US open: Stocks mixed as investors digest earnings

Wall Street trading got off to a mixed start on Wednesday as investors digested a slew of corporate earnings from overnight.

As of 1530 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.18% at 35,342.69, while the S&P 500 was 0.27% firmer at 4,558.72 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 0.27% stronger at 14,384.72.

The Dow opened 62.55 points lower on Wednesday, taking a small bite out of gains recorded in the previous session as major indices attempted to bounce back from a rollercoaster month on the first day of February trading.

Early on Wednesday, market participants were thumbing over a handful of key corporate earnings released overnight, with Alphabet shares up after beating on both the top and bottom lines and announcing a 20-for-1 stock split.

Advanced Micro Devices shares were also up on solid earnings, while General Motors posted earnings that beat estimates and raised its 2022 forecast despite seeing softer-than-expected revenues.

PayPal, on the other hand, slumped after the payments processor issued disappointing guidance.

Still to come, Meta Platforms, Qualcomm and T-Mobile will all post earnings after the close on Wednesday.

On the macro front, mortgage applications to purchase a home increased 4% last week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association, but were 7% lower on a year-on-year, while mortgage applications to refinance a home loan jumped 18% week-on-week despite the average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances increasing to 3.78% from 3.72%.

Also in data news, private sector employment in the US unexpectedly fell in January amid a surge in Covid infections, according to the latest data from ADP. Employment declined by 301,00 from December, versus expectations for a 207,000 jump. Meanwhile, the December total of jobs added was revised from 807,000 to 776,000.

Dow Jones - Risers

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $313.16 1.43%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $473.60 1.11%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $169.76 1.05%
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $50.26 1.03%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $53.69 0.91%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $160.68 0.59%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $60.90 0.56%
Visa Inc. (V) $233.58 0.53%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $260.14 0.44%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $175.04 0.25%

Dow Jones - Fallers

JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $148.87 -1.51%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $202.38 -1.45%
Boeing Co. (BA) $205.47 -1.38%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $359.45 -1.27%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $133.27 -1.13%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $142.90 -1.10%
Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $226.46 -0.97%
American Express Co. (AXP) $182.01 -0.84%
3M Co. (MMM) $166.12 -0.78%
Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $61.37 -0.71%

S&P 500 - Risers

Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD) $125.93 7.84%
Xilinx Inc. (XLNX) $213.04 7.42%
Alphabet Inc. Class A (GOOGL) $2,945.33 6.99%
Alphabet Inc. Class C (GOOG) $2,949.45 6.96%
Idexx Laboratories Inc. (IDXX) $533.24 3.84%
Equity Residential (EQR) $91.48 3.84%
QUALCOMM Inc. (QCOM) $183.90 3.82%
Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC) $76.75 3.69%
Emerson Electric Co. (EMR) $95.89 3.69%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $255.39 3.66%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Paypal Holdings Inc (PYPL) $133.25 -24.20%
CH Robinson Worldwide Inc (CHRW) $94.32 -9.80%
Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD) $64.16 -6.29%
Boston Scientific Corp. (BSX) $41.04 -5.66%
Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) $10.63 -3.89%
Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $440.12 -3.72%
Avery Dennison Corp. (AVY) $198.91 -3.62%
eBay Inc. (EBAY) $58.37 -3.49%
Macy's Inc. (M) $25.40 -3.05%
Stanley Black & Decker Inc. (SWK) $170.90 -2.97%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Xilinx Inc. (XLNX) $213.04 7.42%
Alphabet Inc. Class A (GOOGL) $2,945.33 6.99%
Alphabet Inc. Class C (GOOG) $2,949.45 6.96%
Idexx Laboratories Inc. (IDXX) $533.24 3.84%
QUALCOMM Inc. (QCOM) $183.90 3.82%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $255.39 3.66%
Vodafone Group Plc ADS (VOD) $17.88 3.53%
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $83.97 3.09%
Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (TTWO) $164.79 2.83%
Hologic Inc. (HOLX) $71.72 1.69%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Paypal Holdings Inc (PYPL) $133.25 -24.20%
Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD) $64.16 -6.29%
Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $440.12 -3.72%
eBay Inc. (EBAY) $58.37 -3.49%
Biogen Inc (BIIB) $223.97 -2.35%
Mercadolibre Inc. (MELI) $1,114.97 -2.03%
Workday, Inc. (WDAY) $247.75 -1.97%
Incyte Corp. (INCY) $73.71 -1.97%
Sirius XM Holdings Inc (SIRI) $6.68 -1.26%
PACCAR Inc. (PCAR) $94.15 -1.24%