The markets are in the thick of the third quarter earnings season as roughly 224 stocks report their earnings Wednesday. Disappointing earnings results from two Dow Jones components — Boeing (BA) and Caterpillar (CAT) — weighed on the index. Major stocks reporting earnings after the market close include Tesla (TSLA) and Microsoft (MSFT). Dow Jones giant Apple (AAPL) stock made another all-time high. Meanwhile, top growth stock Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) sold off on its quarterly earnings results.
XThe Dow Jones Today
The stock market uptrend still holds, but the recent rising distribution-day count suggests caution. Both the Nasdaq and S&P 500 were on an eight-day distribution streak. This means larger institutions continued to take profits, producing more distribution days and limiting the markets advance. The market on Wednesday finally avoided a distribution day, a positive sign.
The Dow Jones traded lower in the morning before recovering shortly thereafter, then repeated this choppy action into the close. The market action Wednesday imitated the back and forth movement of the broader indexes over the past couple weeks.
The Dow Jones today rose 0.2%. The Nasdaq gained 0.2%, despite a strong drag from chip stocks. The S&P 500 also turned positive, up 0.3%. Both the S&P and the Nasdaq are fighting to remain positive for the week. The Nasdaq has advanced three weeks straight. The S&P 500 posted gains the past two weeks and closed within 1% of its record high.
Stock Earnings Today
Electric car company Tesla reported after the market close. The company reported quarterly earnings of 1.91 per share which beat analyst's estimated loss of 42 cents a share by 555%. This is a decrease of 34% year over year. The company reported quarterly sales of 6.3 billion which just missed the estimate. The stock is soaring in after hours trading, immediately up 13%. More to follow.
Tesla delivered 97,000 electric vehicles in the quarter, a record high and a 16% gain year over year. The bigger question now is whether Tesla can meet its full-year delivery forecast of 360,000-400,000 cars. Tesla shares closed lower 0.4% at 254.68 on the stock market today, edging back above their 200-day average.
Boeing stock closed down roughly 9% so far this month, after results were mixed with earnings down 61%, vs. the expected 43% decline. Revenue fell 21%, less than expected. The stock's quarterly dividend will be the same as the year prior and shares are still up 4.6% year to date.
Caterpillar stock closed up 1.2% for the day. The company's third-quarter earnings fell 7% to $2.66 a share, as revenue slid 6% to $12.76 billion. Meanwhile, the company slashed its full-year outlook. The stock plunged on the news but quickly recovered and ended up for the day.
Shares are approaching a new buy point after regaining their 200- and 50-day lines in recent trading sessions. The stock ended Wednesday 4% below its current buy point at 140.72. Investors could interpret the stock's current base pattern in a few different ways, but they result in the same proper buy point.
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