US close: Stocks weaker as earnings disappoint

Wall Street stocks were still weaker by the close on Thursday, as a fall in oil prices weighed on energy stocks, while continued concerns over the federal debt ceiling added to the dampened investor sentiment.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 33,786.62, down 0.33%, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite saw even greater losses, falling 0.6% and 0.8% to 4,129.79 and 12,059.56, respectively.

On the currency front, the dollar was last up 0.04% on sterling at 80.39p, while it strengthened 0.02% against the common currency to trade at 91.17 euro cents.

It was 0.16% weaker against the yen, however, to change hands at JPY 134.03.

“The disappointing earnings keep on coming,” quipped IG chief market analyst Chris Beauchamp earlier.

“Fresh from Tesla’s poor showing last night - and of course the loss of Musk’s SpaceX rocket - AT&T and American Airlines have thrown fresh fuel on to the bearish fire with uninspiring results.

“As yet, however, the market refuses to turn substantially lower - dip buyers have been content to step in over the past few sessions, even if they haven’t yet found the strength to push indices to fresh monthly highs.”

Data points to labour market weakness as home sales fall

In economic news, the US labour market showed some weakness in the week ended 15 April, with initial unemployment claims rising by 5,000 to reach 245,000 in seasonally-adjusted terms according to the Department of Labor.

That was slightly higher than economists' forecasts for 242,000.

Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia reported that factory sector activity in the US mid-Atlantic region unexpectedly softened in April, with the regional manufacturing sector index dropping from -23.2 in March to -31.3.

That was worse than the reading of -20.0 economists had pencilled in.

Elsewhere, the Conference Board's leading index also saw a decline of 1.2% in March, reaching a reading of 108.4.

That marked an acceleration from the 0.5% decline in February.

Finally on data, the National Association of Realtors reported that US existing home sales fell by 2.4% month-on-month in March, to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 4.4 million, just below the estimated 4.5 million.

However, February saw a revised 13.8% increase in sales, making for the biggest surge since July 2020.

IBM ekes out gains as Tesla takes a tumble

On the equity front, International Business Machines (IBM) managed gains of 0.03% after it announced that margins had expanded.

Housebuilder DR Horton surged 5.64% after the firm reported improved demand throughout the first quarter.

Tools and equipment behemoth Snap-On posted impressive quarterly earnings per share that beat estimates by 46 cents, seeing its share price jump 7.97%.

On the downside, electric carmaker Tesla took a 9.75% hit after it was revealed that both net income and GAAP earnings had declined by more than 20% year-on-year.

Telecoms giant AT&T tumbled 10.41% despite the company beating earnings estimates, as it posted weaker-than-expected free-cash flow.

American Express profits fell short of expectations, seeing its shares decline 1.01%, despite its quarterly report pointing to a continued surge in consumer spending.

Finally, tobacco company Philip Morris International lowered its full-year adjusted earnings per share guidance as first-quarter earnings contracted, despite revenue growth.

That saw its stock sitting 4.73% lower by the closing bell.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.

Dow Jones - Risers

Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $35.37 1.55%
Visa Inc. (V) $234.60 0.87%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $163.53 0.65%
Walmart Inc. (WMT) $150.89 0.64%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $298.57 0.56%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $338.71 0.54%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $63.92 0.44%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $487.46 0.26%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $114.14 0.04%
International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $126.36 0.03%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $37.19 -3.65%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $46.58 -3.04%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $179.22 -1.81%
Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $55.70 -1.31%
3M Co. (MMM) $104.73 -1.27%
Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $243.46 -1.12%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $222.27 -1.06%
American Express Co. (AXP) $163.28 -1.01%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $124.43 -0.97%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $30.86 -0.93%

S&P 500 - Risers

Snap On Inc. (SNA) $258.74 7.97%
Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $526.52 7.23%
D. R. Horton Inc. (DHI) $107.60 5.64%
Nucor Corp. (NUE) $155.73 5.50%
KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $375.71 4.00%
Equifax Inc. (EFX) $202.23 3.76%
Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $114.39 3.67%
Marsh & McLennan Companies Inc. (MMC) $179.70 3.54%
Lennar Corp. Class A (LEN) $111.86 2.35%
Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) $505.58 1.93%

S&P 500 - Fallers

AT&T Inc. (T) $17.65 -10.41%
Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $57.08 -9.20%
Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) $0.86 -7.90%
Albemarle Corp. (ALB) $193.05 -5.27%
Vornado Realty Trust (VNO) $15.34 -5.07%
Crown Castle International (CCI) $126.93 -4.96%
Zions Bancorporation (ZION) $31.12 -4.89%
Carnival Corp. (CCL) $9.33 -4.80%
Philip Morris International Inc. (PM) $96.62 -4.73%
Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (CFG) $29.06 -4.72%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $526.52 7.23%
KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $375.71 4.00%
Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $114.39 3.67%
Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) $505.58 1.93%
Ross Stores Inc. (ROST) $106.03 1.70%
Asml Holdings N.V. (ASML) $633.57 1.60%
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $35.37 1.55%
Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (TTWO) $125.16 1.45%
Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN) $113.69 1.40%
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $61.46 1.34%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Tesla Inc (TSLA) $162.99 -9.75%
Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $57.08 -9.20%
Dish Network Corp. (DISH) $7.53 -3.83%
Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $33.32 -3.76%
Sirius XM Holdings Inc (SIRI) $3.80 -3.31%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $46.58 -3.04%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $271.04 -2.96%
Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $225.55 -2.62%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $36.19 -2.45%
Microchip Technology Inc. (MCHP) $77.50 -2.37%