Market movers: Stocks that saw action on Friday – and why

Calgary-based oil and gas producer Strathcona Resources (SCR-T) gained 3.2 per cent after it announced late Thursday the retirement of its Chief Executive Officer and President Rob Morgan, effective Oct. 31, and said that he will be replaced by David Roosth.
The company said that Chief Financial Officer Connor Waterous will remain unchanged and Scott Seipert will take on the role of senior vice-president of finance.
Mr. Roosth, who has worked at KKR & Co and TPH Partners, last served as the managing director at Waterous Energy Fund.
Strathcona said it will be restructured to form four focused business units – SCR Cold Lake, SCR Lloydminster Thermal, SCR Lloydminster Conventional, and SCR Montney, which will be overlooked by separate presidents.
The company also appointed its new COO Dale Babiak, who most recently served as vice-president for production operations.
Following the retirement, Mr. Morgan will also step down from the board of the company.
Shares of Apple (APPL-Q) inched 0.4 per cent higher despite data showing iPhone sales in China fell in the third quarter. KeyBanc also downgraded the company to “underweight” from “sector weight” previously.
Apple’s iPhone sales in China slipped 0.3 per cent while rival Huawei posted a 42-per-cent surge in the third quarter of 2024, as competition intensifies in the world’s largest smartphone market.
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Apple reached second place with a 15.6-per-cent market share, though down 0.5 percentage points year-on-year, while Huawei claimed third place with 15.3-per-cent, gaining 4.2 percentage points, showed data from researcher IDC on Friday.
Vivo, which primarily sells budget phones, was the top vendor with a market share of 18.6 per cent. The contrasting performances follow Huawei’s comeback last year in the premium segment with its Mate 60 series, featuring what analysts said is a domestically produced chip. The Chinese tech giant further challenged Apple’s position with its latest Pura 70 model released earlier this year.
Apple has faced additional headwind in China, including restrictions on iPhone use by some government agencies.
Keybanc analyst Brandon Nispel lowered his recommendation after a consumer survey found demand for the lower-cost iPhone SE
“Our survey shows that 59 per cent of respondents are interested in upgrading to iPhone 16, which appears strong,” said Mr. Nispel. “However, our survey also shows that of those respondents who are likely or extremely likely to upgrade to the iPhone 16, 61 per cent are interested in the iPhone SE. We think this shows the iPhone SE is not incremental, and could possibly be cannibalistic to iPhone 16 sales.
Tesla (TSLA-Q) shares enjoyed further gains, rising 3.3 per cent, after closing up nearly 22 per cent on Thursday – their biggest single-day gain in over a decade – as CEO Elon Musk’s bold forecast of surging sales reassured investors he was still looking to grow its core business of selling electric cars.
Mr. Musk forecast 20-30-per-cent sales growth next year, promising to launch an affordable vehicle in the first half of 2025, and said efforts to slash production costs boosted margins in the third quarter.
The stock rose to a session high of US$262.20 on Thursday with volumes of roughly 200 million shares. It was the biggest gain since May 2013, and erased recent losses on concerns that Mr. Musk was distracted by new projects like the recently unveiled robotaxi.
At close, nearly US$150-billion was added to the company’s market value.
“With the stock selling off in October before its earnings announcement, some bears feel this is more of a relief rally, as results were better than feared,” said Ed Egilinsky, managing director at investment company Direxion.
The sharp rally might also be attributed to some short covering, he said. Short interest on Tesla stock was 2.33 per cent at the end of September, according to LSEG data.
Mr. Musk has been pivoting Tesla into an artificial intelligence and robotics company from an EV market leader, but has yet failed to lay out a detailed business plan for his new focus. Investors sold off Tesla shares earlier this month after a robotaxi event was short on details.
Deckers Outdoor (DECK-N) shares jumped 10.6 per cent on Friday after the shoemaker raised its annual sales forecast and beat second-quarter expectations, on resilient demand.
Trendy and innovative brands such as Hoka, UGG, New Balance and Roger Federer-backed On are a hit among consumers, especially in the running category, and has eaten into the market share of giants such as Nike.
Deckers reported a nearly 35-per-cent jump in Hoka sales in the second quarter, while the UGG brand rose 13 per cent.
“DECK continues to deliver strong results in an uncertain macro operating environment, speaking to its strong market position with a healthy brand portfolio that can continue to drive growth longer-term,” Dana Telsey, analyst with Telsey Advisory Group said.
Hoka has been gaining shelf space at Dick’s Sporting Goods (DKS-N) and Nordstrom (JWN-N) as the retailers replenish their stock with consumer favorites.
“The company is executing well in driving brand heat and elevating global brand awareness and view higher marketing investments as an important strategic decision that should continue to support top line growth,” Joseph Civello, analyst with Truist Securities said.
Deckers expects annual sales to rise 12 per cent to US$4.8-billion, compared with previous forecast of 10-per-cent rise to US$4.7-billion.
Its quarterly net sales of US$1.31-billion beat expectations of US$1.20-billion, while it posted adjusted profit of US$1.59 per share, compared to estimates of US$1.23.
Deckers’ forward price-to-earnings ratio for the next 12 months, a common benchmark for valuing stocks, was 25.95, compared with Nike’s 26.59 and On’s 43.62.
Newell Brands (NWL-Q) climbed 2.1 per cent after the owner of Graco and Rubbermaid beat profit targets as its margins improved. The company also raised its full-year outlook.
While it reported a 4.9-per-cent year-over-year decline in sales and a net loss of US$198-million., the Sharpie maker raised its 2024 adjusted earnings per share outlook to a range of 63 US cents to 66 US cents versus a prior forecast of 60 US cents to 65 US cents.
Corus Entertainment Inc. (CJR.B-T) dropped 9.4 per cent after saying it has agreed to a deal with its lenders that will buy it some time as it works to slash costs and reduce its debt.
The agreement amends and restates its existing syndicated, senior secured credit facilities with its bank group, led by RBC Capital Markets and TD Securities.
The restated credit facility was changed to reduce the total limit on the revolving facility to $150-million from $300-million and increase the maximum total debt to cash flow ratio required under the financial covenants.
The announcement came as the broadcaster reported a fourth-quarter loss compared with a profit a year ago as its revenue fell 21 per cent. Corus said its net loss attributable to shareholders amounted to $25.7-million or 13 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended Aug. 31.
The result compared with a profit attributable to shareholders of $50.4-million or 25 cents per diluted share in the same quarter last year.
Co-chief executive John Gossling called the debt deal “the most important step to date” amid a tough year for the company’s balance sheet as it copes with advertising revenue declines, regulatory challenges and licensing battles.
Toothpaste maker Colgate-Palmolive (CL-N) was lower by 4.1 per cent despite raising the lower end of its annual sales and profit forecasts on Friday, after beating third-quarter estimates on resilient demand for its high-priced products.
The company expects 2024 net sales growth between 3 per cent and 5 per cent, compared with its prior view of 2 per cent to 5 per cent.
It forecasts an annual adjusted profit growth of 10 per cent to 11 per cent, up from its previous expectations of 8 per cent to 11 per cent.
Colgate-Palmolive posted a quarterly adjusted profit of 91 US cents per share, above analysts’ average estimate of 89 US cents, according to data compiled by LSEG.
“We expect continued strong advertising investment through the remainder of the year as we focus on building brand health,” Colgate-Palmolive CEO Noel Wallace said.
“We do have some concerns with the overall pet category given consumer pressures as well as key specialty pet retailers looking to provide consumers more value, although CL is better insulated relative to peers and Hills continues to have distribution upside,” RBC analyst Nik Modi said.
Consumers have been prioritizing spending on daily essentials over discretionary items amid rising cost of living, fueling sales for consumer packaged goods companies such as Colgate-Palmolive.
The company has seen increased demand for its oral care and hygiene products, despite multiple price hikes.
New York Community Bancorp (NYCB-N) dropped 8.3 per cent after delaying its goal of turning profitable by a year to 2026 as the regional lender struggles to cut its exposure to commercial real estate, while selling non-core businesses and cutting costs.
NYCB was aiming to breakeven or make a profit of 5 US cents per share in 2025, but now expects to report a per share loss of 30 US cents to 35 US cents.
The lender posted its fourth straight quarter of loss as mortgage payments take a hit from office properties struggling to recover from the pandemic-led lockdowns and elevated refinancing costs adding to the woes.
Its third-quarter loan-loss provision jumped nearly four-fold to US$242-million. Ballooning charge-offs – debt written off as unlikely to be recovered – have led regional lenders to increase provisions to cover the CRE sector.
“On the asset quality front, we have completed 97 per cent of our annual review of the multi-family and commercial real estate portfolios and have taken substantial charge-offs across the portfolio,” CEO Joseph Otting said.
Currently, multi-family apartment blocks comprise 47 per cent of NYCB’s US$71.1-billion loan book, with a big share on buildings with controls on how much landlords can raise rents, which has dimmed their appeal.
The lender had earlier this month decided to cut 700 jobs, representing 8 per cent of its total workforce, as part of its turnaround plan.
Additionally, 1,200 more employees are set to leave the bank as it completes the divestiture of its mortgage servicing and third-party origination business.
Even in 2026, NYCB expects a smaller profit of 75 US cents to 80 US cents per share, compared with its prior forecast of $1.25 to $1.30.
Shares of Capri Holdings (CPRI-N) plummeted 48.9 per cent after a U.S. judge blocked a pending merger between the company and handbag maker Tapestry (TPR-N).
Shares of Tapestry soared 13.5 per cent on Friday.
The FTC argued at an eight-day trial in New York that the merger would eliminate fierce head-to-head competition between the top two U.S. handbag makers and create a massive company with the power to unfairly raise prices for consumers.
Henry Liu, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Competition, called the decision “a victory not only for the FTC, but also for consumers across the country seeking access to quality handbags at affordable prices.”
“These bags are a product which millions of people rely on throughout their daily lives,” and those people will benefit from continued competition, Mr. Liu said.
Tapestry fought the FTC’s claims, saying the deal was spurred by an intensely competitive U.S. handbag industry and was needed to fight back against European players like Gucci, which are increasing market share.
The ruling in effect permanently blocks the proposed deal, Tapestry’s lawyers said in court documents, because it would require the deal to pass another lengthy review by the FTC which would stretch past the deal’s termination date of Feb. 10.
There is scant precedent for merger challenges in the fashion industry, which tends to be too fragmented and competitive to foster traditional monopolies.
The decision is a win for the Biden administration ahead of the Nov. 5 presidential election, in which rising consumer prices have figured as a key issue.
Had the deal proceeded, it would have brought six brands under one roof. Those brands are: Tapestry’s Coach, Kate Spade and Stuart Weitzman; and Capri’s Versace, Jimmy Choo and Michael Kors.
With files from staff and wires