Equity futures rose Wednesday on the back of better-than-expected earnings from Dow components Boeing and Apple.
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Investors will also be waiting for a decision on interest rates when the Federal Reserve concludes its monetary policy meeting followed by a news conference with Fed Chairman Jerome Powell.
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Dow Jones futures were rising by 0.8 percent. The S&P 500 added 0.4 percent and the Nasdaq Composite was up 0.8 percent.
Apple shares rose 5.6 percent in premarket trading after the company reported a sharp growth in services business and Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook said trade tensions between the United States and China were easing.
The Cupertino, California-based company reported earnings per share of $4.18, roughly in line with the $4.17 expected by analysts polled by Refinitiv and a 7.5 percent increase compared to one year ago. Quarterly revenue fell 5 percent to $84.3 billion, slightly above an expected $83.97 billion.
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Apple reported iPhone revenue of $51.98 billion, which fell below Wall Street’s expectations and marked a 15 percent decline year-over-year. Cook attributed the shortfall to economic pressures in China and a slowdown in how often Apple customers are choosing to trade in their old iPhones for newer models.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | %Chg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AAPL | APPLE INC. | 154.68 | -1.62 | -1.04% |
| BA | BOEING COMPANY | 364.91 | +1.94 | +0.53% |
| MCD | MCDONALD’S CORP. | 182.17 | -1.43 | -0.78% |
Boeing topped expectations with both quarterly profit and its forecast for 2019 cash flow on Wednesday, as a boom in air travel underpinned a prediction for full-year deliveries of around 900 commercial airplanes.
Boeing’s shares rose 6.4 percent to $388.25 in early trading in response, helping lift the U.S. stock futures.
McDonald’s beat estimates for quarterly same-store sales on Wednesday, powered by a strong international performance . Global sales at stores open at least 13 months rose 4.4 percent.
Excluding items, the company earned $1.97 per share, beating the $1.89 analysts on average had expected.
In Asian markets on Wednesday, China’s Shanghai Composite index settled 0.7 percent lower.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng finished the day up 0.4 percent.
Japan’s Nikkei ended the day down 0.5 percent.
In Europe, London’s FTSE gained 1.8 percent, Germany’s DAX slipped 0.3 percent and France’s CAC added 0.7 percent.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | %Chg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I:DJI | DOW JONES AVERAGES | 24579.96 | +51.74 | +0.21% |
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 2640 | -3.85 | -0.15% |
| I:COMP | NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX | 7028.2904 | -57.39 | -0.81% |
U.S. stocks closed mixed Tuesday after struggling for direction during the day amid a slew of earnings reports, some of which were unexpectedly strong and others unexpectedly weak.
Shares of several industrial corporations rose, helping the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average eke out a small gain, while the broader S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite closed lower as shares of some big tech companies weighed on the two indexes.
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Verizon reported revenue slightly below Wall Street expectations and that weighed on its shares.
Pfizer edged higher despite the drugmaker forecasting full-year revenue below analysts’ estimate.
