The stock markets in the United States ended the trading session with gains today as investors evaluate the earnings of companies and monitor the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Investors have been selling their stockholdings in tech stocks, particularly those so-called momentum stocks such as Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) and Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR) in recent weeks.
In a telephone interview with Bloomberg, Chad Morganlander, portfolio manager at Stifel Nicolaus & Co. opined, “You’re in the process right now, in the short run, of sorting through earnings, as well as geopolitical and economic issues. here’s a tremendous amount of volatility and uncertainty because of concerns over Russia and Ukraine. That’s going to shift the winds of the market on a minute-by-minute basis.”
On the other hand, Michael James, managing director of equity trading at Wedbush Securities commented that stocks are having meaningful movements in both directions because people are worried on both sides. He said, “Subjectivity plays such a pivotal role, and emotions, in what’s been going on in this market that it’s hard to pinpoint what causes a turn in the direction.”
The Federal Reserve of New York reported that the growth manufacturing in the region expanded at a slower pace to 1.29% in April from 5.61% last month. Economists polled by Bloomberg estimated an 8% expansion.
U.S. Markets
- Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA)- 16,262.56 (+0.55%)
- S&P 500- 1,842.98 (+0.68 %)
- NASDAQ- 4,034.16 (+0.29%)
- Russell 2000- 1,120.10 (+0.43%)
European Markets
- EURO STOXX 50 Price EUR- 3,091.52 (-1.28%)
- FTSE 100 Index- 6,541.61 (-0.64%)
- Deutsche Borse AG German Stock Index DAX- 9,173.71 (-1.77%)
Asia Pacific Markets
- Nikkei 225- 13,996.81 (+0.62%)
- Hong Kong Hang Seng Index- 22,671.26 (-1.60%)
- Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 Index- 2,229.46 (-1.73%)
Stocks in Focus
The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) rose 3.74% to $40.18 per share after reporting earnings that met the estimates of Wall Street analysts. The beverage giant generated $0.44 earnings per share excluding special items, which matches the expectations of analysts. Its revenue was $10.58 billion, down by 4%, but a bit higher than the $10.55 billion consensus estimate. In a note to investors, RBC Capital Markets analyst Nik Modi said the global growth of Coke was “particularly impressive” given the harsh weather conditions, strong dollar, and effects of the ongoing tension between Russia and the United States during the quarter. He believes that Coke’s volume will continue to accelerate.
The stock price of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) climbed 2.12% to $99.20 per share after the company reported strong first quarter financial results. Its earnings were $1.54 per share, higher than the consensus estimate of $1.48 earnings per share. Its revenue was $18.1 billion compared with the $17.99 billion revenue projected by analysts.
The shares of J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE:JCP) slumped 4.73% to $72.25 per share today. It seems that investors are becoming increasingly concerned with the turnaround efforts of the company as stock price of the company dropped 20% over the past week. There is no relevant news affecting the stock today.
