Check out the companies that make headlines before the bell:
Ulta Beauty (ULTA) – Ulta Beauty has announced that CEO Mary Dillon will resign in June to be replaced by company president David Kimbell. Dillon will step down as executive chairman. Separately, the cosmetics retailer exceeded estimates for the top and bottom lines for the last quarter, but reduced its comparable sales outlook for fiscal year 2021. Ulta lost 8.2% in premarket trading.
Poshmark (POSH) – Poshmark reported better-than-expected sales for the last quarter, but the online retailer of second-hand goods issued a current quarterly forecast, which was beyond analysts’ estimates. Its shares fell 12.3% in the premarket share.
Novavax (NVAX) – Novavax shares rose 16.5% in the premarket after the drug maker said the Covid-19 vaccine is effective at high levels against both the initial strain of the virus and the UK variant.
DocuSign (DOCU) – DocuSign exceeded estimates by 15 cents, with an adjusted quarterly profit of 37 cents per share, and the company’s electronic signature revenue was also above analysts’ forecasts. It also issued a better-than-expected outlook, but shares fell 4% in premarket trading.
Sanofi (SNY), Bio Translation (TBIO) – Drug manufacturers have begun a human study for the second Covid-19 vaccine project, after a delay in their first vaccine last year. This vaccine is based on RNA messenger technology, and the two companies expect the results of intermediate studies in the third quarter. Translate Bio shares increased 5.1% premarket.
Alibaba (BABA) – Alibaba is facing a possible record fine from China’s antitrust regulators, according to people familiar with the matter, who spoke to the Wall Street Journal. The newspaper said the fine could exceed the $ 975 million that chip maker Qualcomm paid in 2015, while regulators are pushing Alibaba to break away from founder Jack Ma and align more closely with The Communist Party. The shares of the e-commerce giant fell by 2.1% in the premarket share.
Netflix (NFLX) – Netflix is testing a new feature to limit password sharing, with some users receiving a request to confirm that they live in the same household as the account holder. Research firm Magid estimates that about a third of Netflix users share their passwords. Netflix fell 1.2% premarket.
Verizon (VZ) – Verizon has launched a $ 25 billion debt sale to fund the $ 45 billion acquisition of wireless spectrum, which will be used to expand next-generation 5G mobile service. MarketWatch reports that demand has been extremely strong for sales, more than four times oversubscribed at one time.
Aegion (AEGN) – Aegion is the subject of a tender between New Mountain Capital (NMFC) and Apollo Global (APO). Apollo has made an offer for the pipeline company between $ 26 and $ 30 per share, according to a Bloomberg report, which concluded Aegion’s deal with New Mountain last month for $ 26 per share. Aegion jumped 11.5% premarket, while Apollo rose 2.4%.
Buckle (BKE) – The fashion accessories retailer reported quarterly earnings of $ 1.33 per share, 7 cents above estimates, with revenues that matched Wall Street forecasts. Comparable in-store sales increased by 18% compared to a year earlier, and online sales increased by 81.5%.
Coherent (COHR) – The bidding battle to buy the laser manufacturer and laser technology continues with Coherent saying that the latest offer from optoelectronic component manufacturer II-VI (IIVI) is superior to the latest offer from Lumentum (LITE). Bidders went back and forth several times, with the most recent II-VI bid consisting of $ 195 per share in cash and one Lumentum share for each coherent share. Coherence increased by 2.1% premarket, while II-VI decreased by 1.6%.
Vail Resorts (MTN) – The resort operator exceeded Wall Street forecasts on both the top and bottom line in its latest revenue report, even though Vail was forced to operate at low capacity due to the pandemic. Vail said visiting trends improved throughout the quarter, and shares rose 9.7% premarket.