Retailers Rally But Indexes Close Lower

The rally in retailers didn't lead to new closing records.

Author:: Anders Keitz
Publish date:: Nov 17, 2017 4:57 PM EST

Stocks were mostly lower with the Dow, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 all closing in the red. Many retailers, however, rallied today.

Shares of Foot Locker Inc. (FL) - Get Report rocketed some 28% higher on Friday after posting a top- and bottom-line beat for the third quarter. Adjusted earnings of 87 cents a share beat estimates by seven cents. Revenue of $1.87 billion exceeded expectations of $1.83 billion.

But Williams-Sonoma Inc. (WSM) - Get Report was shut out of retail gains after reporting a narrow earnings miss. The homewares retailer earned 84 cents a share, which was a penny below consensus. Hurricanes Harvey and Maria cut down earnings-per-share by two cents. Revenue increased 4.3% to $1.3 billion, which was slightly above estimates.

Separately, the company said it had agreed to purchase 3D-image software company Outward Inc. for $112 million in cash. The tech company develops augmented-reality software for home décor.

Crude oil prices settled higher after a weekly reading on active oil rigs held flat. The number of rigs drilling for oil was unchanged at 738 in the past week, according to Baker Hughes. The overall number of active drilling rigs increased by eight to 915.

WTI Crude settled at $56.55 on Friday.