On this episode of Stock Movers:

- Lowes (LOW) shares slipped even though comparable sales beat expectations during the latest quarter, as shoppers maintained home spending despite weakening consumer sentiment and economic turbulence. The home-improvement retailer said its comparable sales dipped 1.7% in the quarter that ended May 2, but it still expects the key sales metric to be flat to up to 1% in the current year. The comparable sales decrease came amid poor weather in February, along with continued pressure on the retailer’s higher-cost discretionary sales and do-it-yourself business, Chief Executive Officer Marvin Ellison said on the company’s earnings call. The decrease was offset in part by growth in online sales and the firm’s Pro business, which caters to home-improvement contractors.

- Moderna (MRNA) slumped after the biotechnology company said it has “voluntarily” withdrawn its application for regulatory approval for its combination Covid and flu shot for people 50 and over, a setback for the company. Moderna said it made the decision after consulting with the Food and Drug Administration. It plans to resubmit the application later this year after getting more data from a late-stage trial of its standalone flu vaccine, it said in a statement Wednesday. The move is a disruption to Moderna’s broader strategy to boost vaccine demand. It developed the combination shot because it believes that packaging two immunizations together will lead to higher uptake of Covid shots, which are far less popular than flu shots.

- VF Corp. (VFC) shares fell after forecasting a bigger-than-expected loss and warning investors it’s been rushing products to the US to beat the 90-day window of tariff pauses from the Trump administration. The owner of brands such as Timberland and Vans sees an operating loss of as much as $125 million for this quarter. Analysts on average expected a loss of $73.1 million. The company said it’s been accelerating production and shipments to the US during the pause on tariffs, which ends in July. That could increase costs even more for VF and the retailers that buy its products.

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On this episode of Stock Movers:

Listen for comprehensive cross-platform coverage of the US market close as heard on Bloomberg Television, Bloomberg Radio, and YouTube with Romaine Bostick, Alix Steel, Scarlet Fu, Carol Massar and Tim Stenovec.

• Alphabet (GOOGL) shares gained after the company said it will offer “AI mode” in search to all US users, showing its commitment to redesigning its core business to keep pace with new rivals in the artificial intelligence age. “We want to get our best models into your hands,” Chief Executive Officer Sundar Pichai said Tuesday at the company’s developer conference in Mountain View, California. “So we are shipping faster than ever.” Alphabet’s stock rose much as 5.6% on Wednesday after some analysts expressed confidence that the company can reorient its search product.
• Apple (AAPL) shares slumped on the news that OpenAI will acquire an AI device startup co-founded by former Apple veteran Jony Ive in a nearly $6.5 billion all-stock deal, joining forces with the legendary designer to make a push into hardware. The purchase — the largest in OpenAI’s history — will provide the company with a dedicated unit for developing AI-powered devices. Acquiring the secretive startup, named io, also will secure the services of Ive and other former Apple designers who were behind iconic products such as the iPhone. For the British-born designer, the move marks a high-profile return to a consumer technology industry he helped pioneer. Working for years alongside Steve Jobs, he crafted the look and feel of the modern smartphone, in addition to the iPod, iPad and Apple Watch. He left Apple in 2019.
• Target (TGT) shares fell today after it cut its sales forecast following a sharp pullback in consumer spending and a hit from tariffs and boycotts. The report raised questions over CEO Brian Cornell’s ability to recapture growth after two years of choppy results — especially as economic turbulence is growing. “It’s a great brand. It’s actually a great company. It just looks to us like it needs a new leadership,” said Bill Smead, chief investment officer of Smead Capital Management, which has owned the stock since 2017.Target’s current management has struggled to navigate through cultural and political landscapes, Smead said, referring to the backlash around its Pride collection in 2023 and boycott calls after the company decided to halt diversity initiatives this year.

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On this episode of Stock Movers:

- UnitedHealth (UNH) shares plunged today after the Guardian reported that the health insurer secretly paid nursing homes to reduce hospital transfers for ailing residents. Nursing home residents who needed immediate hospital care under the program failed to receive it, after interventions from UnitedHealth staffers, the Guardian reported. In the report, UnitedHealth told the Guardian that the suggestion that its employees have prevented hospital transfers “is verifiably false” and that its bonus payments to nursing homes help prevent unnecessary hospitalizations.

- Canada Goose (GOOS) shares are up after the outerwear maker reported fiscal fourth quarter revenue and adjusted earnings per share that beat analyst estimates. The company said it would not provide an outlook for fiscal 2026, citing “ongoing macroeconomic uncertainty and dynamic consumer spending patterns brought on by the unpredictable global trade environment.”

- Target (TGT) shares fell as the company missed its first quarter revenue estimates. Now the pressure is growing on Target's chief executive officer after the retailer cut its sales forecast following a sharp pullback in consumer spending and a hit from tariffs and boycotts. The report sent shares falling and raised questions over Brian Cornell’s ability to recapture growth after two years of choppy results — especially as economic turbulence is growing. “It’s a great brand. It’s actually a great company. It just looks to us like it needs a new leadership,” said Bill Smead, chief investment officer of Smead Capital Management, which has owned the stock since 2017.

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