Wednesday saw the markets get another lift from oil. Crude oil gained 1.3%, helping push the major indices to modest improvements, including a 0.4% lift in the S&P 500.
A few late headlines on Wednesday has put the spotlight on a few companies, including Semtech Corporation (NASDAQ:SMTC), Cara Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:CARA) and Pure Storage Inc (NYSE:PSTG).
Here’s what you should know heading into today’s trading:
Semtech Corporation (SMTC)
Semtech enjoyed a late surge Wednesday following the company’s fourth-quarter financial results, sending SMTC stock soaring 13.8% in after-hours trading.
The semiconductor supplier reported earnings of 17 cents per share for the quarter, exceeding the Wall Street consensus estimate by a penny. Additionally, Semtech posted revenue of $118.60 million in the period, compared to analysts expectations of $116.08 million.
While SMTC is expected to open Thursday in a big way, the action will follow a 3.3% drop Wednesday that came on news that CFO Emeka Chukwu sold off part of his position, unloading 3,000 shares in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 1.
Habit Restaurants Inc (HABT)
Habit Restaurants also announced its earnings results for its fourth quarter ended December 29, 2015. The company posted revenue of $60.6 million compared to $48.4 million for the year-ago period.
Net income was $1.3 million, compared to $600,00 in the fourth quarter of 2014. Company-operated comparable restaurant sales increased 3.3% compared to the year-ago period.
HABT stock was up 2.93% at the bell Wednesday, but shares plummeted about 11% in after-hours trading following the casual restaurant chain’s financial results.
Habit Restaurants opened 13 restaurants in the fourth quarter, ending the year with a total of 142 outlets (137 company-owned, five franchised.)
Pure Storage Inc (PSTG)
Pure Storage posted its fourth-quarter results for the period ended Jan. 31, causing PSTG stock to soar more than 4% in after-hours trading following a 4.61% surge earlier in the day.
The enterprise data flash storage company reported a loss of 12 cents per share, beating analysts’ expectations of 16 cents per share. Pure Storage’s revenue for the period was $150.2 million, exceeding the Wall Street consensus estimate of $138.6 million.
“The business continues to run on all cylinders fueled by the rapid worldwide adoption of FlashArray combined with improved operating efficiency as we scale,” CEO Scott Dietzen said in a statement this afternoon.
Pure Storage also posted its outlook for fiscal 2017, expecting revenue in the range of $685 million to $725 million, higher than analysts’ estimates of $667 million.
As of this writing, Karl Utermohlen did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities.
