How to Profit from the Dow Jones Today as Its Record-Setting Run Continues

The Dow Jones today will continue its record-breaking run, as futures are already up 140 points before the bell.

The Dow Jones will open for a third consecutive record high today as a positive earnings season rolls on. There are plenty of profits to be made for investors who know where to find them. And this strategy has racked up 35 triple-digit wins so far this year…

Here are the numbers from Monday for the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq:

Now here's a closer look at today's most important market events and stocks, plus Tuesday's economic calendar.

The Five Top Stock Market Stories for Tuesday

• Markets are once again focusing on updates in Washington over proposed tax reform. The latest tax reform drama centers on rumors that Congress wants to cap 401(k) contributions at a paltry $2,400 per year. U.S. President Donald Trump took to the podium to combat these rumors and state that there would be no changes to how retirement accounts can be funded.

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• The battle to host the second headquarters of Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN) hit a frenzy last week. According to company officials, the e-commerce giant received 238 proposals from cities and regions across North America that aimed to secure the gig. In September, the firm said it was seeking a new location that would rival its Seattle-based campus. The firm anticipates it will generate 50,000 jobs and spend at least $5 billion on the project. Having considered all of the proposals, we recently narrowed the list down to seven locations. Here is where we think Amazon HQ2 will be located when the dust clears.

• Are there problems on the horizon for Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL)? There could be if company co-founder Steve Wozniak's sentiment on the iPhone X becomes a widely shared view. In an interview with CNBC, Wozniak said that he does not plan to purchase the iPhone X, making it the first generation of the firm's smartphone that he will not own. "I'm happy with my iPhone 8 – which is the same as the iPhone 7, which is the same as the iPhone 6, to me," he said.

• Shares of General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) are falling after the company is rumored to be considering slashing its dividend. The company fell well short of earnings expectations Monday and saw its stock fall more than 6.3% in a broad sell-off that helped snap the Dow's winning streak. The stock fell to a four-and-a-half-year low.

• Crude oil prices ticked higher in pre-market hours as geopolitical concerns continued to rattle investor sentiment. Clashes in northern Iraq continue to generate headlines. Markets are concerned that further escalation could impact a key oil-producing region and destabilize political tensions in the region. The WTI crude oil price today added 0.6%. Brent crude gained 0.4%.

Three Stocks to Watch Today: MCD, CAT, GM

• Shares of McDonald's Corp. (NYSE: MCD) are up 0.4% after reporting earnings this morning. Wall Street expected earnings per share (EPS) of $1.75 on top of $5.769 billion in revenue. The fast food giant reported $1.76 per share on top of $5.755 billion.

• Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) stock surged more than 7% after the company easily topped quarterly estimates. Wall Street anticipated EPS of $1.22 on top of $10.61 billion in revenue. The firm blew through these numbers. CAT's EPS came in at $1.95 on top of $11.41 billion.

• General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) stock jumped 4.3% after a stronger profit figure than Wall Street expected. Analysts had anticipated EPS of $1.09 on $36.16 billion in revenue. The firm reported EPS of $1.32 on $33.62 billion in revenue.

• Tuesday will feature a busy day of earnings reports. Keep an eye out for additional results from Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG), Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NYSE: AMD), Texas Instruments Inc. (NYSE: TXN), AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T), Juniper Networks Inc. (Nasdaq: JNPR), JetBlue Airways Corp. (Nasdaq: JBLU), Illumina Inc. (Nasdaq: ILMN), Biogen Inc. (Nasdaq: BIIB), Lockheed Martin Corp. (NYSE: LMT), Corning Inc. (NYSE: GLW), Capital One Financial Corp. (NYSE: COF), Express Scripts Holding Co. (Nasdaq: ESRX), iRobot Corp. (Nasdaq: IRBT), and United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX).

Tuesday's U.S. Economic Calendar (all times EDT)

• Redbook at 8:55 a.m.
• PMI Composite Flash at 9:45 a.m.
• Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index at 10 a.m.
• Four-Week Bill Auction at 11:30 a.m.
• Two-Year Note Auction at 1 p.m.

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