U.S. stocks advanced following strong quarterly results from Bank of
America and Morgan Stanley as well as upbeat data on jobless claims.
S&P 500 Index rose 0.52 percent to trade at 1,314.88. The Dow
Jones Industrial Average gained 0.26 percent to 12,611.30. The Nasdaq
Composite Index advanced 0.81 percent to 2,792.32 in mid-day session.
On the economic front, the number of Americans who continued to
receive jobless benefits dropped less than forecast, to lowest in almost
four years, a government data showed. Jobless claims decreased 50,000
to 352,000 last week from a revised 402,000 in the previous period,
while economists projected an decline to 385,000. The four-week moving
average for claims fell 3,500 to 379,000 last week, a data from the
Labor Department showed.
Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) advanced 5.3 percent to $18.27. MS reported
a narrower-than-expected loss of 15 cents a share for the fourth
quarter on revenue of $5.7 billion. After Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) and
US Bankcorp. (NYSE: USB) reporting better than expected results on
January 18, Morgan Stanley results boosted sentiments on banking stocks.
Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) swung to a quarterly profit, helped
by rise in revenue and lower provision for credit losses. Earnings were
$1.99 billion or $0.15 per share for the fourth quarter, compared with a
loss of $1.24 billion or $0.16 per share in the corresponding period of
last year.
Total revenue rose 11 percent to $25.15 billion. The stock rose 4.5 percent to $7.11.
Union Pacific Corp. (NYSE: UNP) gained 3.5 percent to $113.67 after
the company posted quarterly earnings that beat estimates, saying four
of its six units reported strong volume increases. Earnings were $1.99
per share for the fourth quarter, up from $1.56 per share last year.
Operating revenue rose 16 percent to $5.1 billion.
EBay (NASDAQ:EBAY) jumped 4.2 percent to $31.6 after the company said
fourth quarter revenue grew 35 percent to $3.38 billion, topping
analysts' estimate of $3.32 billion. Earnings per share, excluding
items, was 60 cents, also topped Wall Street projections of 57 cents.
Eastman Kodak Co. (NYSE:EK) plunged 35.1 percent to 36 cents after
the ailing photography pioneer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
protection. The company has secured $950 million in financing from
Citigroup.
Johnson Controls Inc. (NYSE: JCI) lost 8.5 percent to $32.55 after
the provider of automotive interiors cut its annual forecast, blaming
lower output in Europe and weather-related softness in second quarter
aftermarket battery demand, among other reasons. It now expects earnings
per share in the range of $2.70 to $2.85 from prior expectations of
$2.85 to $3.00. Analysts expect earnings of $2.96 per share.
Fairchild Semiconductor (NYSE: FCS) dropped 3.4 percent to $14.03
after the company guided first quarter sales below analysts'
expectations even as it reported a fall in fourth quarter earnings as
demand fell. The company expects revenue between $340 million and $370
million for the first quarter, while analysts expect $382.8 million.
The European markets ended higher as positive bond auctions in France
and Spain as well as developments over Greece's bailout weighed on the
sentiment. U.K. FTSE 100 closed 0.69 percent higher. German DAX30 ended
0.94 percent higher and French CAC 40 gained 1.93 percent.
In the currency market, the euro strengthened 0.56 percent against
the U.S. dollar to 1.2936, and the British pound gained 0.28 percent
against the greenback. The dollar rose 0.63 percent against the Japanese
yen to 77.3125.
Crude oil futures rose 0.53 percent to $101.12/barrel, while gold futures fell 0.29 percent.
