This week marked the second week of 2015’s first quarter earnings season. During the week ended April 17, we saw earnings releases from the big banks, as well as several other big-name dividend payers.
Monday
Although there were no major earnings releases on Monday, fears arose from the stronger dollar, as many of the companies set to report in the comings weeks will be negatively impacted.
The dollar gained on Monday, following weak Chinese trade data that indicated that China’s exports declined 15% in the past year.
The Dow declined 0.5%, the S&P dropped 0.5%, and the Nasdaq dipped 0.2%.
Tuesday
Before the opening bell on Tuesday, two of the largest U.S. banks reported earnings. Additionally, there were a couple other big-names that released results:
JP Morgan (JPM ) – Reported higher EPS, which beat estimates. The bank also announced that it plans to boost its dividend by 10%.
Wells Fargo (WFC ) – Revenue increased, but EPS declined. Beat analysts’ views.
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ ) – Reported lower results, citing currency pressures. Beat analysts’ estimates.
Fastenal (FAST )- Reported higher results. Earnings beat estimates, but revenue fell short.
In economic news, March’s retail sales results were also released on Tuesday morning. The report indicated that retail sales increased for the first time after three months of declines. In the month of March, retail sales increased 0.3% year-over-year.
After hours, Intel (INTC ) report in-line earnings for the first quarter.
The Dow rose 0.3%, the S&P gained 0.2%, and the Nasdaq dipped 0.2%.
Wednesday
On Wednesday morning, there was another group of notable earnings releases.
Bank of America (BAC ) – Turned a profit for the quarter, but missed estimates.
PNC Financial (PNC ) – Reported lower results. EPS beat estimates, but revenue fell short.
Delta Air Lines (DAL ) – Posted higher results, which met expectations.
The Dow rose 0.4%, the S&P gained 0.5%, and the Nasdaq increased 0.7%.
Thursday
There were several big-name earnings releases on Thursday morning, including two more of the big banks.
Goldman Sachs (GS ) – Reported higher results and beat estimates.
Citigroup (C ) – Posted higher EPS, but lower revenue. Beat analysts’ views.
UnitedHealth (UNH ) – Posted higher results and beat estimates.
Phillip Morris (PM ) – Reported lower profits, but higher revenues. Beat estimates.
Sherwin-Williams (SHW ) – Posted higher results, but missed estimates.
Before the markets opened, the housing starts and the weekly jobless claims reports were released. Housing starts for March increased less than expected. Jobless claims increased by 12,000 to a seasonally adjusted 294,000 for the week ended April 11.
After hours, Mattel (MAT) reported better-than-expected results.
The Dow dipped 0.04%, the S&P dropped 0.1%, and the Nasdaq lost 0.1%.
Friday
Before Friday’s opening bell, earnings continued to be released, which included big dividend names General Electric, Honeywell and Reynolds American.
General Electric (GE ) – Reported a net loss, but beat estimates.
Honeywell (HON ) – Reported higher results and narrowed its outlook.
Reynolds American (RAI) – Posted higher results and beat estimates.
The markets opened lower on Friday, partially due to reports of stock market regulation in China.
Next Week
Next week, earnings season will continue with earnings from International Business Machines (IBM ), Morgan Stanley (MS ), Verizon (VZ ), Coca-Cola (KO ), AT&T (T ), McDonald’s (MCD ) and many more.
In economic news, we will see the existing home sales report on Wednesday, new home sales and jobless claims on Thursday and durable goods on Friday.
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