Earnings news remained a key driver of individual stocks during Wednesday’s midday trading. This included both Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) and Intuitive Surgical (ISRG), which both dropped following their respective quarterly reports.
In non-earnings news, Shopify (SHOP) gained ground after announcing price increases. Meanwhile, News Corp. (NWS) (NWSA) climbed after ditching a proposal to re-merge with Fox Corp. (FOX) (FOXA).
Decliners
Nasdaq (NDAQ) dropped following the release of its latest quarterly results. Shares of the stock exchange declined more than 6% after its Q4 profit came in below the amount predicted by analysts.
NDAQ also reported disappointing revenue, which rose about 2% from last year to reach $906M. Operating expenses climbed more than expected, rising to $460M.
Earnings news also sparked selling in Intuitive Surgical (ISRG). The maker of robotic surgical products revealed net income that fell 12% from last year, hurt by rising operating expenses. The EPS figure missed analysts’ expectations.
Gainers
Shopify (SHOP) rallied after announcing some pricing increases, sending the stock higher by more than 9% in intraday action. The e-commerce platform said it was increasing the prices for basic, mid-range, and advanced services. For the basic plan, the price is being raised from $29 to $39.
“The price we charge for access to the best tools in commerce has remained largely unchanged for the last 12 years,” COO Kaz Nejatian wrote in a blog post. “Today, after much deliberation, we’re announcing a change in favor of better serving our mission and our merchants.”
News Corp. (NWS) (NWSA) also showed midday strength after company founder Rupert Murdoch scuttled his plan to re-merge NWS with Fox Corp. (FOX) (FOXA). Shares climbed about 5% on the news.
In a letter to the News Corp. board, Murdoch said “a combination is not optimal for shareholders of News Corp and Fox at this time.”
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