Stock Alert: B&G Foods Rises 18%

Shares of branded foods company B&G Foods Inc. (BGS) are up more than 18% Wednesday morning.

B&G Foods reported net income of $10.3 million, or $0.16 per share, for the fourth quarter compared with $111.9 million, or $1.70 per share in the year-ago quarter, that included $176.4 million gain on sale from the Pirate Brands divestiture. Excluding items, adjusted EPS of $0.28 met average estimates of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters.

Net sales for the quarter increased 2.6% year-over-year to $470.2 million.

For the full-year, B&G Foods expects net sales to be in the range of $1.66 billion – $1.68 billion and adjusted EPS to be $1.60 to $1.80. Analysts see earnings of $1.67 per share on revenue of $1.67 billion for the period.

BGS is currently trading at $15.15 and has traded in the range of $12.7- $26.13 in the last one year.

What the pope wants Catholics to give up for Lent: trolling

Thou shalt not troll.

Thus spake Pope Francis while addressing tens of thousands of people in St. Peter’s Square on on Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent — a 40-day period of fasting, repentance and reflection leading up to Easter Sunday, when Catholics often give up some Earthly pleasure or practice, like eating sweets or using social media.

Read more: Americans are giving up social media for Lent — or at least they say they are

In remarks that Reuters noted were “partially improvised,” the pope preached that Lent “is a time to give up useless words, gossip, rumors, tittle-tattle and speak to God on a first-name basis.”

Indeed, cyberbullying has become a global issue, with e-safety education organization i-SAFE warning that more than half (58%) of kids admit someone has said mean or hurtful things to them online, and one-third (35%) having been threatened online.

What’s more, a 2017 survey of 3,000 Americans found that nearly half (47%) had suffered some form of online harassment or abuse — but, for those ages 18 to 29, that figure climbed to 65%. And politicians on both sides of the aisle have been swearing an obscene amount on TwitterTWTR, -0.61% .

Research suggests that online trolling can cause psychological distress and wreak havoc on sleep, especially among young women.

His Holiness has had been the target of online insults himself, both from ultraconservative Catholic websites and anti-pope Twitter feeds, Reuters reported.

Stock Alert: National Vision Increases 15%

Shares of optical retailer National Vision Holdings, Inc. (EYE) are climbing more than 16% Wednesday morning after it reported upbeat fourth-quarter earnings. The stock touched a new high of $39.88, and currently is at $39.28

The company reported net earnings for the fourth quarter at $3.9 million compared to net loss of $18.4 million a year ago. EPS was reported at $0.05 versus loss per share of $0.24 in the year-ago period. Excluding items, adjusted EPS of $0.11 beat average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters at $0.01.

Net revenue increased 12.9% year-over-year to $401.8 million. The consensus estimate stood at $388.29 million.

The company had comparable-store sales growth of 10.1% in the quarter, which was its 72nd consecutive quarter of positive growth.

For the full-year, National Vision expects revenue to be in the range of $1.875 billion – $1.903 billion and Adjusted EPS is expected in the range of$0.80 – $0.85. Analysts see earnings of $0.79 on revenue of $1.87 billion for the period.

Iran’s Health Minister Tests Positive For Coronavirus

As coronavirus infections and deaths continue to rise on an alarming scale in Iran, the country’s health minister has been confirmed to have been infected with the deadly virus.

Deputy minister for health Iraj Harirchi, who spoke at a news conference Monday to warn the people of the disease, tested positive for coronavirus the next day, Iran’s state media reported.

In the nationally televised briefing, Harirchi was seen coughing and wiping sweat frequently.

Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo called on all nations, including Iran, to tell the truth about the coronavirus and cooperate with international aid organizations.

“The United States is deeply concerned by information indicating the Iranian regime may have suppressed vital details about the outbreak in that country,” he told reporters.

Iran, which is second only to China in coronavirus deaths, officially reported 15 deaths and less than 100 cases of infection, but it is believed that the actual numbers are far higher.

U.S. CDC confirms 59 coronavirus cases, including repatriated citizens

(Reuters) – The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Wednesday there were six more cases of the coronavirus among citizens evacuated from the Diamond Princess cruise ship, taking the total number of confirmed cases among Americans to 59.

The agency reported 14 cases in the country and 45 cases among people evacuated from the cruise ship and the city of Wuhan in China.

U.S. health officials on Tuesday alerted Americans to begin preparing for the spread of coronavirus after infections surfaced in several more countries.

3M, Apple Inc. share gains contribute to Dow’s 314-point rally

The Dow Jones Industrial Average is rallying Wednesday morning with shares of 3M and Apple Inc. delivering strong returns for the price-weighted average. Shares of 3M MMM, +2.75% and Apple Inc. AAPL, +2.17% are contributing about a third of the blue-chip gauge’s intraday rally, as the Dow DJIA, +0.71% is trading 314 points, or 1.2%, higher. 3M’s shares have climbed $4.58, or 3.1%, while those of Apple Inc. are up $7.92 (2.8%), combining for a roughly 85-point bump for the Dow. Also contributing significantly to the gain are Walgreens Boots WBA, +2.48%, Pfizer PFE, +3.18%, and United Technologies UTX, +1.84%. A $1 move in any of the Dow’s 30 components results in a 6.78-point swing.

Editor’s Note: This story was auto-generated by Automated Insights using data from Dow Jones and FactSet. See our market data terms of use.