Take a look at the companies making headlines in midday trading. Intel – Shares of Intel fell 7% after the technology giant disclosed an operating loss of $7 billion in 2023 at its semiconductor manufacturing, or foundry, business. Spotify Technology – Shares of the music streaming company rose more than 5%. Bloomberg reports that Spotify is raising prices on its premium subscription service in several markets, including the United States. The increase will be the second time the company has raised prices in a year. Ulta Beauty – Shares of the beauty retailer fell more than 13%. Ulta warned at a conference that category growth is slowing faster than expected and that it expects sales to slow this year after a period of “very strong growth.” Dave & Buster’s – Shares of Dave & Buster’s rose 11% after the restaurant and entertainment chain increased its stock repurchase authorization by $100 million, bringing the total available stock repurchase authorization to $200 million. However, the company also reported lower-than-expected fourth-quarter profit and revenue. Wolfspeed – Shares of the semiconductor company fell more than 4% after Wells Fargo downgraded the stock to equal weight from overweight. Wolfspeed’s Tesla exposure could hurt growth, the company said. Maine, Calif. – Egg producers rose 2.5%. Cal-Maine reported earnings of $3 per share on revenue of $703 million in its most recent quarter, while noting that market prices were higher due to the pandemic and typical seasonal factors. Disney — Disney shares fell less than 1% as shareholders prepared to vote at the entertainment giant’s annual meeting on whether some board members should be replaced by candidates nominated by activist investor Nelson Peltz. End a bitter proxy battle. Signet Jewelers – The jewelry retailer and Zales owner announced plans to repurchase half of its preferred stock worth approximately $414 million, sending its shares up 10%. Ford Motor – Shares of the automaker rose 2%. Ford announced that its U.S. sales increased by 7% year-on-year in the first quarter, while sales of electric vehicles surged by 86%. SoFi Technologies – Shares of this fintech company rose 3% after Needham issued a buy rating. The investment firm calls SoFi a “long-term winner” in digital lending. GE Aviation – GE Aviation shares soared more than 6% a day after the conglomerate once known as General Electric completed the spinoff of its power business. The entity, called GE Vernova, began trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday under the ticker symbol GEV. —CNBC’s Alex Harring, Hakyung Kim, Tanaya Macheel and Jesse Pound contributed reporting
