Morning Market News: Updates on JPM, WFC, GOOG, WBS, JNJ, FRX, EA

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Morning Market News: Updates on JPM, WFC, GOOG, WBS, JNJ, FRX, EA

 

Market Levels

 

 

  • US:  Dow Futures: 12544.00 (0.34%), S&P 500 Futures: 1332.50 (0.25%), NASDAQ Futures: 2545.00 (0.29%)
  • Europe: CAC: 3144.49 (0.28%), DAX: 6479.15 (0.92%), FTSE: 5633.38 (0.45%)
  • Asia-Pacific: Australia: 4082.20 (0.35%), China: 2185.90 (0.02%), Hong Kong: 19092.63 (0.35%), India: 5227.25 (-0.15%), Japan: 8724.12 (0.05%).
  • Metals: Gold: 1582.50 (1.10%), Silver: 27.24 (0.35%), Copper: 3.47 (1.74%)
  • Energy: Crude Oil: 86.91 (0.96%), Natural Gas: 2.88 (0.21%)
  • Commodities: Corn: 7.47 (3.65%), Soya Bean: 15.55 (0.28%), Wheat: 8.76 (2.59%)
  • Currency: EUR/USD: 1.2173 (-0.25%), GBP/USD: 1.5471 (0.28%), USD/JPY: 79.2700 (-0.05%)
  • 10 year US Treasury: 1.486% (0.012)   

 

 

Financial and Economic News Update

 

 

U.S. stock-index futures marginally higher: U.S. stock index futures are pointing to a higher open on Friday as U.S. producer prices unexpectedly rose in June despite a big slump in energy prices. The Dow futures, the S&P futures and the NASDAQ future are all trading in the green.

 

European markets in the green: European markets are trading higher, with the German DAX (INDEXDB:DAX) trading up 0.9 percent at 6479.15, the FTSE 100 (INDEXFTSE:UKX) was 0.5 percent higher at 5633.38, and the CAC 40 (INDEXEURO:PX1) gained 0.3 percent to 3144.49. The euro zone blue-chip ESTX 50 PR.EUR (INDEXSTOXX:SX5E) (Euro Stoxx 50) was up 0.12 percent.

 

Asian markets edge higher: Asian markets closed higher on Friday after the Chinese economy grew 7.6 percent in the April-June quarter, in line with forecasts. Japan’s NIKKEI 225 (INDEXNIKKEI:NI225) crept up 0.1 percent to 8,724.12 to snap a six-session losing streak. The HANG SENG INDEX (INDEXHANGSENG:HSI) closed up 0.4 percent on the day at 19,092.6 points, while the SSE Composite Index (SHA:000001) (Shanghai Composite Index) closed at 2185.9 points. The S&P/ASX 200 (INDEXASX:XJO) index rose 14.2 points to 4,082.2. The benchmark Indian 30-share BSE SENSITIVE (INDEXBOM:SENSEX) index ended down 0.2 percent.

 

Stocks in Focus

 

U.S.

 

  • JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) posted second-quarter net income of $4.96 billion, or $1.21 a share, on $23 billion of revenue. Analysts were expecting earnings of 72 cents per share and revenue of $22 billion. The country’s biggest bank reported $4.4 billion of credit trading losses in the second quarter.
  • Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) reported a 17 percent rise in second-quarter net profit to a record $4.62 billion, or 82 cents a share. Revenue increased 4 percent to $21.3 billion from the same period last year. Analysts were looking for per share earnings of 81 cents on revenue of $21.36 billion.
  • Larry Page, chief executive of Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG), resumed work this week. He is recovering from an undisclosed illness that left him without his voice.
  • Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS) reported second quarter net income of $40.63 million or 44 cents per share, up from $33.35 million or 36 cents per share in the same period, last year. Net interest income stood at $144.38 million, while non-interest income grew to $47.35 million from $46.19 million in the prior-year quarter.
  • Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) has reached a tentative settlement with shareholders who had sued the board and top executives of the world’s biggest health-products maker for not fixing various serious legal and manufacturing problems for years.
  • Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATVI) and Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) are expected to be in focus today after market research company NPD Group reported a 29 percent decline in U.S. videogame industry sales in June compared to a year ago.
  • Forest Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:FRX) has rejected second largest shareholder, Carl Icahn’s, nominees for the board of directors, saying they were unqualified.
  • Printer maker Lexmark International Inc (NYSE:LXK) slashed its second-quarter sales and profit outlook, citing unfavorable exchange rate fluctuations and weaker than expected demand for its products in Europe.
  • Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI), the owner of Olive Garden and Red Lobster chains, has agreed to acquire bar and grill restaurant operator Yard House USA Inc from private equity firm TSG Consumer Partners LLC for $585 million in cash.
  • Moody’s Investors Service has downgraded Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) to the junk level of Ba1 from Baa3.
  • Specialty retailer The Wet Seal, Inc. (NASDAQ:WTSLA) has been sued by three former employees, who accuse the retailer of bias against its African American workers.
  • U.S. dairy processor Dean Foods Company (NYSE:DF) slumped 2 percent after Goldman Sachs cut the stock to “neutral” from “buy.”

 

 

Europe

 

  • Italian banks, Unicredit SpA (BIT:UCG) and Intesa Sanpaolo SpA (BIT:ISP), were down more than a percent each in trade today after Moody’s Investors Service cut Italy’s bond rating by two levels to Baa2 from A3, and warned that further cuts were possible.
  • Vodafone Group Plc (ADR) (NASDAQ:VOD) (LON:VOD), BT Group plc (ADR) (NYSE:BT) (LON:BT.A), France Telecom SA (ADR) (NYSE:FTE) (EPA:FTE) and Vivendi SA (EPA:VIV) were all trading significantly higher after Citigroup Inc. upgraded the European telecom sector to “neutral” from “underweight.”
  • French carmaker Peugeot SA (EPA:UG) plunged more than 9 percent on concerns that the government may intervene after the company yesterday announced plans to close a factory and cut jobs.
  • British financial data company Experian plc (LON:EXPN) reported higher first quarter revenue amid strong performance in Latin America.
  • Utility firm SSE PLC (LON:SSE) slid 1 percent in London trading after Societe Generale initiated coverage of the firm with a sell rating, and Citigroup lowered the stock to “sell” from “neutral.”
  • Deutsche Telekom AG (ETR:DTE) (FRA:DTE) jumped 4 percent after Credit Suisse Group AG lifted its rating on the company’s shares to “neutral” from “underperform.”
  • French mailing and shipping equipment supplier, Neopost SA (EPA:NEO), agreed to buy customer communication management company, GMC Software Technology.

 

Asia

  • Hong Kong’s anti-graft agency today charged Thomas and Raymond Kwok, the billionaire co-chairmen of Asia’s largest property developer, Sun Hung Kai Properties Limited (HKG:0016), and Rafael Hui, a former top city official, in a bribery investigation surrounding the real-estate developer.
  • Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) will shut-down its regional sales offices in Shanghai and Chengdu as part of a restructuring plan in the world’s largest smart phone market.
  • Boston-based private equity firm Bain Capital is in talks with the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation Private Limited, the world’s third largest sovereign wealth fund, to make a joint bid for a 40 percent stake in the India headquartered business process management company, Genpact Limited (NYSE:G), for $1.5 billion to $2 billion, Reuters reported.
  • China Life Insurance Company Ltd. (ADR) (NYSE:LFC) (HKG:2628), the country’s largest life insurer, recently made an investment of around 9 billion yuan ($1.41 billion) in equity funds, according to a report in the Shanghai Securities News.
  • Construction equipment maker, Sany Heavy Industry Co., LTD (SHA:600031), slashed its sales forecast for excavators, in a sign that the slowdown in Chinese economic growth and government regulations are taking a toll on property market demand.
  • Chinese coal producers, China Shenhua Energy Company Limited (HKG:1088) (SHA:601088) and China Coal Energy Company Limited (HKG:1898) (SHA:601898) ended significantly in the green despite Sanford C. Bernstein lowering its China coal price forecast for 2012 and 2013.
  • Footwear retailer Belle International Holdings Limited (HKG:1880) reported better-than-expected second quarter same store sales.

 

 

Economic Calendar for Friday, July 13, 2012:

 

08:30 A.M. ET:    Producer Price Index (MoM) (June)

08:30 A.M. ET:    Producer Price Index (YoY) (June)

08:30 A.M. ET:    Producer Price Index ex Food & Energy (MoM) (June)

08:30 A.M. ET:    Producer Price Index ex Food & Energy (YoY) (June)

09:55 A.M. ET:    Reuters/Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index (July)

01:20 P.M. ET:    Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank President Dennis Lockhart speaks.

 

 

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