Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.
Expect a flat start to the stock market today, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI 0.73%) is set to rise by an insignificant nine points at the opening bell. With little in the way of earnings announcements and a light economic calendar this week, overall trading volumes should be low as we close out the year. Still, news is breaking this morning on a few companies whose shares could see heavy trading in the session, including Disney (DIS 1.80%), Crocs (CROX 1.97%), and Cooper Tire & Rubber (CTB).
Disney's Frozen continued its strong run at the box office this past week. Despite being in theaters for more than a month, the animated film managed to boost ticket sales over the weekend by 47% to $28.8 million -- almost enough to take the No. 1 spot from The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. With $250 million in total domestic box office revenue to date, Frozen is now Disney's best-performing film since the 1994 release of The Lion King, which made slightly more than $300 million. Disney's stock is up 0.67% in premarket trading.
Crocs made a number of surprise announcements over the weekend, including the retirement of CEO John McCarvel. At the same time, the struggling footwear maker said it has received a $200 million cash infusion from investment firm Blackstone that it plans to use for stock buybacks. Blackstone gets two seats on Crocs' board of directors as part of the deal. Crocs took the opportunity to hint at major strategic changes as well, saying that it is switching focus to profitability over revenue growth for the time being. The company also forecast that fourth-quarter sales and earnings should come in at the low end of its already-downbeat guidance. Crocs' shares are up 12.5% in premarket trading.
Finally, Cooper Tire & Rubber shares are under pressure this morning after the company announced that its merger agreement with Apollo Tyres has fallen through. Apollo had agreed in June to purchase Cooper for $2.5 billion in cash, but Cooper now says it believes the Indian tire maker has "breached" that deal. Cooper plans to pursue legal steps on the broken agreement, but its focus is now turning to moving its business forward. The stock is down 4% in premarket trading.
