Check out the companies making headlines in midday trading. Eli Lilly – The drugmaker’s shares tumbled 6.6% after the firm said demand for its weight loss and diabetes drugs would not meet its lofty expectations . Eli Lilly said it now expects full-year 2024 revenue of about $45 billion, lower than the $45.4 billion to $46 billion the company anticipated in October. Boeing – Shares fell 2.1% on the heels of the aerospace company’s airplane deliveries for 2024 coming in about a third fewer than the year prior at over 348, effectively widening the gap between it and rival Airbus. By contrast, Airbus reported 766 deliveries last year. Applied Digital – The digital infrastructure stock gained about 10% following the announcement that Macquarie has agreed to invest up to $5 billion in Applied Digital’s artificial intelligence data centers. Per the agreement, Macquarie will take a 15% stake in Applied Digital’s high-performance computing (HPC) segment. Hesai – The Chinese automaker supplier popped about 10% after Goldman Sachs upgraded the stock to a buy rating from neutral. Analyst Tina Hou said that shares currently look “attractive,” adding that the market appears to have underestimated the operating leverage from Hesai’s new product cycle. Signet Jewelers – Shares sank 21.7% after the parent company of Kay Jewelers and Zales lowered its guidance for the fourth-quarter . Holiday sales were weak as consumers gravitated to lower price points, Signet said. KB Home – The homebuilding stock added 4.8% following a fourth-quarter earnings beat. KB Home reported per-share earnings of $2.52, higher than the $2.45 analysts polled by LSEG had expected. The company’s $2 billion revenue also beat forecasts of $1.99 billion. H & E Equipment Services – The stock surged 105.5% after United Rentals announced it will acquire the company. United will pay $92 per share in cash, valuing H & E at around $4.8 billion. United Rentals also rose 5.9%. Instacart – The grocery delivery company rose 4.4% after BTIG upgraded shares to a buy rating , calling it a “secular growth category leader.” The firm pointed to strong order growth among the reasons for the upgrade. Celanese – The chemical manufacturer and supplier jumped 5.4% on the back of a rare Bank of America double upgrade to buy from underperform. The bank said Celanese has a favorable valuation and should see demand recover for most products. — CNBC’s Alex Harring, Samantha Subin, Yun Li, Lisa Kailai Han and Michelle Fox contributed reporting.
