Today's Major Stock Movers: Cigna, Macy's Lead with Significant Changes

At the start of the trading day, stock futures saw a slight decrease as investors awaited the outcomes of the Federal Reserve's final meeting of the year, keen to discern any indicators of imminent interest rate cuts. As the markets anticipate these crucial economic cues, several stocks have notably shifted positions.

Today's Top Stock Performers

Cigna Corp. (CI) experienced a substantial rise of over 9% after discarding a potential merger with Humana Inc. (HUM). The deal fell through due to disagreements on financial aspects, such as pricing. Cigna is now focusing on smaller, strategic acquisitions and has announced an additional $10 billion stock repurchase initiative, raising its buyback capability to $11.3 billion. The insurer aims to repurchase at least $5 billion of its shares before the second half of 2024 begins, with a significant chunk of this activity occurring through an accelerated repurchase program in the first quarter of the next year. Following this development, Humana's shares also saw a 2% increase.

Meanwhile, Macy's Inc. (M) shares soared by 20% after receiving a buyout proposition from Arkhouse Management and Brigade Capital Management worth roughly $5.8 billion. This offer prices the iconic retailer at about $21 per share, a 21% increase from its last closing price of $17.39.

Another notable gainer, Pinterest Inc. (PINS), climbed approximately 3% upon receiving an upgraded rating from RBC Capital Markets—changing from 'sector perform' to 'outperform.' Analyst Brad Erickson emphasized Pinterest's potential to harness impulse spending within digital ads, setting a new price target of $46, up from $32. Erickson underscored the platform's strategic investment appeal to advertisers focusing on impulse buying trends.

Today's Biggest Stock Declines

The electric vehicle manufacturer Lucid Group Inc. (LCID) witnessed its shares plunge by over 5%, and the Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com Inc. (JD) also declined by roughly 4%. The cause for the drop is attributed to both companies being slated for removal from the influential NASDAQ-100 index by December 18th, 2023, representing a significant alteration in their stock market standing.

Stocks, Movers, Markets