The Oil Price Pullback Could Lift These 2 Airline Stocks

A global oil glut caused oil prices to plunge between mid-2014 and early 2016. However, over the past two and a half years, oil has regained a lot of ground. This development has translated into steadily rising jet fuel prices, putting pressure on airlines' profitability.

The oil rally has cooled off this month, over recent reports that have alleviated investors' worries about a serious oil shortage. Lower jet fuel prices should help all of the airlines, but two could benefit disproportionately: Spirit Airlines (NYSE:SAVE) and Alaska Air (NYSE:ALK).

The oil rally takes a breather

Gulf Coast jet fuel prices averaged just $1.42 per gallon in July 2017. However, oil prices rallied dramatically in the second half of 2017 and continued to rise in the first half of this year. As a result, Gulf Coast jet fuel has been going for more than $2 per gallon this month.

Oil prices have risen significantly over the past year. Image source: Getty Images.

Declining petroleum stocks have contributed to the oil rally by eroding the big cushion of excess inventory that had held prices down since 2014. Meanwhile, renewed U.S. sanctions on Iran, plunging production in Venezuela, and civil unrest in other oil-producing countries have combined to pinch supply.

However, some of these supply disruptions have eased recently. Furthermore, U.S. petroleum stocks increased significantly in last week's report, defying expectations. This development caused the price of Brent crude to fall to around $70 per barrel, down from $78 per barrel as recently as July 10.

Gulf Coast jet fuel prices have retreated as well, falling to $2.02 per gallon by last Monday. That's down from a multiyear high of $2.22 per gallon in late May, but still up from $1.90 per gallon at the beginning of 2018.

Spirit Airlines could be the biggest winner

Jet fuel prices also plunged in February, before rocketing to new heights over the next three months. It's possible that the latest dose of price relief for airlines won't last long, either. But if the price of jet fuel remains near recent levels -- or falls further -- Spirit Airlines is likely to be the biggest beneficiary among U.S. airlines.

Lower fuel prices would be a big boon for Spirit Airlines. Image source: Spirit Airlines.

What distinguishes Spirit from its rivals is that it has very low non-fuel unit costs. Fuel is therefore a bigger part of its cost structure. Indeed, in the first quarter of 2018, Spirit Airlines spent 29% of its revenue on fuel, compared with less than 21% at No. 1 airline American Airlines Group.

As a result, changes in the price of jet fuel have a bigger impact on Spirit Airlines' profitability than that of other airlines, holding fare levels constant.

Spirit Airlines stock has surged this month, thanks to an upbeat investor update indicating that second-quarter earnings will be much better than previously expected. Spirit still needs to get unit revenue growing again to fully regain investors' confidence, but if its fuel-cost headwind moderates, it has a good chance of returning to EPS growth in the second half of 2018.

Alaska Air is also set to benefit

Alaska Airlines is much closer to its larger peers than to Spirit Airlines in terms of the role of fuel in its cost structure. In the first quarter, it spent a little more than 22% of its revenue on jet fuel.

However, in the span of two years, Alaska has gone from being the most profitable airline in the U.S. to below average, increasing the impact of small margin swings on its earnings. Its adjusted pre-tax margin was just 1.3% in the first quarter. Based on its most recent guidance, Alaska's Q2 adjusted pre-tax margin probably fell from 24% a year ago to around half that level this year.

Like Spirit Airlines, Alaska's unit revenue has been declining lately. But also like Spirit, Alaska Airlines has a good chance to turn things around starting in the second half of 2018. In the past few months, it has slashed some underperforming routes, with more cuts coming this fall. In addition, merger synergies and the introduction of a "basic economy" product should boost unit revenue growth over the next several quarters.

These moves should enable Alaska to stabilize its profitability within the next few quarters. But facing a smaller fuel-price headwind would allow the carrier to return to profit growth sooner -- potentially helping to lift Alaska Air stock out of the doldrums.

What to Watch For in American Express Earnings

American Express Co. (NYSE: AXP) is scheduled to release its most recent quarterly results after the markets close on Wednesday. The consensus estimates from Thomson Reuters are $1.82 in earnings per share (EPS) on $10.05 billion in revenue. The second quarter of last year reportedly had EPS of $1.47 and $8.31 billion in revenue.

The company began testing a blockchain version of its customer rewards program in May and now will go one step deeper into blockchain development with a patent application related to a proof of payment (PoP) system. The idea behind the system is to provide better evidence of payment transactions between merchants and their customers.

As described in the application, the PoP system comprises a processor, instruction memory and execution space that verifies a payment with a transaction amount and merchant identifier.

Being the first to weave together the parts of a blockchain-based PoP system could pay big dividends to American Express, but not for some time yet. Other big financial services firms also will take a run at this business. American Express wants to be first.

Excluding Wednesday��s move, Amex has outperformed the broad markets in the past 52 weeks, with its stock up about 19%. In just 2018 alone, the stock is up only 2%.

A few analysts weighed in on Amex prior to the release:

Jefferies has a Hold rating with a $105 price target. Stephens has a Hold rating and a $97 price target. Buckingham Research has a Buy rating with a $112 target. Barclays has an Equal Weight rating and a $113 price target. Guggenheim has a Hold rating with a $104 target price.

Shares of Amex were last seen up about 1% at $102.47, with a consensus analyst price target of $109.68 and a 52-week trading range of $83.33 to $103.24.

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5 Mega-Cap S&P 500 Stocks to Buy Now for the Rest of 2018

Europe prepares to hit Google with another huge fine

Europe could soon bring the hammer down on Google.

The European Commission is expected to hit the company with a massive fine over allegations that it pushed its apps on smartphone users and thwarted competitors.

The complaints �� brought by European and American rivals �� have been under investigation since 2015, and a decision will be announced Wednesday, according to multiple media reports. The European Union's top antitrust official Margrethe Vestager is scheduled to address reporters at 7 a.m. ET in Brussels.

The Commission declined to comment ahead of the press conference.

EU regulators have taken a much more adversarial approach to big tech companies than their US counterparts, especially when it comes to competition, data protection and tax issues.

Last year, Google (GOOGL) was hit with a record EU antitrust fine of ��2.4 billion ($2.8 billion) for prioritizing its shopping service over competitors in search. Apple (AAPL), Amazon (AMZN) and Facebook (FB) have also been penalized by European regulators.

The Commission has accused Google of violating antitrust rules by requiring manufacturers to install its apps on smartphones before they are sold. Regulators have also alleged that Google sought to prevent manufacturers from using alternatives to its Android operating system.

The European Union could force the tech company to change its business practices. It could also be fined as much as 10% of its annual global sales, which topped $110 billion in 2017.

Google has argued that its practices have not reduced consumer choice.

Why Spirit Airlines Stock Soared 10% on Thursday

Shares of Spirit Airlines (NYSE:SAVE) skyrocketed yesterday, ending the day with a 10.2% gain. The fast-growing budget airline updated its second-quarter forecast after the market closed on Wednesday, and the news was good.

Spirit Airlines is now in position to exceed analysts' most recent second-quarter earnings per share estimates by a country mile. Clearly, that's great news for investors. Nevertheless, the company needs to return to consistent unit revenue growth in the second half of 2018 to keep this rally going.

The second quarter was better than feared

In late April, Spirit Airlines provided downbeat guidance for the second quarter, undermining a nascent rally for the stock. Management projected that revenue per available seat mile (RASM) would plunge 6.5% to 7.5%, while rising fuel prices would more than offset an impressive 7.5% to 8.5% year-over-year improvement in non-fuel unit costs.

Based on this forecast, analysts were recently projecting that Spirit's second-quarter adjusted EPS would fall to $0.92 from $1.14 a year earlier, despite the benefit of a lower tax rate.

On Wednesday evening, Spirit updated its second-quarter guidance. The company estimates that RASM fell 6.8% year over year, despite capacity growth coming in 1.5 percentage points higher than previously expected, at 30.5%. On the bright side, non-fuel unit costs plunged by about 11%. A shift in the timing of some expenses to the fourth quarter accounted for 1 percentage point of the improvement, but the rest reflected strong cost control.

Spirit Airlines dramatically reduced its non-fuel unit costs last quarter. Image source: Spirit Airlines.

Fuel efficiency also improved significantly, as Spirit Airlines has been adding more fuel-efficient aircraft to its fleet. In fact, fuel consumption was 2.3% below Spirit's original forecast, despite capacity growth coming in higher than expected.

In total, fuel efficiency improved more than 5% year over year, from 85.3 available seat miles per gallon to 89.7 available seat miles per gallon. This was incredibly important, as fuel prices rose even more than expected last quarter.

Spirit is poised for an EPS beat

Spirit Airlines does not provide formal EPS guidance, but the company's forecasts include enough information to create good estimates. Spirit's capacity growth of 30.5%, offset by its 6.8% RASM decline, implies that total revenue rose approximately 21.6% last quarter to $853 million.

Meanwhile, fuel consumption of 106.1 million gallons and an average price of $2.32 per gallon translate to total fuel costs of $246 million. The company disclosed net interest expense of $13.8 million. Lastly, Spirit's adjusted non-fuel operating expenses came in at $425 million in the second quarter of 2017. Based on a 30.5% capacity increase and an 11% decline in non-fuel unit costs, adjusted non-fuel operating expenses increased to around $494 million last quarter.

Totaling up the numbers, Spirit's new forecast implies an adjusted profit of around $99 million before tax and $75 million after tax. That would imply EPS of $1.10: down just slightly year over year, and well ahead of analysts' current estimates.

A return to unit revenue growth is still essential

While investors' current excitement is understandable, it's important to note that non-fuel unit cost improvements will be far more modest going forward at Spirit Airlines. As of late April, the carrier expected a mid-single-digit decline in non-fuel unit costs for the third quarter, followed by a low-single-digit increase in the fourth quarter. Furthermore, fuel costs are set to remain a major headwind at least through the end of the year.

This highlights the importance of Spirit Airlines returning to unit revenue growth. Without unit revenue growth, the recent increases in jet fuel prices will cause severe margin erosion.

Fortunately, Spirit's unit revenue trajectory could be about to improve dramatically. First, the carrier will face much easier comparisons going forward. Spirit Airlines posted a 0.9% RASM increase in the first half of 2017, including a 5.7% increase in the second quarter. By contrast, RASM fell 6.3% in the third quarter and 1.8% in the fourth quarter.

Second, Spirit Airlines' growth rate will slow dramatically toward the end of 2018. In April, management estimated that Spirit would increase its capacity 26% year over year in the third quarter and just 13% to 15% in the fourth quarter.

Other airlines are equally motivated to boost unit revenue growth and have started to trim capacity in September and beyond. That could pave the way for Spirit Airlines to achieve the unit revenue growth it so desperately needs in the second half of 2018.

Head-To-Head Survey: OMV (OMVJF) versus HOPEWELL HOLDIN/ADR (HOWWY)

OMV (OTCMKTS: OMVJF) and HOPEWELL HOLDIN/ADR (OTCMKTS:HOWWY) are both oils/energy companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, analyst recommendations, earnings, dividends, profitability, risk and institutional ownership.

Volatility & Risk

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OMV has a beta of 0.43, meaning that its stock price is 57% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, HOPEWELL HOLDIN/ADR has a beta of 0.57, meaning that its stock price is 43% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares OMV and HOPEWELL HOLDIN/ADR’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
OMV	1.09%	10.97%	5.13%
HOPEWELL HOLDIN/ADR	N/A	N/A	N/A

Dividends

HOPEWELL HOLDIN/ADR pays an annual dividend of $0.13 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.8%. OMV does not pay a dividend.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for OMV and HOPEWELL HOLDIN/ADR, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
OMV	0	0	0	0	N/A
HOPEWELL HOLDIN/ADR	0	0	0	0	N/A

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares OMV and HOPEWELL HOLDIN/ADR’s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
OMV	$22.84 billion	0.81	$608.10 million	$5.61	10.04
HOPEWELL HOLDIN/ADR	$303.95 million	9.79	$252.80 million	N/A	N/A

OMV has higher revenue and earnings than HOPEWELL HOLDIN/ADR.

Summary

OMV beats HOPEWELL HOLDIN/ADR on 5 of the 8 factors compared between the two stocks.

About OMV

OMV Aktiengesellschaft operates as an integrated oil and gas company. It operates in two segments, Upstream and Downstream. The Upstream segment explores for, develops, and produces oil and gas resources primarily in Romania and Black Sea, Austria, North Sea, Australasia, Russia, the Middle East, and Africa. As of December 31, 2017, this segment had proved oil and gas reserve of 1,146 million barrels of oil equivalent; and proved and probable oil and gas reserves of 1,943 million barrels of oil equivalent. The Downstream segment refines, processes, and sells petroleum products to commercial and private customers. This segment operates refineries in Schwechat, Austria; Burghausen, Germany; and Petrobrazi, Romania with an annual processing capacity of 17.8 million metric tons, as well as operates a retail network of approximately 2,039 filling stations in 10 countries. This segment also engages in gas transit, as well as gas storage, marketing, and trading businesses. It operates a gas pipeline network; gas storage facilities with a capacity of 2.7 billion cubic meters; and 2 gas-fired power plants in Romania and Turkey. OMV Aktiengesellschaft was founded in 1956 and is headquartered in Vienna, Austria.

About HOPEWELL HOLDIN/ADR

Hopewell Holdings Limited (?HHL?), the Hong Kong-based group, was listed on The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong in 1972. HHL and its subsidiaries are active in the fields of property development and investment, investment in infrastructure projects, hotel investment and management, restaurant operations and food catering.

Uber's HR chief steps down after discrimination probe

Uber's head of human resources has resigned following an internal investigation into how she handled claims of racial discrimination within the company.

Chief People Officer Liane Hornsey announced her departure in an email she sent to employees on Tuesday. An Uber spokesperson confirmed Hornsey's resignation, first reported by Reuters, and the investigation that prompted it, but would not elaborate on the claims against her.

According to Reuters, an anoymous group of employees, all of them people of color, alleged that Hornsey used "discriminatory language" and made "derogatory comments" about high-level executives at Uber.

"We are confident that the investigation was conducted in an unbiased, thorough and credible manner, and that the conclusions of the investigation were addressed appropriately," an Uber spokesperson said in a statement to CNNMoney.

Hornsey, who joined the company in January, 2017, did not address the probe in her email. "By now you'll have seen the news that I've decided to leave Uber. I know this comes a little out of the blue for some of you, but I have been thinking about this for a while," she wrote in the email, obtained by CNNMoney.

Hornsey could not be reached for comment.

Her departure comes as CEO Dara Khosrowshahi scrambles to change a corporate culture many have described as toxic. Uber has grappled with a string of scandals, including widespread allegations of gender and sexual harassment that led to co-founder Travis Kalanick's resignation as CEO in June 2017.

Larry Johnson, an expert on corporate culture, said Hornsey's departure shows Uber is still in "hot water."

"I'm glad to see Uber is trying to turn things around from the way it was last year," said Johnson, who is the author of a book about corporate culture and integrity called "Absolute Honesty." "If she's guilty as charged, then that's a step in the right direction."

Khosrowshahi praised Hornsey in an email he sent to employees, but did not mention the investigation or allegations against her.

"Liane is incredibly talented, creative, and hard-working. She's been a valuable member of my leadership team and I wish her nothing but the best," he wrote in the email, obtained by CNNMoney.

Khosrowshahi hailed several of her accomplishments, including releasing Uber's first diversity report and hiring a chief diversity and inclusion officer. She also played a role in the company's effort to ensure all employees are paid equally based on their location, role, and tenure at Uber. Such efforts are part of Khosrowshahi's ongoing campaign to burnish the company's image, and the allegations against Hornsey show how big a challenge he faces.

"These are huge issues they've been struggling with," said Cindy Schipani, a professor of business administration and law at the University of Michigan. "The culture still has a lot of room for improvement."

CNNMoney's Sara Ashley O'Brien contributed to this report.

RadiSys (RSYS) Sees Strong Trading Volume

RadiSys Co. (NASDAQ:RSYS) saw an uptick in trading volume on Monday . 3,524,786 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 361% from the previous session’s volume of 765,060 shares.The stock last traded at $1.57 and had previously closed at $1.51.

A number of research firms have issued reports on RSYS. Roth Capital reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $6.00 price target on shares of RadiSys in a research report on Monday. Northland Securities downgraded RadiSys from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 3rd. DA Davidson downgraded RadiSys from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 2nd. Zacks Investment Research raised RadiSys from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $0.75 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 26th. Finally, ValuEngine raised RadiSys from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 2nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. RadiSys has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $3.13.

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The company has a market capitalization of $59.54 million, a P/E ratio of -2.82 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 18.71.

RadiSys (NASDAQ:RSYS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 1st. The technology company reported ($0.08) EPS for the quarter, topping the Zacks’ consensus estimate of ($0.10) by $0.02. The company had revenue of $26.19 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $24.43 million. RadiSys had a negative return on equity of 100.29% and a negative net margin of 40.08%. research analysts forecast that RadiSys Co. will post -0.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its stake in shares of RadiSys by 171.9% during the first quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 234,416 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $150,000 after purchasing an additional 148,216 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its stake in shares of RadiSys by 247.7% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 186,000 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $187,000 after purchasing an additional 132,500 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of RadiSys during the fourth quarter worth about $200,000. Ancora Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of RadiSys by 19.7% during the first quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 709,312 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $455,000 after purchasing an additional 116,565 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its stake in shares of RadiSys by 76.7% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 454,623 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $457,000 after purchasing an additional 197,342 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 32.40% of the company’s stock.

About RadiSys

Radisys Corporation provides telecom solutions worldwide. It operates in two segments, Software-Systems and Hardware Solutions. The company's products include MediaEngine products that provide media processing capabilities required for applications, such as voice over long-term evolution (VoLTE), voice over Wi-Fi, Web real-time communication, and multimedia conferencing, as well as media interworking; and MobilityEngine, Its MobilityEngine products portfolio provide solutions for 4G, LTE-Advance and emerging 5G standards for RAN use cases, including Centralized, Virtualized and multi access edge compute (MEC).

Fluor Co. (NEW) (FLR) Upgraded at Zacks Investment Research

Fluor Co. (NEW) (NYSE:FLR) was upgraded by Zacks Investment Research from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report released on Wednesday. The firm currently has a $54.00 price target on the construction company’s stock. Zacks Investment Research‘s target price would indicate a potential upside of 11.55% from the stock’s current price.

According to Zacks, “Fluor’s leading position in nuclear remediation at government facilities bodes well for its future growth. Its market diversity as well as strong focus on streamlining business structure to boost profitability is expected to boost growth, going forward. Notably, the company’s leading position in nuclear remediation at government facilities bodes well for its future growth. Also, stabilizing commodity prices and gradual improvement in energy and mining sectors are anticipated to unlock further opportunities for growth. However, over the past three months, the company’s shares have underperformed the industry. Also, the company is suffering from below-par performance in Mining, Industrial, Infrastructure & Power and Energy & Chemicals businesses. Over the past few quarters, Fluor has been witnessing continuous backlog erosion as well, which adds to its concerns.”

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Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Bank of America upgraded shares of Fluor Co. (NEW) from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $58.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 9th. Citigroup set a $69.00 price target on shares of Fluor Co. (NEW) and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 4th. TheStreet downgraded shares of Fluor Co. (NEW) from a “b” rating to a “c” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 3rd. ValuEngine upgraded shares of Fluor Co. (NEW) from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 17th. Finally, Barclays set a $60.00 price target on shares of Fluor Co. (NEW) and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. The company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $53.32.

Shares of Fluor Co. (NEW) traded down $0.18, hitting $48.41, during midday trading on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. 417,250 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,194,396. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.83 billion, a PE ratio of 29.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. Fluor Co. has a 12 month low of $37.03 and a 12 month high of $62.09.

Fluor Co. (NEW) (NYSE:FLR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 3rd. The construction company reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.81 by ($0.25). Fluor Co. (NEW) had a net margin of 0.58% and a return on equity of 11.08%. The company had revenue of $4.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.69 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.43 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. research analysts anticipate that Fluor Co. will post 2.88 earnings per share for the current year.

In other news, Director Peter J. Fluor bought 50,000 shares of Fluor Co. (NEW) stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 8th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $44.54 per share, for a total transaction of $2,227,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 141,120 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,285,484.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its holdings in Fluor Co. (NEW) by 0.5% during the first quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 1,034,793 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $59,210,000 after purchasing an additional 5,100 shares during the last quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Fluor Co. (NEW) by 25.0% during the first quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 18,791 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $537,000 after purchasing an additional 3,754 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Fluor Co. (NEW) by 1.6% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 215,669 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $12,340,000 after purchasing an additional 3,437 shares during the last quarter. Atlantic Trust Group LLC lifted its holdings in Fluor Co. (NEW) by 16,314.1% during the first quarter. Atlantic Trust Group LLC now owns 10,505 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $601,000 after purchasing an additional 10,441 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in Fluor Co. (NEW) by 147.3% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 474,609 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $27,157,000 after purchasing an additional 282,699 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.54% of the company’s stock.

About Fluor Co. (NEW)

Fluor Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides engineering, procurement, construction, fabrication and modularization, commissioning and maintenance, and project management services worldwide. It operates through four segments: Energy, Chemicals & Mining; Industrial, Infrastructure & Power; Diversified Services; and Government.

Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on Fluor Co. (NEW) (FLR)

For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

Hot Stocks To Invest In Right Now

tags:PYDS,NTAP,ATRA,DGICB,SUMR, &l;p&g;One of Asia&a;rsquo;s biggest digital currency exchanges &a;ndash; Coincheck &l;span&g;&a;ndash;&l;/span&g; has admitted the loss of around $534 million worth of cryptocurrency following an attack on its network.

The Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan-based company said hackers broke in at 02:57am local time on Friday (12:57pm EST on Thursday, 25 January). However, the breach went undetected for nearly another eight and half hours.

Most of the losses pertain to a lesser-known cryptocurrency NEM; the world&a;rsquo;s&a;nbsp;tenth-largest by market value. As an interim measure Coincheck has suspended deposits and withdrawals for all cryptocurrencies, except Bitcoin, as it attempts to get a handle on the situation.

&l;img class=&q;size-large wp-image-1776&q; src=&q;http://blogs-images.forbes.com/gauravsharma/files/2016/04/Shibuya-Crossing-Tokyo-Japan-G-Sharma-March-2016-1200x900.jpg?width=960&q; alt=&q;&q; data-height=&q;900&q; data-width=&q;1200&q;&g;&l;em&g;Shibuya Crossing with 109 Shopping Mall in the background, Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan &a;copy; Gaurav Sharma, March 2016&l;/em&g;

Hot Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Payment Data Systems, Inc.(PYDS)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  Euronet Worldwide (NASDAQ: EEFT) and Payment Data Systems (NASDAQ:PYDS) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, valuation, profitability, risk, dividends and earnings.

• [By Shane Hupp]

  Euronet Worldwide (NASDAQ: EEFT) and Payment Data Systems (NASDAQ:PYDS) are both finance companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, earnings, institutional ownership, risk, dividends, valuation and profitability.

• [By Logan Wallace]

  Net 1 UEPS Technologies (NASDAQ: UEPS) and Payment Data Systems (NASDAQ:PYDS) are both small-cap industrial products companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, earnings, risk, profitability, dividends, analyst recommendations and valuation.

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  Here are some of the news headlines that may have effected Accern Sentiment Analysis’s rankings:

  Get Payment Data Systems alerts: Euronet Worldwide (EEFT) versus Payment Data Systems (PYDS) Financial Comparison (americanbankingnews.com) Payment Data Systems (PYDS) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.06 EPS (americanbankingnews.com) Payment Data Systems’ (PYDS) CEO Louis Hoch Q1 2018 Results – Earnings Call Transcript (seekingalpha.com) Edited Transcript of PYDS earnings conference call or presentation 15-May-18 9:00pm GMT (finance.yahoo.com) Payment Data Systems Announces Results for the First Quarter of 2018 (finance.yahoo.com)

  NASDAQ:PYDS traded up $0.03 on Friday, reaching $1.75. 66,441 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 170,972. Payment Data Systems has a 12 month low of $1.17 and a 12 month high of $4.10.

Hot Stocks To Invest In Right Now: NetApp Inc.(NTAP)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Logan Wallace]

  Pivotal Research set a $74.00 price target on NetApp (NASDAQ:NTAP) in a research note released on Wednesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the data storage provider’s stock.

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  NetApp Inc. (NASDAQ:NTAP) CEO George Kurian sold 30,253 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.52, for a total value of $2,042,682.56. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  NetApp (NASDAQ:NTAP) received a $83.00 price objective from DA Davidson in a research note issued on Thursday. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the data storage provider’s stock. DA Davidson’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 23.60% from the company’s current price. DA Davidson also issued estimates for NetApp’s Q1 2019 earnings at $0.66 EPS, Q2 2019 earnings at $0.75 EPS, Q4 2019 earnings at $0.88 EPS, FY2019 earnings at $3.11 EPS, Q1 2020 earnings at $0.80 EPS, Q2 2020 earnings at $0.86 EPS, Q3 2020 earnings at $0.94 EPS, Q4 2020 earnings at $1.03 EPS and FY2020 earnings at $3.65 EPS.

• [By Max Byerly]

  Amundi Pioneer Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in NetApp Inc. (NASDAQ:NTAP) by 22.3% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 381,020 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 69,530 shares during the quarter. Amundi Pioneer Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in NetApp were worth $23,505,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

• [By Lisa Levin]

  Check out these big penny stock gainers and losers

  Losers Recro Pharma, Inc. (NASDAQ: REPH) fell 50.3 percent to $6.17 in pre-market trading after the company received a Complete Response Letter from the FDA. The FDA declined to approve the company’s New Drug Application for IV meloxicam. Westell Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: WSTL) shares fell 16.5 percent to $2.89 in pre-market trading after the company announced Q4 results. Melinta Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: MLNT) fell 16.5 percent to $5.20 in pre-market trading after reporting pricing of public offering of common stock. Westmoreland Resource Partners, LP (NYSE: WMLP) fell 11 percent to $3.49 in pre-market trading after surging 194.03 percent on Wednesday. Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. - Petrobras (NYSE: PBR) shares fell 11 percent to $13.45 in pre-market trading. Petrobras announced plans to lower the cost of diesel by 10 percent. Sanderson Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ: SAFM) shares fell 9.4 percent to $97 in pre-market trading after the company reported weaker-than-expected results for its second quarter. Zealand Pharma A/S (NASDAQ: ZEAL) fell 6.9 percent to $15.55 in pre-market trading after rising 2.71 percent on Wednesday. L Brands, Inc. (NYSE: LB) shares fell 6.7 percent to $31.76 in pre-market trading after the company reported weaker-than-expected earnings for its first quarter. The company issued weak second quarter and FY18 earnings guidance. ReTo Eco-Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ: RETO) shares fell 5.9 percent to $4.78 in pre-market trading. Qiwi plc (NASDAQ: QIWI) fell 5.9 percent to $17.52 in pre-market trading. Eiger Biopharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ: EIGR) fell 5 percent to $13.25 in pre-market trading after reporting a proposed offering of common stock. Best Buy Co Inc (NYSE: BBY) shares fell 4.3 percent to $72.66 in pre-market trading. Best Buy reported better-than-expected earnings for its first quarter. NetApp Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP) fell 4.1 percent to $64.
• [By Logan Wallace]

  Wells Fargo & Co reiterated their positive rating on shares of NetApp (NASDAQ:NTAP) in a research note released on Wednesday. They currently have a $80.00 price objective on the data storage provider’s stock.

Hot Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc.(ATRA)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Chris Lange]

  Atara Biotherapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: ATRA) shares surged on Friday after the firm announced that it received clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to initiate two Phase 3 clinical studies. Specifically these mid-stage studies deal with tabelecleucel in patients with rituximab-refractory Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) associated post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder (EBV+PTLD).

• [By ]

  Atara BioTherapeutics (Nasdaq: ATRA) is a leading T-cell immunotherapy company located in San Francisco. The company is developing cutting edge treatments for patients with various types of cancer. And the company is on the verge of a major breakthrough by attempting to become the first company with a scalable adoptive cell therapy for cancer �� something no other company has been able to accomplish.

• [By Keith Speights]

  There are more small-cap biotech stocks than any investor can realistically keep up with. But three stocks I think you'll want to keep on your radar are�Abeona Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ABEO), Atara Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:ATRA), and Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX). Here's why these small-cap biotech stocks are worth monitoring closely.�

• [By Max Byerly]

  Atara Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:ATRA) SVP Derrell Porter sold 1,544 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.15, for a total value of $61,991.60. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 12,500 shares in the company, valued at $501,875. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Hot Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Donegal Group, Inc.(DGICB)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  Media headlines about Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICB) have been trending somewhat positive on Thursday, Accern reports. Accern ranks the sentiment of press coverage by analyzing more than twenty million news and blog sources. Accern ranks coverage of companies on a scale of negative one to one, with scores closest to one being the most favorable. Donegal Group earned a news impact score of 0.13 on Accern’s scale. Accern also assigned news stories about the insurance provider an impact score of 47.2596177658095 out of 100, meaning that recent press coverage is somewhat unlikely to have an effect on the stock’s share price in the near term.

Hot Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Summer Infant Inc.(SUMR)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Max Byerly]

  Here are some of the news headlines that may have effected Accern’s rankings:

  Get Summer Infant alerts: How Financially Strong Is Summer Infant Inc (NASDAQ:SUMR)? (finance.yahoo.com) Summer Infant, Inc. (SUMR) Director Buys $10,800.00 in Stock (americanbankingnews.com) Head-To-Head Survey: Summer Infant (SUMR) vs. Smiths Group (SMGZY) (americanbankingnews.com) Summer Infant Announces Upcoming Investor Events (finance.yahoo.com) Summer Infant, Inc. (SUMR) Receives Average Rating of “Strong Buy” from Analysts (americanbankingnews.com)

  SUMR has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Zacks Investment Research upgraded shares of Summer Infant from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 25th. ValuEngine cut shares of Summer Infant from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Finally, Roth Capital reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Summer Infant in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Summer Infant presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $2.50.

• [By Lisa Levin] Gainers Oragenics, Inc. (NYSE: OGEN) shares surged 66.67 percent to close at $2.00 on Wednesday after the company’s AG013 for oral mucositis in head and neck cancer patients showed favorable safety profile in mid-stage OM study. Sigma Labs, Inc. (NASDAQ: SGLB) shares jumped 49.24 percent to close at $1.97 on Wednesday. Sigma Labs demonstrated proof of concept for closed loop quality control during metal additive manufacturing. ASLAN Pharmaceuticals Limited (NASDAQ: ASLN) rose 34.45 percent to close at $9.21. BTIG Research initiated coverage on ASLAN Pharmaceuticals with a Buy rating. Dick's Sporting Goods, Inc. (NYSE: DKS) shares rose 25.82 percent to close at $38.35 after the company reported upbeat Q1 earnings and raised FY18 earnings outlook. TapImmune, Inc. (NASDAQ: TPIV) rose 24.15 percent to close at $5.09. WBB Securities upgraded TapImmune from Speculative Buy to Buy. Legacy Reserves LP (NASDAQ: LGCY) jumped 23.3 percent to close at $5.98 on Wednesday. Summer Infant, Inc. (NASDAQ: SUMR) gained 22.92 percent to close at $1.18 after announcing commitment for $60 million credit facility from Bank of America and $17.5 million term loan from Pathlight Capital. Cloud Peak Energy Inc. (NYSE: CLD) rose 21.95 percent to close at $4.00. SpartanNash Co (NASDAQ: SPTN) gained 21.4 percent to close at $22.92 after the company reported upbeat earnings for its first quarter on Tuesday. Motus GI Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: MOTS) rose 17.14 percent to close at $5.40. Movado Group, Inc. (NYSE: MOV) gained 16.59 percent to close at $49.20 after the company reported better-than-expected Q1 results and raised its guidance. Oramed Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ORMP) climbed 15.61 percent to close at $8.22. Oramed Pharma disclosed that its patent has been allowed in the US for oral administration of proteins. Dorian LPG Ltd. (NYSE: LPG) rose 14.89 percent to close at $8.41. Dorian LPG confirmed receipt of unsolicited proposal fr
• [By Lisa Levin] Gainers Sigma Labs, Inc. (NASDAQ: SGLB) shares rose 90.9 percent to $2.52. Sigma Labs demonstrated proof of concept for closed loop quality control during metal additive manufacturing. Oragenics, Inc. (NYSE: OGEN) shares surged 58.4 percent to $1.9005 after the company’s AG013 for oral mucositis in head and neck cancer patients showed favorable safety profile in mid-stage OM study. Dick's Sporting Goods, Inc. (NYSE: DKS) shares climbed 23.2 percent to $37.5370 after the company reported upbeat Q1 earnings and raised FY18 earnings outlook. Summer Infant, Inc. (NASDAQ: SUMR) rose 21.9 percent to $1.17 after announcing commitment for $60 million credit facility from Bank of America and $17.5 million term loan from Pathlight Capital. TapImmune, Inc. (NASDAQ: TPIV) jumped 18.8 percent to $4.87. WBB Securities upgraded TapImmune from Speculative Buy to Buy. Movado Group, Inc. (NYSE: MOV) gained 17.2 percent to $49.45 after the company reported better-than-expected Q1 results and raised its guidance. ASLAN Pharmaceuticals Limited (NASDAQ: ASLN) jumped 16.2 percent to $7.96. BTIG Research initiated coverage on ASLAN Pharmaceuticals with a Buy rating. Legacy Reserves LP (NASDAQ: LGCY) rose 15.5 percent to $5.6011. InspireMD, Inc. (NYSE: NSPR) gained 13.3 percent to $1.36 following PR announcing sustained benefit of CGuard EPS. Immutep Limited (NASDAQ: IMMP) shares climbed 13.2 percent to $2.7724 after the company reported new data from its ongoing TACTI-mel Phase I trial, which evaluated the combination of eftilagimod alpha, its lead compound, with Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE: MRK)'s Keytruda in unresectable or metastatic melanoma patients, who have had a suboptimal response or had disease progression with keytruda monotherapy.. SpartanNash Co (NASDAQ: SPTN) rose 12.2 percent to $21.20 after the company reported upbeat earnings for its first quarter on Tuesday. Amtech Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: ASYS) rose 12.1 percent to