The markets were slightly higher to finish the week as the jobs report came in better than expected. The Dow 30 was higher by 45, the S&P 500 gained 7, and the Nasdaq 100 added 22. Next week will be an exciting one as investors will get to see numbers from the retail sector along with potentially another rate hike by the Federal Reserve on Wednesday.
Southwest Airlines (LUV ) shares were lower today by 0.82% but at one point were down over 3%. The move came as the company announced it would cut its "forecast for first quarter operating unit revenue". It now expects revenue to drop in the 2% to 3% range, compared to its earlier forecast of flat to down 1%. The reason they gave was that it was seeing weak demand for last minute flight bookings in the second half of February. Though shares were lower today they are still higher by 11% on the year.
Ulta Beauty (ULTA ) shares had a wild day of trade today as they company announced earnings that were better than Wall Street's expectations . Earnings per share were $2.24 on revenue of $1.58 billion versus analysts expectations of $2.13 and revenue of $1.54 billion. The company said it expects revenue in the range of $1.24 billion to $1.27 billion and comparable sales growth of 9% to 11%. Shares were lower to start the day but did a complete 180 and ended the day higher by 4.62%.
Vail Resorts (MTN ) shares blasted off 4.79% today making new highs in the process. The company announced better than expected earnings for the prior quarter due to "a 24.5% surge in total lift revenue". The company also raised its quarterly dividend by 30%, to $1.053 per share, payable April 13 to shareholders on record as of March 29. Shares are now higher by almost 18% on the year.