Investopedia·2026-01-07 17:00Labor Market - The U.S. job market is expected to show slow expansion, with an addition of 73,000 jobs in December and a decrease in the unemployment rate to 4.5% from 4.6% in the previous month [2] - Job growth in December is slightly higher than the 64,000 jobs added in November, which had the highest unemployment rate since 2021 [2] - Over the past months, tariffs have negatively impacted hiring, with an average addition of only 17,000 jobs per month from May to November, compared to 147,000 jobs per month in the year leading up to April 2025 [3] - Some experts believe the Bureau of Labor Statistics may be overestimating job growth, with Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell suggesting an average loss of 20,000 jobs per month since April [4] Albertsons - Albertsons Cos. reported weaker-than-expected Q3 net sales of $19.12 billion, slightly below the $19.16 billion consensus, leading to a 6% drop in shares [5][6] - Identical sales growth for Q3 was 2.4%, missing estimates due to delayed SNAP funding, which impacted sales by 10 to 20 basis points [6] - The company has lowered its full-year identical sales growth forecast to a range of 2.2% to 2.5%, down from 2.2% to 2.75%, citing impacts from the Inflation Reduction Act's Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program [6] Apogee Enterprises - Apogee Enterprises has cut its fiscal 2026 outlook again, resulting in an 11% drop in stock price after lowering its full-year net sales and profit forecasts for the second consecutive quarter [16][17] - The company now expects fiscal 2026 net sales of $1.39 billion and adjusted earnings per share of $3.40 to $3.50, down from previous guidance of $1.39 billion to $1.42 billion and adjusted EPS of $3.60 to $3.90 [17] - CFO Matthew Osberg has resigned, and Mark Augdahl has been named interim CFO, following a recent change in CEO [18]