This earnings season will be awash in fascinating storylines from corporate America, and the technology earnings season will no doubt weave the most interesting of narratives.
That's because tech has been on a roll for the third quarter.
Here are the four stocks to watch as tech unveils one of its most important quarters…
Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) earnings solidly beat analyst expectations to kick off the season, but don't get too excited.
Often regarded as a bellwether and tone setter for earnings season, AA's positive financial results are not going to permeate throughout the basic materials sector, which is likely to see trouble this quarter at the hands of falling commodity prices.
But AA has a luxury that many of these producers don’t have, making it the exception, not the rule.
Dow Jones today, October 9, 2014:The Dow Jones Industrial Average soared 274 points Wednesday following the Federal Open Market Committee's release of its September meeting minutes. According to the minutes, many Fed officials took a dovish approach in conversation and are seeking a new way to convince others that they are not prepared to raise interest rates according to the previous timeline.
Yesterday marked the unofficial start to the September-quarter earnings season, when global aluminum giant Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) announced it beat quarterly result estimates.
Here’s what else you should know to make your Thursday profitable:
Dow Jones today, October 8, 2014: The Dow Jones Industrial Average slumped heavily Tuesday after renewed concerns about global growth reemerged and investors took money off the table ahead of earnings season. The sharp selloff was led by cyclical stocks, which are typically tied to the pace of economic growth.
Here’s what else you should know to make your Wednesday profitable…
Q3 earnings season is just about underway. Keep up-to-date on the key reports with this convenient 2014 Q3 earnings calendar for October, November, and December.
Monday brought a flurry of deals across several sectors, sending the Dow Jones Industrial Average to an all-time intraday high shortly after the open.
Those transactions are featured on today's hot stocks to watch list, along with earnings from a big bank, a bullish upgrade for a tech favorite, and more.
Get our full list of hot stocks to watch, including C, AAPL, KOG, and more...
Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) kicked off second-quarter bank earnings season Friday morning. While the bank didn't deliver any surprises, its numbers failed to impress.
Shares of the largest U.S. bank by market cap, up 28.5% since October, fell nearly 2% to $50.82 on brisk volume following the uninspiring report.
Dow Jones today, July 8, 2014: This morning, Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL), Groupon Inc. (Nasdaq: GRPN), and Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) are among the day's more notable premarket movers.
Yesterday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped more than 50 points as investors weren't willing to take risky positions ahead of earnings season. Cyclical and small-cap stocks lagged the hardest this afternoon. The CBOE Volatility index soared more than 11%, the largest hike in nearly three months. The bounce was significant, as the index hit its lowest level since February 2007 last Thursday.
Here's what you should know to make your Tuesday profitable:
Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) pleasantly surprised Wall Street by comfortably beating expectations when it reported earnings for its March quarter after the market close today (Wednesday).
The tech giant also threw existing holders of Apple stock several goodies, including an expansion of the stock buyback program and an 8% increase in the dividend.
But while the stellar earnings report will push Apple stock higher in the short term,
it will take more than that to sustain a push back to $600 and beyond...
It's earnings season. And for company players, the game is about trying to beat analysts' estimates, to get your company's stock to pop so you look better than your reflection.
But the game is rigged. And like high-frequency trading and so many other "institutionalized" games on the Street that are sucking the life out of other people's dreams, it's not illegal.
Here's how earnings are manipulated, and why it should be stopped...
For the first time in over two years, and only the fifth time in a decade, JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) missed earnings forecasts when it posted first-quarter 2014 results Friday.
Investors were prepared for a slip in earnings compared with Q1 of 2013. In February, JPM cautioned trading revenue was weak. The warning was especially troubling because the first quarter is traditionally a strong one.
The earnings reports calendar is getting crowded as some big names deliver numbers this week - and investors will get to see if a harsh winter hurt Q1 results this season.
S&P 500 companies' Q1 earnings are forecast to have fallen 1.4% year over year, according to data from FactSet. That's down sharply from the start of the year, when profit growth was projected to rise 4.5%.
The earnings calendar for companies' first-quarter reports gets busy this week, and the perennial excuse of companies blaming poor weather for bad earnings will carry a bit more legitimacy this year - which only means more weather-whining than usual.
Expect the sectors most directly affected by the weather - transportation, autos, retail, restaurants - to focus on the brutal winter, but they certainly won't be the only ones.
As we move through earnings season, a disturbing trend has developed. Companies are still beating their EPS estimates, but by drastically lower margins than usual. With stock prices near record highs, something here doesn't add up.
Here's what's going on - and what you should do about it...
Coming off the worst week of the year, market participants have a cautious stance in the stock market today as earnings season kicks off - and will likely disappoint.
The Dow fell 13.29 points, or 0.09%, to 14,565.25 last week. The S&P shed 15.91, or 1.01%, to end the week at 1,553.28.
Monday, guarded investors kept a wary eye on developments in Eurozone, nuclear tensions in the Korean Peninsula, and Alcoa Inc.'s (NYSE: AA) earnings after the bell-the unofficial kick-off to Q1 earnings reports.
Red flags are waving that companies will report a slowdown in corporate profits. A number of companies have delivered lower guidance, with pre-earnings announcements sloped to the negative side. Companies in the S&P are expected to increase Q1 earnings a measly 1.5% over last year, according to Thomson Reuters.
Weak earnings could push any nervous investors to take gains and bail on markets for a while.
"Right now, projections for earnings in 2013 and the market are based on optimistic assumption," Howard Silverblatt, senior index analyst with S&P Dow Jones Indices told Barron's. "We can meet estimates if things move in the right direction. But the economy does not go straight up or down. There are bumps up or down. There are bumps in the road. And investors rarely get everything they need or want."
Here are some upcoming earnings reports to watch, as well as two of the biggest deals moving stocks this week.
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