The Dow Jones popped this morning on earnings reports from JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ). But the markets are still battling uncertainty with the COVID-19 crisis.
More on this below. Here's everything moving the Dow today.
First, here are the numbers from Monday for the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq:
Index
Previous Close
Point Change
Percentage Change
Dow Jones
23,390.77
-328.60
-1.39
S&P 500
2,761.63
-28.19
-1.01
Nasdaq
8,192.42
+38.85
+0.48
Here are the most important market events and the stories that I'm following right now.
The Top Stock Market Stories for Tuesday
This morning, financial companies started earnings season with a flurry of reports. Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) kicked off the day with news that it has set aside a large amount of cash over fears of potential customer defaults. The firm reported earnings per share of $0.01, much lower than the $0.33 expected among analysts. The firm also missed revenue expectations by a large amount. "Our results were impacted by a $3.1 billion reserve build, which reflected the expected impact these unprecedented times could have on our customers," said CFO John Shrewsberry said this morning.
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Johns Hopkins University reports that the number of global coronavirus cases topped 1.9 million last week. This figure has effectively doubled in seven days. In addition, the number of deaths now sits at 120,500. This morning, the World Health Organization said that we have not seen the peak of the virus just yet. Although cases are easing across parts of Europe, the outbreaks continue to climb in Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The WHO also reported that a vaccine is unlikely to arrive for at least 12 months.
Oil prices were falling on Tuesday. The downturn came despite this week's deal by OPEC, Russia, and other nations to cut global output by 9.7 million barrels. That figure represents roughly 10% of global supply. Other nations like the United States and Mexico could help to reduce global output by 19.5 million barrels. Voluntary cuts would offer support to crude prices at a time that demand has been gutted by the coronavirus outbreak. That said, China has reportedly started to increase its oil purchases as it aims to contain the coronavirus outbreak. The nation increased its crude purchases by 12% in March.
Stocks to Watch Today: JNJ, JPM, BUD
Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) popped 3.5% this morning after the firm easily beat quarterly earnings before the bell. The firm reported EPS of $2.30, a figure that beat consensus expectations by $0.30. Despite a solid revenue figure and a 6.3% dividend hike, the firm did lower its full-year guidance due to the coronavirus outbreak.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) reported earnings per share of $0.78. That figure missed consensus expectations of $1.84 after the firm added $6.8 billion to credit reserves. JPM is bracing for a big uptick in defaults across the energy, retail, and real estate markets on the business side. Its credit card loans could also take a bath on the consumer side.
The massive purchase of SABMiller by Anheuser-Busch InBev (NYSE: BUD) is coming back to haunt the buyer. The Budweiser maker has announced plans to slash its dividend as it aims to reduce the debt load from the $100 billion deal. The firm also plans to postpone its annual shareholder meeting due to the coronavirus outbreak. BUD stock was in a free fall over the last year due to its exposure to the Chinese market. BUD stock's 52-week high hit $102.70 but plunged roughly 70% at the height of the recent March sell-off.
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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.