Home Depot, Walmart and Loews Fall Premarket By Investing.com

By Peter Nurse 

Investing.com — Stocks in focus in premarket trade on Tuesday, August 17th. Please refresh for updates.

• Home Depot (NYSE:HD) stock fell 3.4% after the retail giant missed estimates for U.S. same-store sales for the first time in seven quarters, as the surge in demand for home-improvement products during the pandemic waned. Rival Loews (NYSE:L) stock fell 4.6% as a consequence.

• Walmart (NYSE:WMT) stock fell 0.8% despite the world’s no. 1 retailer raising its annual U.S. same-store sales forecast after beating estimates, buoyed by customers buying additional back-to-school products after a prolonged period of online learning. The company reported a sharp slowdown in online sales growth, a key indicator of its ability to compete with Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN).

• Alibaba (NYSE:BABA) ADRs fell 3.5%, Tencent (HK:0700) Music (NYSE:TME) stock fell 5.2% and JD.com (NASDAQ:JD).ADRs fell 3.7% after Chinese regulators issued a new draft of rules designed to stop unfair competition on the Internet. The rules prohibit various strategies aimed at creating self-contained ecosystems on the web, one of the pillars of the investment case for all three stocks.

• Roblox (NYSE:RBLX) stock fell 6.3% after the online video gaming company’s second-quarter bookings missed expectations, even though its daily active users rose 8% in July from the prior month.

• Porch Group (NASDAQ:PRCH) stock rose 0.7% after the online marketplace beat expectations for its second quarter, reporting a strong gain in revenue and a smaller loss than expected.

• Spirit Airlines (NYSE:SAVE) stock fell 4.7% after the airline said the canceling of more than 2,800 flights in late July and early August cost it about $50 million.

• BHP Group (NYSE:BHP)ADRs rose 6.6% following the company’s decision to end its dual-listing as well as its deal to merge its petroleum assets with Woodside (OTC:WOPEY).