ending May, well below the $ 7.38 billion analysts estimate. The loss was $ 0.51 per share, compared to a profit forecast of $ 0.10.
After Nike stocks recovered strongly from the March low, Friday's stock fell more than 7% and closed at $ 93.67. Despite the surprising loss, Nike's e-commerce segment grew; digital revenues grew by 75% last quarter.
In an effort to reduce fears of a protracted slump, the company said about 90% of its global stores are currently open. The company also said that sales for this fiscal year, which runs through May, would change again in the second half of the year, so little would change or any profit could be made.
