Bulls Charge Through Economic Headwinds (SHAW, MDRX, RT, WDFC, NYNY)

It’s been hard to keep a good market down, and stocks rallied after a poor start to finish in the green. The news on the jobs front continues to be disappointing, but consumers who have jobs are clearly feeling more secure and opening their wallets. There are still economic headwinds, but that’s how a typical recovery plays out.

The Casino Stocks Index was the top performing tickerspy Index on the day, led by Empire Resorts (NYNY) with a 15% gain.

Stocks rose on the day, with the Dow up 30 points to 10,927. The S&P rose 4 points to 1,186, while the Nasdaq added 6 points. Oil fell -49 cents to $85.39 a barrel, while gold inched down -10 cents to $1,152.20 an ounce.

In economic news, the Labor Department announced that weekly jobless claims rose by 18,000 to a seasonally adjusted 460,000. Economists were looking for a reading of 435,000.

On the earnings front, shares of Shaw Group (SHAW) fell -2.5% after the engineer and construction firm posted in line fiscal Q2 profits. For the quarter, the company earned $63.7 million, or 74 cents a share, up from $36.3 million, or 43 cents a share, a year ago. Excluding its Westinghouse segment, EPS was 49 cents, matching analyst estimates. Revenue fell -6% to $1.6 billion, just shy of estimates of $1.68 billion. The company maintained its full-year guidance of $2.10-$2.20, excluding Westinghouse. Eight pro investors counted the stock among their top-15 holdings at the start of Q1, while 242 tickerspy members included the stock in their portfolios.

Allscripts-Misys (MDRX) shares rose 3.5% after the healthcare IT firm’s fiscal Q3 results topped the Wall Street consensus. For the quarter, the company recorded net income of $18.5 million, or 12 cents per share, versus a profit of $13.3 million, or 9 cents per share, last year. Adjusted EPS was 17 cents, a penny ahead of estimates. Revenue climbed 12% to $179.9 million, above estimates of $175.5 million. Looking ahead, the company upped its full-year guidance to 64-65 cents from 61-63 cents. Analysts were looking for EPS of 63 cents. Seven pro investors counted the stock among their top-15 holdings at the start of Q1, while 145 tickerspy members included the stock in their portfolios.

Casual dining restaurant operator Ruby Tuesday (RT) saw its Q3 profit more than triple to $17.8 million, or 28 cents per share, compared with $4.8 million, or 9 cents per share, a year ago. Adjusted EPS was 30 cents. Revenue fell -3% to $307.3 million on a -0.7% decline in same-store sales at company-owned restaurants and -5.3% at franchisees owned ones. Wall Street was looking for EPS of 23 cents on revenue of $303.7 million. The stock rose 6.4%.

WD-40 (WDFC) shares climbed 2.3% after the household lubricants and cleaning products maker reported earnings that crushed analyst views. For fiscal Q2, the company posted a profit of $10.7 million, or 64 cents a share, versus $4.1 million, or 25 cents a share, a year ago. Sales soared 30.3% to $80.6 million. The consensus was for EPS of 38 cents on revenue of $67.3 million. For the full year, the company increased its EPS outlook to $1.92-$2.01 from a previous forecast of $1.80-$1.95.

Tags: MDRX, NYNY, RT, SHAW, WDFC