Check out the companies making headlines in afternoon trading. Kroger – Shares of the supermarket chain rose more than 4%. Kroger reported mixed second-quarter financial results and posted adjusted earnings that beat expectations by 2 cents. Earnings were shy of Wall Street estimates. Petco – Shares of the pet retailer rose 14%. That builds on Wednesday’s rally after a nearly 33% gain, marking the stock’s best day on record. Moderna — Shares fell nearly 16% after the drugmaker said it would cut costs by $1.1 billion through 2027. Moderna also said it plans to launch 10 new products by 2027, while also suspending or discontinuing work on some products in its pipeline. . Gilead Sciences — Shares rose 2% after the biopharmaceutical company’s second pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial showed its twice-yearly HIV prevention drug Lenacapavir reduced infections by 96% over the daily Truvada pill. Alaska Air Group – Shares of the airline rose 1% after it raised its third-quarter forecast on strong summer demand. Alaska told investors to expect earnings per share to be between $2.15 and $2.25, up from $1.40 and $1.60 previously. Interpublic Group of Companies — The ad stock traded down 2% after being downgraded from neutral to sell by UBS. Analyst Adam Berlin also lowered his 12-month price target. He cited the advertiser’s loss of big accounts such as Amazon and Pfizer as reasons for the downgrade, and he said investors had not yet fully appreciated the stock’s valuation. US Bancorp — Shares of the bank fell nearly 2% despite announcing a dividend increase and a $5 billion share buyback plan. Diageo – The alcohol stock rose nearly 3% after Bank of America upgraded it to buy from neutral. Bank of America said the most difficult period for the company is in the rearview mirror. Roku — The streaming platform saw shares rise more than 5% after Wolfe Research outperformed its peers. The Wall Street firm said it thinks Roku’s sales growth is poised to accelerate amid a reduced cost structure and new sales strategies. Oracle – Shares of the software company rose nearly 2% after Bernstein called it a top investment idea. The firm sees more upside for the company, citing downside protection from the company’s various offerings and rising revenue growth as catalysts, among others. — CNBC’s Yun Li, Michelle Fox, Sean Conlon, Samantha Subin, Lisa Kailai Han and Sarah Min contributed reporting
