U.S. Indexes Traded In Tight Range as Earnings Roll In

Barry Adams
18 Apr, 2023
New York City

Market indexes advanced in the first hour of trading as investors reacted to the fresh batch of earnings. 

Investors remained focused on quarterly results and poured over bank results to get deeper insights in the health of the banking system. 

Commodities prices attempted a rebound after China reported better-than-expected growth in the first quarter. 

China\'s GDP rose at an annual pace of 4.5% in the first quarter, a rebound from 2.9% in the fourth quarter, the National Bureau of Statistics said Tuesday. 

The stronger-than-expected rebound was in part driven by additional stimulus provided by the Chinese government for infrastructure projects. 

Economists in China were anticipating the GDP to expand at 4.0% and the faster rebound raised hopes that the world\\\'s second largest economy may exceed the 5.0% growth target set by the government in 2023. 

Apple Inc was also in focus after the company opened its first retail store in India and extended its retail network in one of its fastest growing markets. 

Apple is in the middle of diversifying away from its manufacturing base from China to India and the maker of popular computing devices is also looking to ramp up its sales. 

In the latest financial year, Apple sales in India jumped to $6 billion and analysts are estimating that the company can sustain a growth rate upwards of 30% for several years. 

 

Indexes & Yields 

The S&P 500 index increased 0.3% to 4,166.05 and the Nasdaq Composite index advanced 0.6% to 12,226.51. 

The yield on 2-year Treasury notes increased 2 basis points to 4.21%, 10-year Treasury notes fell 1 basis point to 3.57% and 30-year Treasury bonds jumped 2 basis points to 3.82%. 

Crude oil declined 24 cents to $80.55 a barrel and natural gas futures rose 2 cents to $2.30 a thermal unit.

 

U.S. Stock Movers 

Bank of America increased 0.7% to $30.55 after the bank reported better-than-expected revenue and earnings in the first quarter, reflecting a jump in net interest rate margin. 

Goldman Sachs Group Inc decreased 2.3% to $331.89 after the investment bank reported lower-than-expected revenue and took a charge of $470 million related to the sale of its consumer loans business Marcus. 

Lockheed Martin Corp rose 2.9% to $504.16 after the aerospace company and defense contractor reaffirmed its full-year outlook and posted better-than-expected quarterly results. 

Net sales in the first quarter increased to $15.1 billion from $15.0 billion and net income was flat at $1.7 billion and diluted earnings per share rose to $6.61 from $6.44 a year ago. 

The company paid $784 million in dividends and $500 million of its own shares in the first quarter. 

Johnson & Johnson decreased 2.4% to $161.72 after the pharmaceuticals and consumer products maker said first quarter revenue increased 5.6% to $24.75 billion. 

The company swung to a net loss of $68 million from a profit of $5.2 billion and diluted earnings per share of ($0.03) from $1.93 a year ago. 

Adjusted earnings, which excludes special items and amortization expenses,  fell 0.9% to $7.06 billion from $7.2 billion and adjusted diluted earnings per share of $2.68 from $2.67 a year ago.