Opening day eats (3/20/15)
Stocks rebounded from Thursday’s losses on positive earnings news, a jump in biotech stocks, and leftover enthusiasm from Wednesday’s Federal Reserve meeting. The Dow climbed 168 points, with 29 of its 30 components advancing; the S&P 500 Index gained 18; and the Nasdaq was up 34, reaching a 15-year intraday high. Advancers led decliners by nine to two on the NYSE and nine to five on the Nasdaq. Treasury prices strengthened. Gold futures rose $15.60 to close at $1,184.60 an ounce, and the price of crude oil advanced $1.04 to settle at $46.57 a barrel.
For the week, the Dow added 1.68%, the S&P 500 Index was up 2.68% and the Nasdaq moved higher by 2.66%.
In Earnings News:
- Darden Restaurants, parent company of Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse, announced third-quarter earnings of $1.05 a share, versus 82 cents a share last year. Sales rose 6.9% to $1.73 billion. The company credited the improvement to higher same-restaurant sales and better expense management. Darden also increased its earnings outlook for the year. Darden’s shares (DRI) gained 2.88%.
- A 24% increase in new orders and an 8% rise in selling prices contributed to a 29% jump in revenue for homebuilder KB Home. In the latest quarter, KB Home’s earnings were 8 cents a share, down from 12 cents a year ago, but still higher than analysts’ estimates. The company’s stock (KBH) rose 8.38%.
- Shares of luxury retailer Tiffany (TIF) dropped 3.95% after the company warned of a 30% decline in net income next quarter due to the strong dollar’s effects on international sales and foreign tourist spending in the U.S. The company posted third-quarter earnings of $1.51 per share, up from a loss of 81 cents a share a year ago. Sales decreased 1% to $1.3 billion.
- The stronger dollar also had a negative effect on Nike’s third-quarter sales, which fell short of expectations due to currency translation. However, the company reported its earnings increased to 89 cents a share from 75 cents last year. Nike’s shares (NKE) rose 4.45%.
In Other Business News:
- Biotech company Biogen announced positive results from its early trial of a treatment for Alzheimer's disease, driving the biotech sector higher. Biogen’s stock (BIIB) was one of the top performers in the S&P 500 Index by climbing 9.76%.
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While baseball teams are in sunny, warm locations across the country preparing for winning seasons, chefs are locked away in kitchens, putting the finishing touches on the unique food items baseball stadiums will be adding to their menus.
Our family already has tickets to one of the first games at the Brewers’ Miller Park. Which is a good thing, because it will probably take us the entire season to fully enjoy the concessions the park has to offer. On the “to eat” list this season:
· Bratchos. What sporting event meal in Wisconsin is complete without a brat? Bratchos combine sausages, kettle chips, cheese, fried sauerkraut, jalapenos and sour cream and are served in a Racing Sausage bucket. (When you order “bucket” of food, you know you’re eventually going to run into trouble. Especially when you throw in fried sauerkraut and jalapenos. Ouch.)
· The Beast. Think turducken, but with sausages (of course): A hot dog stuffed into a foot-long brat and wrapped in bacon.
Then, there’s other more normal fare like pulled pork “sammiches” and artisanal doughnuts (which are way too normal, so naturally, there’s talk of a secret doughnut sandwich as well).
What are other stadiums bringing to the plate?
· The Arizona Diamondbacks are introducing the Churro Dog, a churro in a doughnut topped with frozen yogurt, caramel, and chocolate.
· Doughnuts must be a trend. The Wilmington Blue Rocks, a minor league team in Delaware, will offer a hot dog in a Krispy Kreme doughnut. If that’s not enough to tempt you, it’s topped with bacon and raspberry jelly. This delightful concoction doesn’t have a name yet. I have suggestions, but I’m too polite to list them here.
· But I’m not sure if any other team can top the Texas Rangers. In the past, fried food hasn’t sold well at the stadium. Instead of assuming that people maybe didn’t want to eat fried food, the team assumed it was because people couldn’t find it. So they introduced a new stand called “State Fare” where you can find chicken-fried corn on the cob, Fried S’mOreos, fried pickles, funnel cake fries, and (I’m guessing) a side order of antacids. And when you’re tired of fried food, mosey over to the Just Bacon stand for candied bacon, bacon cotton candy, and bacon beer.
Eventually, we’ll probably see a new line of sweatpants appear in team stores. Not for fans to show their team spirit and give the impression that they’re athletic, but really for those stretchy waistbands.
