Who is more likely to emerge as the perceived winner of the government shutdown? President Obama and Senate Democrats or House Republicans? Vote below in the daily Hot Stock Minute poll. But first watch show host Lauren Lyster discuss the start of the shutdown with Yahoo Finance Columnist Rick Newman.
Walgreen (WAG) is out this morning with its quarterly earnings. The drug store giant reported adjusted earnings of 73-cents a share, beating estimates by a penny. Revenues, however, missed ever so slightly at $17.94-billion versus $17.95-billion. Profits were actually close to double from a year ago. Walgreens says that's because of strength in selling higher-profit generic drugs. Walgreen stock is up more than 41% year-to-date and hit a new 52-week high last Monday.
Diamond Foods (DMND) has been down nearly 8% in early trading. This is after reporting earnings yesterday afternoon. The company beat on the bottom line with adjusted earnings of 9-cents a share when estimates were for a loss of 3-cents. However revenues were down significantly, falling below the $200-million mark. Diamond had an accounting scandal several years back and has been trying to rebound since. Shares initially rose after the report but then moved lower on a weak outlook. Even with the losses the stock is up
Read More »from Walgreen Reports; Diamond Foods Sinks on Earnings; J.C. Penney Hits 30-Year LowStarting today individuals can sign up for health care insurance by way of the exchanges created under the Affordable Care Act. So far seventeen states and the District of Columbia have set up their own exchanges, also known as insurance marketplaces; the rest will use either the federal health insurance exchange or run a joint state-federal exchange to provide coverage.
Related: Gullible Americans Fuel Obamacare's Bad Rap
It's been a bumpy ride so far, given the complexity of the effort and the politics surrounding it. Many Republican Congressional members are hell-bent on defunding Obamacare even though it's law and the Supreme Court reaffirmed its constitutionality. They won't agree to continue funding the government unless Obamacare is defunded or delayed by a year. And Democrats -- in Congress and the White House -- are firmly committed to just the opposite: implementing Obamacare.
That leaves us where we are today: a government that is partially shut down and lots of confusion
Read More »from Obamacare: Separating Truth from Fiction – Here’s What You Need to KnowFutures are up on the government shutdown. As odd as it may seem, premarket action is pointing green. Here at the Nasdaq, the composite index has been up about a-quarter percent. Of course yesterday was not so pleasant with the Dow suffering a triple digit drop ahead of the shutdown. As for that shutdown here's the latest: about 800,000 government workers will be furloughed today. More will be asked to work without pay. Many government activities like IRS audits and surveillance for flu outbreaks will be suspended. But essential functions like law enforcement and air-traffic control will continue. For more on the shutdown and thoughts on how the market might react watch the video above featuring show host Lauren Lyster and Yahoo Finance Columnist Rick Newman.
Warren Buffett is set to make a major Goldman Sachs (GS) grab today. Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-A) is expected to exchange warrants that will make him the company's sixth largest shareholder. He acquired the warrants five
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