Stocks choppy ahead of Microsoft, Starbucks results
Short squeezes in GameStop and BlackBerry shares were set to continue
U.S. stocks bounced between losses and gains Tuesday afternoon ahead of another round of earnings after the bell. Investors are digesting positive results from industrial and healthcare companies.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I:DJI | DOW JONES AVERAGES | 44782 | -128.65 | -0.29% |
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 6047.15 | +14.77 | +0.24% |
| I:COMP | NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX | 19403.947849 | +185.78 | +0.97% |
Dow Jones Industrial Average rose over 44 points or 0.16%, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite inched higher by 0.1%. Both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq touched new records in early trading.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JNJ | JOHNSON & JOHNSON | 155.39 | +0.88 | +0.57% |
| PFE | PFIZER INC. | 25.83 | +0.07 | +0.27% |
| BNTX | BIONTECH SE | 120.72 | +2.18 | +1.84% |
| MRNA | MODERNA INC. | 43.39 | +1.34 | +3.19% |
Looking at stocks, Dow component Johnson & Johnson forecast 2021 profit ahead of Wall Street estimates and said it expects the results from its COVID-19 vaccine trial soon. The company’s experimental vaccine differs from the ones delivered by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna Inc. in that it is a single shot instead of requiring two injections.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MMM | 3M CO. | 133.53 | +1.05 | +0.79% |
| GE | GE AEROSPACE | 182.16 | +1.56 | +0.86% |
Fellow Dow component 3M Co. said its quarterly profit rose 43% year over year, boosted by the performance of its health care unit. However, the company’s full-year profit forecast fell short of Wall Street estimates.
Elsewhere, former Dow member General Electric Co. reported cash flow from industrial operations rose 4.8% from a year ago to $4.37 billion, outpacing its $2.5 billion forecast. The conglomerate said its industrial business will grow in the low-single digits in the current year.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GME | GAMESTOP CORP. | 29.02 | -1.88 | -6.07% |
In deal news, shares of Beyond Meat soared after inking a deal with Pepsi to develop plant-based snacks.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BYND | BEYOND MEAT INC. | 4.96 | -0.02 | -0.40% |
| PEP | PEPSICO INC. | 163.05 | -0.40 | -0.24% |
Meanwhile, GameStop Corp. shares remain in focus after having soared 78% over the previous two sessions as short-sellers have been forced to cover their losing bets. The stock has climbed 285% since Jan. 12.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BB | BLACKBERRY LTD. | 2.56 | -0.01 | -0.39% |
Shares of BlackBerry Ltd. are also under close watch, having surged 142% since Jan. 13 amid their own short squeeze.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AMD | ADVANCED MICRO DEVICES INC. | 137.18 | +0.94 | +0.69% |
| MSFT | MICROSOFT CORP. | 423.46 | +0.47 | +0.11% |
| SBUX | STARBUCKS CORP. | 102.46 | +0.95 | +0.94% |
Advanced Micro Devices Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Starbucks Corp. are among the companies set to report their quarterly results following the closing bell.
In commodities, West Texas Intermediate crude oil up 20 cents at $52.97 per barrel and gold down $2.50 at $1,852.70 per ounce.
In Europe, Germany’s DAX 30 paced the advance, trading up 1.95%, while France’s CAC 30 and Britain’s FTSE 100 were gained 1.36% and 0.85%, respectively.
Asian markets ended sharply lower across the board with Japan’s Nikkei 225 losing 0.96%, China’s Shanghai Composite index declining 1.51% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index sliding 2.55%.