(RTTNews) – After opening higher and holding in positive territory till late morning, Canadian stocks retreated on Friday to eventually end the day’s session on a weak note.
Investors largely made their moves, reacting to quarterly earnings reports.
The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index, which climbed to a record intra-day high of 22,470.27 in early trades, ended the day with a loss of 66.90 points or 0.3% at 22,308.93, slightly off the session’s low of 22,298.67. The index gained about 1.7% in the week.
Docebo Inc (DCBO.TO) tanked 23.3%. Shopify Inc (SHOP.TO) ended 5.6% down. BlackBerry (BB.TO) ended lower by 3.4%. Constellation Software (CSU.TO), Quarterhill (QTRH.TO) and Lightspeed Commerce (LSPD.TO) also ended sharply lower.
Energy stock Baytex Energy (BTE.TO) ended down 8%. Precision Drilling Corporation (PD.TO), Tourmaline Oil Corp (TOU.TO), Vermilion Energy (VET.TO), Parex Resources (PXT.TO), MEG Energy (MEG.TO), Paramount Resources (POU.TO) and Canadian Natural Resources (CNQ.TO) also ended sharply lower.
Consumer staples shares Jamieson Wellness (JWEL.TO) and Metro Inc (MRU.TO) gained 4.2% and 1.9%, respectively.
Data from Statistics Canada showed employment in Canada rose by 90,400 jobs in April 2024, the most in 15 months, following a 2,200 decrease in March.
The unemployment rate in Canada was at 6.1% in April of 2024, unchanged from the two-year high recorded in the previous month.
Average Hourly Earnings in Canada increased by C$1.64 from the previous year to C$35.77 in April 2024, following a 5% increase in March, a separate data from Statistics Canada showed.
Technology and energy stocks are among the notable losers. Consumer staples, healthcare and consumer discretionary stocks are finding some support.
Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (AQN.TO) declined sharply after reporting a first quarter net loss to shareholders of $89.1 million compared to profit of $270.1 million, last year. Loss per share was $0.13 compared to profit of $0.39.
Enbridge Inc (ENB.TO) gained 1%. The company reported adjusted earnings of $2.0 billion or $0.92 per common share, for the first quarter of 2024, an increase of 8% per share, compared with $1.7 billion or $0.85 per common share in 2023.
Onex Corporation (ONEX.TO) drifted down 4.7%. The company reported a net profit of US$10 million for the first-quarter of this year, compared to net loss of $232 million in the year-ago quarter.
Crescent Point Energy (CPG.TO) ended down by 0.8% after reporting a net loss of $411.7 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2024 , compared to net profit of $216.7 million a year ago.
CI Financial Corp (CIX.TO) tanked more than 12%. The company reported adjusted net income of $132.8 million for the first quarter of 2024, compared to $136.8 million in the first quarter of 2023.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
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