Wall Street Ends Flat after Reopening on Wednesday (NFLX, PVH)

The US markets reopened on Wednesday after being closed for two days. Stocks remained relatively flat with trading volume around 2.76 billion shares on the NYSE. Due to expectation of higher sales, both Home Depot (HD) and Lowe’s (LOW) saw stock surge. Activist investor Carl Ichan bought a large stake in Netflix (NFLX), whose shares jumped 12%. Apple (AAPL) dropped 2% today due to the recent announcements of management changes including the exit of two senior vice presidents. PVH Corp. (PVH) is acquiring Warnaco Group (WRC) for $2.9 billion. European markets ended lower after the euro zone unemployment rate hit another record high of 11.6%. The dollar was down against the euro, but inched slightly to the Japanese yen. Investors look toward Thursday which will bring a large amount of important economic data, including consumer confidence, construction spending and unemployment numbers in the US.

Word on the Street

• The euro zone’s troubles worsen as unemployment hits another record high in September.
• After Icahn buys big stake, shares jump more than 20% for Netflix (NFLX).
• General Motors (GM) reports Q3 pre-tax loss of $500 million, needs to get more global.
• Facebook (FB) slips after another wave shares hit the market from a post-IPO lock-up agreement.
• Oil futures rise again on Wednesday after the markets reopen.
• PVH (PVH) announces acquisition of Warnaco Group (WRC) for $2.8 billion in cash and stock.
• Disney (DIS) to acquire Lucasfilm for $4 billion from CEO George Lucas.
• Hurricane Sandy may have a positive impact the economy through reconstruction and spending activity.

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