The S&P /ASX 200 (ASX: XJO) is 0.3% higher today after Wall Street gained overnight on news reports that the US and China may be closer to reaching a trade deal.
According to reports from Bloomberg, China is considering giving President Trump's US administration some concessions in order to get a deal across the line. While, in Australia some shares are thumping the index's return due to differing reasons. So let's take a look at what be supporting some of today's big market movers.
The Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) share price is up 2.5% to $122.05 after the investment bank and asset manager upgraded its full year profit guidance to be up to 15% better than the prior year. The second upgrade in a month came about after the group confirmed it expects the $2.95 billion sale of Quadrant Energy to Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) to go ahead. Macquarie's share of the proceeds should be around $600 million, which will boost its bottom line.
The Appen Ltd (ASX: APX) share price is up 2.6% to $12.78 today after the artificial intelligence and language translation services business upgraded its full year earnings guidance yesterday. Appen now expects full year underlying EBITDA for FY 2018 to come in between $62 million to $65 million, compared to prior guidance between $54 million to $59 million. The stock is now up around 13% in total since yesterday's announcement.
The Afterpay Touch Group Ltd (ASX: APT) share price is up 2% to $12.12 today, despite the buy-now-pay-later group releasing no specific update to the market. The share price has been volatile as while the company continues to deliver positive operational updates, it is facing a regulatory inquiry as to the practices of some consumer credit providers in Australia. Therefore AfterPay could be hit by new regulation in Australia.
The Costa Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: CGC) share price is up 12.7% to $6.93 this morning after the fruit and vegetable grower and distributor announced the acquisition of a Victorian citrus, orange, and grape farm this morning. Costa reported that it is pursuing an acquisitive strategy in the citrus fruit space thanks to fast-rising demand from countries like South Korea, Japan, and China. The stock is roughly flat over the past year.
