Apple, Palantir, Agilon Health, Tesla, IBM, QuantumScape, Constellation Brands, and More Movers

Apple
was rising 0.3%. Shares of the tech giant have declined 5.3% so far in 2024. The stock has closed lower for the first three trading days of the year. The last time it has declined for the first four days of a calendar year was in 1982, according to Dow Jones Market Data. Two Wall Street firms have downgraded the stock this week.

Palantir Technologies
was falling 1.5% to $16.01. Analysts at Jefferies downgraded shares of the data-analytics company to Underperform from Hold and the price target was cut to $13 from $18. They said artificial-intelligence hype around the company was overdone.

Tesla
declined 0.9% after the electric-vehicle maker recalled around 1.6 million vehicles in China to update steering software.

Agilon Health
was down 33% after the provider of support services for primary care physicians reduced profit and revenue guidance, citing higher medical costs. The company also cut medical margin guidance for the year ended Dec. 31, 2023, to $340 million to $360 million from $455 million to $470 million.

Okta,
the provider of identity-management software, fell 0.7% to $82.78 after Jefferies downgraded the shares to Hold from Buy but raised the price target to $95 from $85.

QuantumScape
was falling 3%, a day after closing with a gain of 43%.
Volkswagen’s
battery company, PowerCo, said Thursday that
QuantumScape’s
solid-state battery cell had “significantly exceeded the requirements in the A-sample test and successfully completed more than 1,000 charging cycles,” indicating progress in a technology that could be cheaper, offer faster charging, and greater driving ranges.

Exxon Mobil
said it expects to record impairments of as much as $2.6 billion in its upstream business in the fourth quarter, which “primarily reflect idle Upstream Santa Ynez Unit assets and associated facilities in California.” The energy giant said in a regulatory filing that “continuing challenges in the state regulatory environment have impeded progress in restoring operations.” Earlier this week,
Chevron
said it would record a charge of as much as $4 billion in the fourth quarter, citing environmental regulation in California and issues in some Gulf of Mexico fields. Exxon rose 0.7% and
Chevron
shares rose 0.2%.

International Business Machines
was downgraded to Sell from Hold by analysts at Societe Generale, who also left their price target unchanged at $143. Jefferies analysts, meanwhile, initiated coverage on the stock with a Hold rating and price target of $180. IBM shares were down 0.9% to $159.42.

Costco Wholesale
said revenue in December jumped 9.9% from a year earlier to $26.2 billion, marking an acceleration over the 5.1% increase in November. Same-store sales rose 8.5%. In November, same-store sales gained 3.5%. Holiday shopping was largely behind the surge. Shares of the membership retail chain rose1.2%.

Fusion Pharmaceuticals,
a clinical-stage oncology company, said it achieved alignment with the Food and Drug Administration on a Phase 2/3 protocol protocol and development plan for FPI-2265, a treatment for certain kinds of prostate cancer. Shares fell 7.7%.

Constellation Brands
rose 2.8% after the beer and wine seller reported fiscal third-quarter earnings of $3.19 a share, beating analysts’ estimates of $3.01, but sales of $2.47 billion that missed expectations of $2.54 billion. The company also lowered its fiscal 2024 guidance, saying it now expects earnings of $9.15 to $9.35 a share, below previous guidance of $9.60 to $9.80.

Beyond
rose 1.1% to $25.83 after analysts at Needham upgraded shares of the parent of
Bed Bath & Beyond
and the company formerly known as Overstock to Buy from Hold with a price target of $40.

Write to Joe Woelfel at [email protected]