Here’s what’s hot in the market today: A top coffee wholesaler and construction equipment manufacturer were up after reporting strong first quarter earnings. Meanwhile, Spectra Energy Partners (NYSE: SE) took a dip while trying to raise money to acquire a new pipeline. Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDASQ:VRTX), despite promising clinical trial results, fell as well.
Coffee Holding Co. (NASDAQ:JVA) was up almost 42% on almost eight times normal trading by midday. The coffee wholesaler got a huge boost after it announced its operating results for the quarter that ended Apr 30. Net sales totaled more than $37 million in the first quarter of 2011 compared to below $20 million during the same period in 2010. Coffee Holding Co. also announced a quarterly cash dividend of .03-cents to be paid out to shareholders on Jul 18. Shares were trading just above $12 as of this writing.
Spectra Energy Partners (NYSE: SEP) was down more than 3% on almost 28 times normal trading on Thursday. More than 3 million shares in the gas and pipeline system company by midday. The abnormally high volume of trading came after Spectra Energy Partners announced a nearly $31 per share price on more than 6 million units of common stock. Spectra is looking to raise $189 million in the public offering to fund the acquisition of the Big Sandy pipeline from EQT Corporation (NYSE: EQT).
Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: VRTX), the Cambridge, Massachusettes-based biotechnology company known for its flu treatments, was down more than 9% on just less than 6 times normal trading. More than 8 million shares in the company were exchanged by midday, compared to the normal volume of just above 2 million. The high volume trading came after Vertex announced that two new experimental cystic fibrosis drugs had shown promise in the middle of ongoing clinical trials. Shares were trading around $48 by midday, well below the $53 support level.
Titan Machinery (NASDAQ: TITN) was up more than 8% after reporting first quarter earning that stomped analyst expectations. The construction and agriculture equipment manufacturer reported $318 million in revenue for the quarter that ended Apr 30, a 55% increase year-on-year. Profits rose to $52 million compared to $34 million in 2010. More than 1 million shares were traded, almost 3 times the normal volume. Shares were trading just above $29 by midday.
As of this writing, Anthony John Agnello did not own a position in any of the stocks named here. Follow him on Twitter at @ajohnagnello and become a fan of InvestorPlace on Facebook.
