U.S. stocks advanced on Friday morning ahead of positive data from the University of Michigan, whose consumer-sentiment index in September was 100.1, higher than August’s level of 96.2. The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded up 0.20% to 26,492, the S&P 500 index rose 0.10% to 2,917, while the Nasdaq Composite Index increased by 0.10% to 8,049.
Shares of CalAmp Corp. (CAMP, Financial) jumped more than 7% on Thursday morning after the company posted second quarter earnings per share of 31 cents on $96.04 million in revenue, reflecting 7.0% year-over-year growth. The company beat earnings estimates by 3 cents and revenue estimations by $0.68 million.
Telematics Systems revenue was $77.1 million due to the growth in Network and OEM products revenue, which registered 37% year-over-year growth. Software & Subscription Services revenue was $18.9 million or 20% of consolidated revenue. Revenue growth was driven by freight transport subscriber additions and the LoJack Italia business.
Moreover, the company announced a partnership with Premier Wireless Solutions to provide telematics and IoT technologies coupled with data analysis to support a scooter-based, vehicle-sharing service that provides on-demand access to environmental friendly transportation alternatives in urban areas across the U.S.
In the trimester, the gross margin was 41.5%, up from 40.1% in the prior quarter.
Gainers
· NVIDIA Corp. (NVDA, Financial)
· Marathon Oil Corp. (MRO, Financial)
· SCANA Corp. (SCG, Financial)
· Conagra Brands Inc. (CAG, Financial)
· Hess Corp. (HES, Financial)
Losers
· Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD, Financial)
· Omnicom Group Inc. (OMC, Financial)
· Mattel Inc. (MAT, Financial)
· International Paper Co. (IP, Financial)
Global markets
The main European stock markets traded lower. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 fell 0.47%, France's CAC 40 lost 0.85%, Germany's Dax retreated 1.52% and Spain's Ibex 35 slid 1.45%.
In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 gained 1.36%, India’s BSE Sensex fell 0.27%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng advanced 0.26% and China's Shanghai Composite gained 1.06%.
Disclosure: The author holds no positions in any stocks mentioned.
