Check out the companies making headlines in midday trading: Verizon Communications — The telecommunications giant saw shares climb 1% after the firm posted its strongest quarterly wireless subscriber growth in five years, boosted by solid demand for its customizable offerings such as myPlan. Verizon reported earnings of $1.10 per share last quarter, matching an average estimate per LSEG. Novo Nordisk — U.S.-traded shares of the Danish pharmaceutical company jumped more than 8%. Novo Nordisk reported positive results in an early-stage trial for its amycretin obesity drug. Twilio — Shares of the cloud communications software maker rallied 20% after Twilio issued an optimistic forecast for the next few years. Twilio said during its Thursday investor event that its adjusted operating margin will reach as high as 22% by 2027. Baird upgraded Twilio to outperform from neutral on the back of the event and said it came away confident ahead of the company’s fourth-quarter results. Ericsson — U.S.-listed shares of the telecommunications company tumbled 14% following a fourth-quarter earnings miss. Ericsson posted fourth-quarter adjusted EBITA of 10.25 billion Swedish kroner, while analyst consensus had estimated 10.69 billion Swedish kroner, according to FactSet. CSX — Shares dipped 3% after the railroad company reported fourth-quarter revenue of $3.54 billion, less than the $3.58 billion expected from analysts polled by LSEG. CSX said revenue fell year over year due to declines in fuel surcharge and coal revenue. Grindr — The dating app popped 8% after posting fresh guidance. Grindr now expects full-year 2024 revenue of between $343 million and $345 million, while analysts polled by FactSet had expected $338 million. Texas Instruments — The semiconductor maker dropped 7.5% after issuing disappointing guidance. The company expects earnings per share to range between 94 cents to $1.16, versus an LSEG estimate of $1.17 per share. CF Industries — Shares tumbled 7.5% following a downgrade from JPMorgan to underweight from neutral. The bank sees more downside risks ahead, adding that it expects “increases in domestic natural gas prices, which is the primary raw material for the manufacture of nitrogen fertilizers, should lead to Consensus earnings estimate cuts for 2025 and for 2026.” Intuitive Surgical — Shares slipped 4% after the medical equipment maker predicted its adjusted gross profit margin will come in between 67% and 68% in 2025, versus 69.1% in 2024. NextEra Energy — The renewable energy company added 5% after posting fourth-quarter adjusted earnings of 53 cents per share, which was in line with a FactSet consensus. The firm also guided for full-year adjusted earnings that encompassed Wall Street’s consensus estimate. American Express — The credit card processor slipped 1% after its forward revenue growth for 2025 came in slower compared to 2024. However, American Express posted a fourth-quarter revenue beat and earnings that were in line with analysts’ expectations. GE Vernova — The electric services stock shed 4% after Guggenheim downgraded the name to neutral from buy. Analyst Joseph Osha pointed to the stock’s strong recent performance and slowing upward revisions as reasons for the downgrade. — CNBC’s Michelle Fox, Hakyung Kim, Yun Li, Pia Singh and Samantha Subin contributed reporting.
