Yahoo Finance Greek debt endgame; Chinese correction; Goodbye Martha Stewart?
Investors ending the week with one eye on the 3-day rally that led the Nasdaq (^IXIC) to a record and another on the situation in Greece, as the long-running drama over the country's debt crisis may be coming to a climax.
Yahoo Finance Senior Columnist Michael Santoli feels Wall Street still isn't overly concerned about a possible Greek default and exit from the Euro Zone.
"It's hard for investors here to draw a very direct chain of events that's going to compromise corporate cash flows here," he says. "Obviously it could create a little bit of stress in the European banking system, but I don't think right now investors are inclined to pre-panic about that sort of thing because we've been living with this threat for five years."
Related: Traders channel Bill Murray on Greece, China: 'It just doesn't matter'
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Hershey job cuts
Here’s a look at some of the stocks the Yahoo Finance team will be watching for you today.
Hershey (HSY) shares are lower in early trading. The chocolate maker lowered its sales and profit outlook for the year due to a slowdown in growth in China. Hershey also said it would cut 300 jobs by the end of 2015. And the company is creating a global leadership team to help tackle growth in emerging markets.
Fogo De Chao is getting ready to make its Wall Street debut this morning. The Brazilian steak house priced its initial public offering above its expected range at $20 dollars a share Thursday. That values the company at roughly $545 million. The stock is set to list on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “FOGO."
Related: Hershey falls on sour outlook; Fogo De Chao serves Wall St; ConAgra up on activist stake
ConAgra (CAG) shares are up sharply in early trading after activist investor Jana Partners bought a 7.2% stake in the packaged food company, according to an SEC filing. The hedge fund called ConAgra's shares "undervalued" and is seeking to change directors on its board.
Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia (MSO) shares remain in focus today after surging more 26% yesterday following news that retail licensing firm Sequential Brands Group is close to buying the media and merchandise company. The Wall Street Journal reported the deal could be announced within days. Sequential Brands (SQBG) shares are adding to yesterday’s more than 12% gain this morning.
Startups open up to small investors
Starting today, small investors can participate in equity funding for startups seeking to raise up to $50 million dollars. Until now, only accredited investors had the ability to buy shares through crowdfunding. The new rules, which implement provisions of the JOBS Act, set out to ease securities laws on fundraising for new ventures.
Related: ‘Mini-IPOs’ now open to the public
American Express (AXP) is lifting rules that prohibit merchants from steering customers to other credit card brands. In February, a federal judge ruled that AmEx’s restrictions were anticompetitive, and this week, another court denied the company's request to keep the rules in place pending its appeal.
Twitter's (TWTR) upcoming initiative, called Project Lightning, will allow users to follow events rather than people. Meanwhile, YouTube (GOOGL) is launching a service called Newswire, which will feature eyewitness videos of breaking news.
