Market benchmarks plunged on Monday after China allowed its currency, the yuan, to fall to the lowest level against the U.S. dollar in over a decade. China's move is widely viewed by analysts as retaliation for President Trump's decision last week to impose new tariffs on $300 billion in imported Chinese goods, spurring fresh concern for a global economic slowdown, as the two countries appear far from resolving their ongoing trade war. As of 11 a.m. EDT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI 0.69%) was down 585 points to 25,900, and the S&P 500 (^GSPC 1.20%) had shed 64 points to 2,868.
Meanwhile, shares of Tyson Foods (TSN 0.61%) managed to buck today's downward pressure with the help of a solid quarterly report, and Cars.com (CARS 0.84%) fell hard after announcing the end of its strategic review without finding a buyer.
Tyson Foods' appetizing quarter
Shares of Tyson Foods gained 7.7% after the protein-centric food leader told investors its fiscal third-quarter 2019 sales grew 8.3% year over year to $10.89 billion, translating into a 2% decline in adjusted net income to $1.47 per share. Though Tyson's revenue was technically below analysts' estimates for closer to $11.05 billion, earnings arrived well above Wall Street's consensus models for $1.41 per share.
Image source: Getty Images.
CEO Noel White said the results were roughly in line with internal targets, particularly as the prepared foods and beef segments more than offset mixed results from the chicken business.
But White also added Tyson Foods hasn't yet experienced the anticipated benefits of a recent African swine fever outbreak in China. Previously, he argued it would "offer significant upside" to not only the pork business given higher prices, but also its chicken and beef segments as consumers turn to substitute proteins.
"Given the magnitude of the losses in China's hog and pork supplies," White said today, "the impending impact on global protein supply and demand fundamentals is likely to be a multi-year event."
Cars.com can't find a buyer
Shares of Cars.com plummeted 33.4% after the online auto-sales platform revealed it has concluded its strategic review process "with no actionable bids for the company." As such, Cars.com says it's shifting its focus back to "executing its strategic plan as an independent public company."
For perspective, Cars.com initially announced its strategic review in January 2019. But shares first climbed on the hope of a juicy acquisition premium in July 2018, when The New York Post reported it had formally begun the process of searching for a buyer.
That's not to say there was a complete lack of interest; Cars.com said its official "process lasted ten months and involved 29 interested, prospective bidders." Nonetheless, it's discouraging that none of those dozens of bidders were willing to pay a high enough price to dissuade Cars.com from staying the course as a publicly traded business. It's hardly surprising to see some investors abandoning the stock in response.
