In this video from Thursday's Investor Beat, host Chris Hill, and Motley Fool analysts Taylor Muckerman and Evan Niu, sift through the noise to shine some investing light on the biggest news stories from the market today.
While November's retail results did come in higher than expected, it was only because auto sales were so strong; backing those out, the sector was largely flat year over year. Could tablet sales be the factor that drives those numbers higher in December? In the lead segment on today's Investor Beat, Evan and Taylor discuss retail in December, and whether now is the time to buy in.
Then, the guys take a look at four stocks making moves on the market today. Shares of Facebook were up on the news that the company will be added to the S&P 500 index on Dec. 20th. Lululemon Athletica showed strong third-quarter profits, and was able to grow same-store sales, but the company cut guidance for the fiscal year, which sent the stock tumbling. Athenahealth announced a "muted" earnings outlook for the next fiscal year, which had shares down. And Southwest Airlines got a boost after Merryll Lynch upgraded the stock to a buy.
Finally, Taylor and Evan tell investors why Micron Technology and ExxonMobil have caught their eye this week. Micron exploded 240% this year. Evan takes a look at what's been driving this stock upward, while Taylor takes a look at Exxon's energy outlook projections out to 2040.
