The Dow Jones news today will focus on the busiest week of earnings this quarter and the next FOMC meeting starting on Tuesday. Alphabet Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOGL) will cap off today's second-quarter earnings report. Google's parent company will release its quarterly report after the bell.
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Here are the numbers from Friday for the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq:
The Federal Reserve is in focus as central bankers prepare to meet this week to discuss monetary policy and plans to unwind its $4.5 trillion balance sheet. The meeting comes the same week that the International Monetary Fund reduced its growth expectations for the U.S. economy down to 2.1% in 2017 and 2.3% in 2018. The revision is based on reduced expectations for government stimulus spending.
The German automotive sector is under significant pressure this morning. European antitrust officials have been investigating charges that the nation's largest vehicle manufacturers have been operating as a cartel since the early 1990s. Antitrust claims are being made on everything from vehicle design, emissions systems, and engine development. Expect a downturn for shares of BMW (OTCMKTS: BMWYY), Daimler AG (OTCMKTS: DMLRY), and Volkswagen AG (OTCMKTS ADR: VLKAY), all trading on the U.S. exchanges.
Last week, the Bitcoin priceleaped as much as 60% from its lows last Sunday as the dark cloud of the Bitcoin "civil war" finally began to dissipate. The price nearly hit $3,000 after Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) raised its expectations for Bitcoin moving forward and said the cryptocurrency could hit $3,700 in the months ahead. But that figure may actually be too conservative. There is a very good case to be made that Bitcoin is likely heading toward $5,000 by this fall. Here's why.
Crude oil prices are in focus today after news broke that OPEC production is still on the rise. Production in Nigeria and Libya continue to weaken expectations that the global oil cartel will be able to unwind the global supply glut and bolster oil prices. Today, six OPEC and non-OPEC members will meet in Russia to discuss their expectations for the market looking forward. The WTI crude oil price today added 0.8%. Brent crude gained 0.6%.
Investors of Sears Holding Corp. (Nasdaq: SHLD) have cheered a stock rally in recent weeks that saw shares rise more than 40%. The latest news pushing shares higher was the deal between the embattled retailer and Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN) to sell its Kenmore appliances on the e-commerce giant's platform. The plan pummeled shares of Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD) and others in the home improvement retail space. But investors should take this Sears rally with a grain of salt. The reality is that Sears is an underperforming company that cannot be saved. Here's why you can ignore this price rally...
Three Stocks to Watch Today: HAL, GOOGL, WBMD
In earnings news, shares of Halliburton Co. (NYSE: HAL) added more than 1.4% in pre-market hours after the company reported a 30% increase in annual revenue. The company also reported a small profit, which gave Wall Street confidence in the broader oil field services sector. The industry has been under significant pressure since oil prices began their steep decline in 2015.
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Shares of Alphabet Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOGL) were off slightly in pre-market hours as the company prepares to report quarterly earnings after the bell today. Wall Street analysts anticipate EPS of $8.25 on top of $20.8 billion in revenue.
WebMD Health Corp. (Nasdaq: WBMD) soared 19% in pre-market hours on news that private-equity giant KKR & Co. (NYSE: KKR) is on the verge of purchasing the online health publisher for $2.8 billion in cash.
Also look for earnings reports from Arconic Inc. (Nasdaq: ARNC), Hasbro Inc. (Nasdaq: HAS), VF Corp. (NYSE: VFC), Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: APC), Cal-Maine Foods Inc. (Nasdaq: CALM), Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE: ITW), and Core Laboratories NV (NYSE: CLB).