Morning Briefing 10-31-2014 U.S. stock futures are surging this morn after the Bank of Japan unexpectedly increased its annual stimulus targets by 10 trillion yen to 80 trillion ($717 billion). The move comes just as the Federal Reserve formally ends its monthly bond purchases, which supported U.S. financial markets in the wake of the financial crisis. SP futs currently +22, dow +190. The BOJ previously had targeted annual stimulus of between 60 to 70 trillion yen. S&P 500 futures were trading higher by 1.16%, with the index poised to open over 2,000. The Nasdaq and Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were higher by 1.50% and 1.13%, respectively. International markets surged on the BOJ’s stimulus increase, which wasnt expected by economists. Japans Nikkei 225 surged almost 5% trading on Friday, while the Euro STOXX 60 and FTSE 100 rose 1.4% and 1.09%, respectively. The U.S. dollar surged 2.33% vs. the Japanese yen to 111.75, while gold continued an October plunge, falling 2.18% to 1,172 per troy ounce. Friday is a heavy day of corporate earnings. Hilton Worldwide (HLT) reported better-than-forecast third-quarter earnings of 18 cents a share on revenue of $2.64 billion. AbbVie (ABBV) reported better-than-expected third-quarter earnings of 89 cents a share. The drugmaker also adjusted its EPS guidance to $3.25-$3.27 from $3.05-$3.16. Shares in AbbVie were rising 3.79%. Exxon Mobil (XOM) reported earnings of $1.89 a share in the third quarter, beating estimates of $1.71. Shares in the oil giant were rising 1.11% in premarket trading. Chevron (CVX) will report earnings Friday morning, with analysts forecasting $2.52 in EPS, according to Bloombergdata. Starbucks (SBUX) missed analysts for its fiscal fourth quarter after the market closse on Thursday, reporting $4.18 billion in sales and earnings of 74 cents a share. Analysts had forecast $4.23 billion in sales and EPS of 74 cents. Starbucks shares were falling 3.85% in premarket trading. GoPro (GPRO) beat earnings after reporting a profit of 12 cents a share that exceeded analyst estimates by 4 cents. Shares in GoPro surged more 16% in premarket trading. LinkedIn (LNKD) reported better-than-expected results and gave optimistic fourth-quarter guidance after the market close. The company reported adjusted earnings of 52 cents a share in the third quarter, exceeding forecasts of 47 cents. Full-year EPS is now expected to be $1.89, a slightly higher figure than analysts had forecast. Citigroup (C) revised its third-quarter earnings lower, saying that recent investigations by regulators have altered the results it reported earlier this month. The bank adjusted its quarterly net income to $2.8 billion from a previously reported $3.4 billion, citing legal expenses. Shares were falling 0.75%.
Posted on: Fri, 31 Oct 2014 13:13:54 +0000