ClearBridge Investments’ Jeffrey Schulze says big capital tech stocks are worth investing in because they aren’t overly expensive and have outperformed the market for years.
U.S. equity markets opened higher Tuesday as traders digested a number of high-profile corporate earnings results and looked ahead to the Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision, but surrendered those gains after pending home sales missed the mark.
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The number of contracts signed but not closed fell 4.9 percent year-over-year in December, according to the National Association of Realtors, falling short of the 0.5 percent gain that was expected by economists surveyed by Refinitiv.
The early gains came despite China’s National Health Commission saying the death toll from the coronavirus outbreak climbed to 132 and that there are now more than 6,000 confirmed cases of the virus.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 3281.84 | +5.60 | +0.17% |
| I:DJI | DOW JONES AVERAGES | 28750.01 | +27.16 | +0.09% |
| I:COMP | NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX | 9288.857959 | +19.18 | +0.21% |
Dow components Apple, Boeing, Dow and McDonald’s released their quarterly results.
Apple reported record fiscal first-quarter revenue, outpacing the upper end of its forecast, and issued a wider-than-usual range for its second-quarter forecast due to the coronavirus outbreak and its potential impact on its production capabilities.
Boeing reported a $1.01 billion loss in the fourth quarter and its first annual loss in 22 years as the planemaker continued to reel from the grounding of its best-selling 737 Max aircraft.
McDonald’s reported global comparable sales that topped estimates, helped by higher menu prices, remodeled stores and new delivery partnerships.
Chemical maker Dow reported better-than-expected results, helped by strong demand in Asia and cost cuts.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AAPL | APPLE INC. | 324.36 | +6.67 | +2.10% |
| BA | BOEING COMPANY | 324.59 | +8.03 | +2.54% |
| MCD | MCDONALD’S CORP. | 213.87 | +3.48 | +1.65% |
| DOW | DOW INC. | 49.28 | +2.12 | +4.50% |
Elsewhere on the earnings front, industrial conglomerate General Electric posted better-than-expected results as its turnaround plan continued to take hold.
Tesla shares are in focus as the electric-car maker is set to report after the closing bell. Wall Street analysts surveyed by Refinitiv are expecting adjusted earnings of $1.72 a share on revenue of $7.02 billion.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GE | GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY | 12.60 | +0.87 | +7.42% |
| TSLA | TESLA INC. | 572.63 | +5.73 | +1.01% |
Beyond Meat shares were little changed after the restaurant chain Tim Horton’s discontinued its limited-time offer of the plant-based protein.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BYND | BEYOND MEAT INC. | 120.49 | +0.37 | +0.31% |
| QSR | RESTAURANT BRANDS INTERNATIONAL INC. | 62.80 | +0.01 | +0.02% |
The Federal Reserve will make its first policy decision of the year on Wednesday after cutting rates in three consecutive meetings before pausing in December. The central bank is expected to hold its key rate in a range between 1.5 percent and 1.75 percent.
Ahead of the decision, U.S. Treasurys were little changed with the yield on the 10-year note holding near 1.635 percent.
Looking at commodities, West Texas Intermediate crude oil was up 0.6 percent and gold edged up 0.1 percent.
In Europe, markets were higher across the board with France’s CAC up 0.4 percent while both Britain’s FTSE and Germany’s DAX gained 0.2 percent.
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Overnight, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng tumbled 2.8 percent as traders returned to work following Lunar New Year celebrations. China’s Shanghai Composite remained closed.
