Investors kicked off this week on a positive note as excitement over the ECB’s stimulus announcement from the prior week carried over and overshadowed election worries stemming from Greece. Despite an upbeat start, bearish pressures permeated the market yet again and domestic equity indexes ultimately settled in red territory for the week.
Monday
With no economic data releases to digest, investors turned their attention to corporate earnings:
- D.R. Horton (DHI ) – Posted higher revenues and earnings compared to last year’s Q1.
- W W Grainger (GWW ) – Reported lower profits and missed analyst EPS estimates.
- Cliffs Natural Resources (CLF) – Announced it would suspend its quarterly dividend due to mounting debt troubles.
- Microsoft (MSFT ) – Reported higher revenues but lower earnings after the closing bell.
The Dow rose 0.03% while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq both gained around 0.3% on the day.
Tuesday
Worse-than-expected durable goods orders data set a negative tone for the day:
- Procter & Gamble (PG ) – Posted weaker than expected earnings for the quarter.
- Pfizer (PFE ) – Reported a drop in profit.
- Lockheed Martin (LMT ) – Missed EPS estimates but beat on revenues.
- Caterpillar (CAT ) – Reported lower than expected net income and a weak outlook.
- AT&T (T ) – Beat Q4 earnings estimates.
- Apple (AAPL ) – Reported record earnings that sent shares higher after the closing bell.
The Dow shed 1.7%, the S&P 500 lost 1.3%, while the Nasdaq dipped almost 2% on the day.
Wednesday
The FOMC minutes set an encouraging tone as policymakers expressed their commitment to being “patient” with regards to raising rates; this however wasn’t enough to offset profit-taking pressures on the day:
- Boeing Co (BA) – Posted higher revenues and earnings compared to last year’s Q4.
- General Dynamics (GD ) – Beat earnings and revenues estimates.
The Dow declined 1.1%, the S&P 500 lost 1.4%, and the Nasdaq shed 0.9% on the day.
Thursday
Weekly jobless claims came in lower than expected, setting a positive tone for the labor market recovery; however, pending home sales saw a decline from the previous month:
- Ford Motor Company (F ) – Reported a massive decline in profit.
- ConocoPhillips (COP ) – Posted lower earnings compared to last year’s Q4.
- Visa (V ) – Beat earnings estimates and announced a 4 for 1 split.
Markets rebounded on the day, with the Dow gaining 1.3% and the S&P 500 and Nasdaq each rising about 1%.
Friday
Domestic equity benchmarks kicked off the last trading day of the week on a sour note after GDP estimates came in at 2.6% versus the expected 3.2% growth rate:
- Altria Group (MO ) – Posted higher revenues and earnings compared to last year’s Q4.
- Mattel (MAT) – Reported earnings that came in below analyst expectations.
- Eli Lilly (LLY ) – Posted lower revenues but beat EPS estimates.
- Chevron (CVX ) – Posted lower profits but beat EPS estimates.
Next Week
Investors will digest a slew of economic data next week, including: ISM and consumer spending on Monday, motor vehicle sales on Tuesday, and the monthly employment report on Friday. On the earnings front, some of the big names that are expected to report quarterly results are: Exxon Mobil (XOM ) on Monday, Walt Disney Company (DIS) on Tuesday, and General Motors Company (GM ) on Wednesday.
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