The Market In 5 Minutes: Health Insurers, Tesla Firings And Big Analyst Rating Changes

IN THE NEWS

Benzinga

Drug distributors were in freefall Friday when CBS teased Sunday's expository “60 Minutes” episode linking these distributors to failures in the opioid crackdown: Link

Anyone with an online trading account can buy and sell shares of most publicly-traded companies with the click of a button. However, shareholders of private companies, selling stock can be much more challenging: Link

This year’s Nobel Prize-winning economist sits in no ivory tower: Link

Wall Street Journal

The Senate this week will grapple with President Donald Trump’s decision to stop making subsidy payments to health insurers, with lawmakers seeking a deal that would keep the money flowing while Republicans try to fold in conservative-oriented health-care priorities: Link

The tax-overhaul plan being negotiated in Washington has the potential to virtually eliminate a break lawmakers once considered untouchable: the mortgage interest deduction: Link

Reuters

Luxury electric vehicle maker Tesla Inc TSLA fired about 400 employees this week, including associates, team leaders and supervisors, a former employee told Reuters on Friday: Link

The U.S. Internal Revenue Service has temporarily suspended a contract worth more than $7 million it recently awarded to Equifax Inc EFX following a security issue with the beleaguered credit reporting agency’s website on Thursday: Link

Bloomberg

On Wall Street, when things decline, you tend to remember. When things decline a lot, you remember the date. Oct. 19, 1987, is one such example. The biggest single-day stock market collapse in history—a 23 percent drop—rendered once-trusted ideas useless and redefined the financial landscape for market professionals: Link

The world economy is either the healthiest it’s been in a decade, poised to continue an epic bull run, or perched on the precipice of another crisis. It just depends what side of the Atlantic you’re on: Link

ECONOMIC DATA

• USA NY Empire State Manufacturing Index for Oct 30.20 vs 20.70 Est; Prior 24.40
• The Treasury will auction 3-and 6-month bills at 11:30 a.m. ET.
• Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank President Neel Kashkari is set to speak in Minneapolis at 9:00 p.m. ET.

ANALYST RATINGS

• Keybanc upgraded Apple AAPL from Sector Weight to Overweight
• Jefferies upgraded Entergy ETR from Hold to Buy
• Cowen upgraded Groupon GRPN from Underperform to Market Perform
• RBC downgraded Ford F from Outperform to Sector Perform
• Morgan Stanley downgraded La Qunita LQ from Overweight to Equal-Weight
• Jefferies downgraded Bristol-Myers Squibb BMY from Buy to Hold

This is a tool used by the Benzinga News Desk each trading day — it's a look at everything happening in the market, in five minutes. To get the full version of this note every morning, click here.