Check out the companies making headlines ahead of the hour:
General Mills ( GIS ) – Shares of General Mills rose 1.8% in premarket trading after the food maker raised better-than-expected quarterly profit and its full-year sales forecast. The company expects to benefit from higher prices and stronger demand for cereals, snacks and pet food.
Stitch Fix (SFIX) – Stitch Fix fell 5.9% in premarket trading after reporting a better-than-expected quarterly loss and issuing weaker forecasts. The online clothing styling company expects sales to decline in the short term due to a decline in active customers. Canaccord Genuity downgraded the stock to “hold” from “buy,” complicating the company’s efforts to execute a turnaround targeting a difficult macroeconomic environment.
Beyond Meat (BYND) – Beyond Meat has suspended Chief Operating Officer Doug Ramsey after he was involved in a physical altercation over the weekend that led to charges of third-degree battery and terroristic threats. Jonathan Nelson, senior vice president of manufacturing operations, will take over for Ramsey on an interim basis, the plant-based meat alternative maker said. Beyond Meat fell 1.1% in premarket trading, on top of Tuesday’s 6% slide, its sixth straight day.
DEFENSE STOCKS – Shares of defense contractors rose in the premarket after Russian President Vladimir Putin deployed more troops to Ukraine in what is seen as a major escalation of the Ukraine war. Among the moving stocks: Lockheed Martin ( LMT ), up 2%, Northrop Grumman ( NOC ), up 1.3%, Raytheon Technologies ( RTX ), up 1.2%, and L3 Harris Technologies ( LHX ), up 1.5%.
Estee Lauder (EL) – Estee Lauder gained 1.7% in after-hours trading after Goldman Sachs raised its rating on the cosmetics maker’s stock to “buy” from “neutral” and raised its price target to $303 from $298. Goldman cited recent share price weakness for the move and said uncertainty surrounding the impact of China’s “zero-Covid” policy was already reflected in stock prices.
Coty ( COTY ) – Coty jumped 3.9% in the premarket after the cosmetics maker announced a strategy to double skincare product sales by fiscal 2025. The news comes ahead of the company’s event for investors this morning.
Aurora Cannabis (ACB) – Aurora Cannabis reported a breakeven quarter, on an adjusted basis, surprising analysts who had predicted a quarterly loss. The Canada-based cannabis producer saw overall revenue slightly below expectations but saw a 35.4% increase in international medical cannabis revenue compared to a year ago. Aurora Cannabis lost 2.1% in premarket action.
