Check out the companies making headlines in midday trading: Genuine Parts — Shares fell about 20% on the back of the company’s weaker-than-expected earnings for the third quarter. During the period, Genuine Parts earned $1.88 per share, excluding items, below the $2.42 per share that analysts polled by FactSet were expecting. It also slashed its full-year forecast. The stock was headed for its worst day on record. General Motors — The stock jumped more than 9% after the automaker posted better-than-expected third-quarter results and raised its full-year forecast. For the period, GM earned an adjusted $2.96 per share on $48.76 billion in revenue. Analysts had expected $2.43 in earnings per share on $44.59 billion in revenue, per LSEG. Shares were headed for their biggest one-day gain in nearly a year. Verizon Communications — The telecommunications giant dipped 4% after posting third-quarter revenue of $33.33 billion, which came in below the $33.43 billion analysts polled by LSEG had expected. However, Verizon’s earnings per share of $1.19 came in 1 cent above estimates of $1.18. The company also reaffirmed its full-year outlook. GE Aerospace — The defense company tumbled more than 9% after posting mixed third-quarter results. GE Aerospace reported adjusted revenue of $8.94 billion, while analysts polled by LSEG estimated $9.02 billion. Meanwhile, adjusted earnings per share of $1.15 beat consensus forecasts by just 1 cent. Philip Morris International — The tobacco company popped nearly 9% after reporting third-quarter results that beat expectations. Philip Morris also lifted its 2024 guidance and showed strength in its smoke-free business. Lockheed Martin — Shares slid more than 5% after the company’s third-quarter revenue missed expectations. Lockheed Martin posted $17.1 billion for the quarter, below the $17.35 billion that analysts surveyed by LSEG were expecting. However, earnings came in above expectations in the period, and the company also lifted its outlook for the full year. Deckers Outdoor — Shares fell nearly 3% following BTIG’s downgrade of the footwear and apparel maker to neutral from buy. The firm believes signs of moderating growth are putting shares “at risk.” First Solar — Shares popped 3.4% on the heels of Citi’s upgrade to buy from neutral. Citi said First Solar should be able to benefit regardless of who wins the U.S. presidential election in November. Zions Bancorporation — Shares rose more than 7% after the regional bank posted better-than-expected quarterly results. Zions earned $1.37 per share on revenue of $792 million, while analysts had expected $1.17 in earnings per share on revenue of $779 million, according to LSEG. The bank’s net interest margin also saw a year-over-year increase. Nucor — The stock plunged about 8% after the steel producer said it sees GAAP earnings per share for the current period declining compared to the prior quarter. That said, the company reported an adjusted earnings and revenue beat for the third quarter. Sherwin-Williams — Shares dropped nearly 4% after the paint manufacturer’s third-quarter results missed estimates. Sherwin-Williams posted adjusted earnings of $3.37 per share, excluding items, on revenue of $6.16 billion. That is lower than the $3.55 in earnings per share on revenue of $6.20 billion that analysts were looking for, per FactSet. Paccar — Shares lost more than 5% after the company reported a drop in deliveries. Global new truck deliveries in the third quarter came in at 44,900 units , below the 50,100 units the company saw in the year-ago period. Quest Diagnostics — The stock rallied nearly 7% on the back of third-quarter results that beat analysts’ expectations. Quest earned an adjusted $2.30 per share on revenue of $2.49 billion. Analysts polled by FactSet anticipated a profit of $2.26 per share on revenue of $2.43 billion. Norfolk Southern — Shares popped 4% after the freight train operator reported earnings and revenue that beat analysts’ expectations. The move put Norfolk Southern on pace for its best day since July 26, when it jumped 10.9%. — CNBC’s Alex Harring, Samantha Subin, Lisa Kailai Han and Hakyung Kim contributed reporting.
Check out the companies making headlines in extended trading: Texas Instruments — The semiconductor company added 2%. Third-quarter results topped analysts’ estimates, as Texas Instruments reported earnings of $1.47 per share on revenue of $4.15 billion. Analysts sought earnings of $1.38 per share and revenue of $4.12 billion, per LSEG. Seagate Technology — The data storage company slipped 3.6%. Seagate’s guidance for $2.3 billion in revenue for the fiscal second quarter was about in line with the Street’s estimate for $2.29 billion, per LSEG. The company topped analysts’ estimates on the top and bottom lines in the first quarter, however. Manhattan Associates — The supply chain software company declined nearly 7%. Manhattan Associates forecast full-year revenue in the range of $1.039 billion to $1.041 billion, while analysts polled by FactSet were expecting $1.04 billion. Enphase Energy — The solar energy tech company tumbled 9% after missing Wall Street’s estimates on the top and bottom lines in the third quarter and issuing a light fourth-quarter revenue outlook. Enphase expects revenue in the current quarter in a range between $360 million and $400 million, while analysts polled by LSEG forecast $435.8 million. Canadian National — Shares of the freight railway company added nearly 2%. Canadian National’s third-quarter adjusted earnings of $1.72 per share in Canadian dollars matched analysts’ estimates, while revenue of CA$4.11 billion was below the CA$4.12 billion anticipated by analysts polled by LSEG. Starbucks — Shares of the coffee chain pulled back more than 3%. Preliminary quarterly results showed a decline in sales. Starbucks said it is also suspending its 2025 forecast. McDonald’s — The fast-food stock was 9% lower after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said an E. coli outbreak tied to the company’s Quarter Pounder burgers has resulted in the hospitalization of 10 people and one death. CoStar Group — Shares were off 5%. The real estate analytics company’s fourth-quarter outlook missed analysts’ estimates. CoStar forecasts earnings in the range of 21 cents to 23 cents per share, while analysts polled by LSEG were looking for 24 cents.
Christian Klein, Co-CEO of German software and cloud computing giant SAP, speaks during a press conference to present SAP’s financial results for 2019 on January 28, 2020 in Walldorf, southwestern Germany. – German software giant SAP reported a bottom line undermined by heavy restructuring costs, but lifted forecasts for the year ahead.
Daniel Roland | AFP | Getty Images
Europe should avoid regulating artificial intelligence and focus its attention on the results of the technology instead, the CEO of German enterprise tech giant SAP told CNBC Tuesday.
Christian Klein, who has held the top job at SAP since April 2020, said Europe risks falling behind the U.S. and China if it overregulates the AI sector.
While it’s important to mitigate the risks associated with AI, Klein argued that regulating the tech while it’s still in its infancy would be misguided.
“It’s very important that how we train our algorithms, the AI use cases we embed into the businesses of our customers — they need to deliver the right outcome for the employees, for the society,” Klein said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” Tuesday.
“If you only regulate technology in Europe, how can our startups here in Europe, how can they compete against the other startups in China, in Asia, in the U.S.?” Klein added.
“Especially for the startup scene here in Europe, it’s very important to think about the outcome of the technology but not to regulate the AI technology itself.”
Instead, Klein argued, businesses need a more harmonized, pan-European approach to pressing issues like the energy crisis and digital transformation — and less regulation overall, not more.
Upbeat earnings
His comments came after SAP reported bumper third-quarter earnings late Monday. Shares of the software vendor jumped more than 4% to a record high.
The software giant posted total revenue of 8.5 billion euros ($9.2 billion) for the quarter, up 9% year-over-year as sales related to cloud products jumped 25%.
SAP raised its 2024 outlook for cloud and software revenue, operating profit and free cash flow. The German firm has been working toward a transition to cloud computing over the last decade.
In 2016, SAP acquired Concur, the business travel and expenses platform, in a bet that software would move to the cloud.
More recently, SAP has made AI a big focus of its strategy as it looks to reposition itself for faster growth after higher interest rates and macroeconomic headwinds dented tech spending and led to industry-wide layoffs.
Check out the companies making headlines before the bell. Cheesecake Factory — Shares gained more than 3% after activist investor JCP Investment Management built a stake in the company and asked it to consider spinning off three of its brands into a separate company. General Motors — Shares were down slightly even after the automaker reported third-quarter results that beat analyst expectations. The company earned an adjusted $2.96 per share on revenue of $48.76 billion. Analysts polled by LSEG expected a profit of $2.43 per share on revenue of $44.59 billion. GM also raised its full-year outlook. SAP — U.S.-listed shares of the enterprise software provider gained more than 3% after the company posted a third-quarter earnings and revenue beat. SAP also increased its full-year cloud and software revenue guidance. GE Aerospace — The defense company fell nearly 5% after missing on revenue in the third quarter. GE Aerospace reported adjusted revenue of $8.94 billion, while analysts had estimated $9.02 billion, according to LSEG. Adjusted earnings per share of $1.15 beat consensus forecasts by just 1 cent. Deckers Outdoor — The footwear and apparel maker’s stock shed 2.9% following a downgrade at BTIG to neutral from buy. The firm said signs of moderating growth put shares at risk. First Solar — Shares advanced 1.8% on the back of Citi’s upgrade to buy from neutral. Citi said First Solar should benefit regardless of who wins the U.S. presidential election next month. AppLovin — The application technology stock was up 1% after Loop Capital initiated coverage of the stock with a buy rating. Analyst Rob Sanderson said the company provided “indispensable infrastructure for the mobile gaming industry” and could be a key play for investors wanting exposure to big data and artificial intelligence. 3M — Shares of the industrial company rallied 5% after 3M posted third-quarter earnings of $1.98 per share of revenue of $6.07 billion. Analysts had expected earnings per share of $1.90 on $6.06 billion in revenue, according to LSEG. Zions Bancorporation — Shares of the Utah-based regional bank rose more than 2% after a stronger-than-expected quarterly report. Zions generated $1.37 in earnings per share on $792 million of revenue. Analysts surveyed by LSEG were looking for $1.17 in earnings per share on $779 million of revenue. Zions’ net interest margin rose year over year. Nucor — Shares of the steel production firm slipped nearly 3% after Nucor said it expects its GAAP earnings per share for the current period to decline versus the previous quarter. Despite this, the company posted a third-quarter adjusted earnings and revenue beat. Danaher — Shares rose 1.8% after the life sciences and diagnostics company posted third-quarter results that beat expectations. Danaher attributed the strong numbers to “positive momentum” in its bioprocessing business. Sherwin-Williams — The paint manufacturer dipped 6.5% after posting disappointing third-quarter results. Sherwin-Williams reported adjusted earnings of $3.37 per share, lower than a StreetAccount estimate of $3.55 per share. Its $6.16 billion revenue also came below the $6.20 billion Wall Street estimate. — CNBC’s Sean Conlon, Michelle Fox, Alex Harring, Fred Imbert, Hakyung Kim, Sarah Min and Jesse Pound contributed reporting.