As earnings season continues, investors are parsing through reports and prepping for October's Federal Reserve meeting. More on what's moving the Dow today, below.
Here are the numbers from Thursday for the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq:
Index
Previous Close
Point Change
Percentage Change
Dow Jones
26,805.53
-28.42
-0.11
S&P 500
3,010.29
+5.77
+0.19
Nasdaq
8,185.80
+66.00
+0.81
Now let's take a look at what I consider to be the most important market events to start your day.
The Top Stock Market Stories for Friday
Markets are digesting Thursday's wild earnings results. Strong reports from Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) and Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) offset weak reports from 3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) and Twitter Inc. (NYSE: TWTR). Twitter saw shares plunge more than 20% Thursday after a weak earnings report that raised concerns about subscriber growth and advertising revenue. So far this quarter, 39% of S&P 500 companies have reported earnings. Nearly 80% have topped Wall Street earnings expectations.
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Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson says that he would like a general election to occur on Dec. 12. The announcement raises further questions around Brexit and whether Johnson will be able to lead the country through its departure from the European Union. Earlier, the European Union approved a deal to delay the Brexit - however, ambassadors have set no date for the departure. Johnson is pushing for the general election, but only on the condition that Europe delays Brexit until Jan. 31, 2020.
Finally, the Federal Reserve is pumping more capital into the markets. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York has increased the minimum size of its overnight repurchasing agreement from $75 billion to $120 billion. This will likely be an important topic when the Federal Open Market Committee meets next week to talk about the state of the U.S. economy. Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) has predicted that the Fed will also cut interest rates next week and remove language stating that it would "act as appropriate to sustain the expansion." That language has been part of the Fed's official minutes since June.
Stocks to Watch Today: AMZN, NKE, VZ
Shares of Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) plunged more than 6% after the e-commerce giant fell well short of earnings expectations on Thursday afternoon. Despite news that the firm saw a 24% jump in revenue year over year, the firm said that it saw weaker sales in its cloud business. In addition, the company delivered a weak outlook for the upcoming holiday season.
Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) ticked slightly higher after the telecom giant beat earnings expectations this morning. The firm reported stronger revenue gains from post-paid subscribers. The company also reported earnings per share of $1.25, a figure that topped Wall Street forecasts by $0.01. It appears that Verizon is on the verge of breaking out with its commitment to 5G technology and increase in subscriber fees.
Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) took shots on Thursday from U.S. Vice President Mike Pence. While the United States and China are working on a trade deal, Pence took a very hawkish stance on China that criticized the country for its human rights and economic record. Pence accused the NBA of behaving "like a wholly-owned subsidiary of the authoritarian regime." Meanwhile, he said that Nike has checked "its social conscience at the door" on Hong Kong despite its efforts to promote itself as a "so-called social justice champion."
Look for additional earnings reports on Friday from VF Corp. (NYSE: VFC), Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (NYSE: GT), Charter Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: CHTR), and Yandex NV (NASDAQ: YNDX).
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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.