Major stock market indexes neared and in some cases entered record high territory on Tuesday, lifted largely by a rush of positive news on the earnings front. Many high-profile companies gave their investors encouraging reports about how 2019 has gone so far and how they see the year continuing to shape up, and some favorable economic data also helped boost optimism. Some stocks saw much larger gains than the 0.6% to 1.3% rise in broad-based benchmarks. Hasbro (HAS 0.19%), Kohl's (KSS +3.13%), and Lockheed Martin (LMT +0.27%) were among the top performers. Here's why they did so well.
Hasbro wins the game
Shares of Hasbro jumped 14% after the toy maker reported its first-quarter financial results. Most of those following the company had expected to see relatively weak results in the wake of the bankruptcy of toy retailer Toys R Us, but instead, Hasbro posted a 2% rise in sales and reversed a year-ago loss with a modest profit for the period. CEO Brian Goldner pointed to Hasbro's successful efforts to turn its Magic: The Gathering franchise into a digital and esports hit as contributing to performance, and cost-cutting measures also helped boost profitability. With major movie releases on the horizon, Hasbro expects to see considerable growth from its promotional tie-in business for the remainder of 2019 and beyond.
Image source: Hasbro.
Kohl's expands its Amazon partnership
Kohl's saw its stock climb 12% following its announcement that it would expand its program with e-commerce giant Amazon.com (AMZN 0.72%) to accept return merchandise in its physical stores. After having completed a two-year pilot program, the two companies agreed to expand the program to include all of Kohl's roughly 1,150 store locations nationwide. Kohl's CEO Michelle Gass argued that the program represents Kohl's efforts to bring "innovation to drive traffic to our stores and bring more relevance to our customers," but some are skeptical whether Amazon shoppers will want to shop at Kohl's department store locations rather than simply dropping off their returned items and leaving immediately.
Lockheed flies higher
Finally, shares of Lockheed Martin rose nearly 6%. The defense contractor and aerospace company said that revenue soared 23% during the first quarter of 2019 compared to the year-ago period, causing earnings to jump by nearly half over the same time frame. Rising sales volumes in the F-35 fighter program helped lift Lockheed's aeronautics division, while strong missile sales and growing backlogs led to optimism for the future. The company also boosted its full-year guidance for revenue, operating profit, and earnings, based largely on an increasingly profitable relationship with the U.S. Defense Department. With so many good things happening, Lockheed looks poised for growth throughout the coming year and well into 2020.
