Dow Jones Industrial Average News, 7/26/2016: It's another busy day of earnings reports and speculation on interest rates. What else is new.
The markets will attempt to rebound from yesterday's underwhelming performance. On Monday, the Dow fell 84 points after energy stocks slumped and oil prices retreated.
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However, yesterday's downturn and today's news has created a number of different profit opportunities for investors. That's what we want to tackle this morning.
Here is today's top stock market news, stocks to watch, ways to profit, and economic calendar for July 26, 2016.
What's Moving the Dow Jones Industrial Average Today: Earnings and Oil Slide
Dow Jones futures projected a 10-point decline as the markets react to another busy day of earnings reports. Weaker than expected reports from McDonald's Corp. (NYSE: MCD), Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT), and Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) are pushing markets into the red this morning. Shares of MCD stock were off 3.4% early this morning after the firm fell short of Wall Street earnings expectations. The markets will see earnings reports all day, culminating in reports from technology firms Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) and Twitter Inc. (NYSE: TWTR) after the bell. Here's what to expect from Twitter.
We're back on Fed Watch today. The U.S. Federal Reserve kicks off its two-day monetary policy meeting. The markets do not anticipate any rate hike, but that isn't going to stop the financial media's fascination with central banking. CME Group projects just a 2.4% chance that the company will raise rates in July. CME projects a 40% probability that the Fed will increase rates in December. If the Fed actually does raise interest rates in 2016, though, this is the best stock to buy.
Oil prices fell to their lowest levels since May as concerns about a global supply glut weigh on investor sentiment. WTI crude oil prices fell 1.4%, while Brent crude oil prices dipped 1%. The decline accelerated after market intelligence firm Genscape projected an increase of 1.1 million barrels at the largest U.S. delivery base in Cushing, Oklahoma. Meanwhile, Baker Hughes Inc. (NYSE: BHI) announced on Friday that the United States has added rigs for four consecutive weeks.
Money Morning Global Energy Strategist Dr. Kent Moors argues that sliding oil prices are setting up a profitable investment opportunity for the long term. Here's how Kent says that investors should trade oil right now.
Now here's your list of top stocks to watch in today's market, plus today's economic calendar:[mmpazkzone name="in-story" network="9794" site="307044" id="137008" type="4"]
Companies to Watch in the Stock Market Today
- Shares of Verizon are in focus after the mobile giant reported second-quarter earnings this morning. The firm topped Wall Street earnings expectations of $0.93 per share, but fell short of revenue forecasts. On Monday, the firm confirmed it will be purchasing the core internet business of Yahoo! Inc. (Nasdaq: YHOO) for $4.83 billion. VZ stock was off 0.7% in pre-market hours.
- Shares of Starbucks Corp. (Nasdaq: SBUX) were up 1.3% after the company received an upgrade on Tuesday. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) has added the international coffee chain to "America's Conviction List" and predicted a sharp rise in the firm's store sales heading into its fiscal fourth quarter.
- Shares of Apple will likely trade in heavy volumes today as the company prepares to report third-quarter earnings. The company is set to sell its one-billionth iPhone this week. However, that will not stop the firm from most likely falling short of earnings expectations. It will likely mark the second straight quarter of year-over-year declines after an incredible run of 51 straight quarters of growth. Investment firm BCG downgraded the stock on Monday to a "Sell" ahead of the earnings report. With the stock under pressure, should investors consider buying AAPL stock? Find that answer, right here.
- Look out for additional earnings reports from Under Armour Inc. (NYSE: UA), Buffalo Wild Wings (Nasdaq: BWLD), Panera Bread Co. (Nasdaq: PNRA), Illumina Inc. (Nasdaq: ILMN), JetBlue Airways Corp. (Nasdaq: JBLU), and United States Steel Corp. (NYSE: X).
Today's U.S. Economic Calendar (all times EDT)
- Redbook at 8:55 a.m.
- S&P Case-Shiller HPI at 9 a.m.
- PMI Services Flash at 9:45 a.m.
- New Home Sales at 10 a.m.
- Consumer Confidence at 10 a.m.
- Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index at 10 a.m.
- State Street Investor Confidence Index at 10 a.m.
- 4-Week Bill Auction at 11:30 a.m.
- 5-Year Note Auction at 1 p.m.
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About the Author
Garrett Baldwin is a globally recognized research economist, financial writer, consultant, and political risk analyst with decades of trading experience and degrees in economics, cybersecurity, and business from Johns Hopkins, Purdue, Indiana University, and Northwestern.