Check out the companies that make headlines before the bell. Block – Fintech stocks have skyrocketed 10% as they prepare to officially participate in the S&P 500 before trading begins on July 23rd. PINTEREST – The social media company’s shares jumped over 5% after Morgan Stanley analyst Brian Novac upgraded his shares to overweight. Nowak highlighted the fascinating ratings on Pinterest, highlighting “GPUs allow investments and improved budding engagement and monetization” as the main reason for his new rating. Dollar Tree – Added 2% on Barclays’ equal weight to overweight upgrade. Analyst Seth Sigman said he hopes there will be a “clean growth story” ahead. Target – Big Box Retailer saw its shares fall by more than 1% in pre-market trading after Barclays downgraded its stock from equal weight to lower weight. The Wall Street company expects target sales will continue to suffer performance without any major strategic changes. Domino’s Pizza – Stocks rose nearly 4%, with LSEG estimates up 2.2% after pizza chain reported that the same store sales rose 3.4% in the second quarter. This marked the first US sales beat in five quarters. The company’s revenues reached $1.15 billion, in line with expectations, but revenues missed consensus estimates. Cleveland-Cliffs – Steelmakers scored 7% after announcing a second-quarter loss of 50 cents per share. The company’s $4.93 billion revenue reached expected. Verizon – Telecommunications stocks rose 5% after recording revenue of $1.22 per share with $34.5 billion. According to LSEG, analysts had expected a profit of $1.18 billion against $33.74 billion in revenue. Sarepta Therapeutics – Biotechnology stocks fell by 8% after the US Food and Drug Administration announced that it would elicit support from Erevidie, a gene therapy developed by Sarepta, which was used to treat Duchenne muscular dystrophy following the end of Friday. Shops such as Leerink Partners, Mizuho and Needham quickly downgraded their stocks. Investco – After TD Cowen upgraded the investment management company from hold to purchase rating, the stock added 2%. Analyst Bill Katz called Invesco’s Friday announcement, calling for funds traded on QQQ Exchange to move from unit mutual funds to an open-ended fund structure. – CNBC’s Yun Li and Pia Singh contributed the report.
