Stocks rose Wednesday as the corporate earnings season continued, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average registering its longest winning streak in nearly four years.
The Dow traded 109.28 points higher, or 0.31 per cent, to close at 35,061.21. The S&P 500 climbed 0.24 per cent to 4,565.72, while the Nasdaq Composite added 0.03 per cent to finish the session at 14,358.02. The Dow notched its eighth straight day of gains, its longest winning streak since September 2019.
Goldman Sachs reported a miss on profit and a beat on revenue Wednesday, tied to losses in real estate as well as GreenSky. Goldman had previously warned investors that the quarter would likely yield lacklustre results. Shares added nearly 1 per cent.
Elsewhere, shares of US Bancorp and JB Hunt popped about 6.5 per cent and 3.7 per cent, respectively.
Tesla has posted earnings after the bell, posting an all-time high quarterly revenue, but operating margin dropped to 9.6 per cent. Revenue from Tesla’s core automotive business rose 46 per cent year-over-year to $21.27 billion, about a 6.5 per cent increase sequentially.
Netflixs’ after the bell earnings has showcased strength as the rest of the media industry struggles. The company added 5.9 million new subscribers in the last three months – almost three times as many as analysts expected. They forecast a similar gain next quarter.
Other major companies such as IBM and United Airlines are set to release after the bell.
Thus far, the second-quarter earnings season is off to a strong start. Of the companies in the S&P 500 that have reported results, 78 per cent have exceeded expectations, according to FactSet data.
For many investors, the recent streak of gains bolsters the case for a soft-landing scenario. It’s an outlook that has gained traction after last week’s encouraging inflation data.
In non-related earnings news, Carvana shares climbed 40 per cent after the used car retailer secured a deal to reduce roughly $1.2 billion in debt. The online auto retailer posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, having moved the date of its report up from Aug. 3.
The Nasdaq has halted its plans to launch a cryptocurrency custody service due to regulatory uncertainty, reflecting the hesitancy of mainstream financial firms in forging deeper connections with the digital assets industry amidst the US regulatory crackdown.
In commodity news, Russia launched intense drone and missile attacks, causing significant damage to critical port infrastructure in southern Ukraine and destroying 60,000 tons of grain, following its withdrawal from the Black Sea Grain Initiative; meanwhile, oil prices dipped despite a US stockpile report indicating tighter markets, with crude failing to sustain its advance above $76 a barrel due to a stronger dollar and modest inventory declines.
Overall, US sectors were mostly mixed overnight. Real Estate was the best performer, whilst Materials was the worst.
Futures
The SPI futures are pointing to a flat start.
Currency
One Australian dollar at 7:20 AM was buying 67.72 US cents.
Commodities
Gold was flat. Silver added 0.52 per cent. Copper lost 0.40 per cent. Oil fell 0.53 per cent.
Figures around the globe
European markets closed mixed. London’s FTSE gained 1.80 per cent, Frankfurt lost 0.10 per cent, and Paris closed 0.11 per cent higher.
Turning to Asian markets, Tokyo’s Nikkei gained 1.24 per cent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng lost 0.33 per cent while China’s Shanghai Composite closed 0.03 per cent higher.
The Australian sharemarket closed 0.55 per cent higher at 7324.
Ex-dividends
Kelly Partners Group (ASX:KPG) is paying 0.4392 cents fully franked
Plato Inc Max (ASX:PL8) is paying 0.55 cents fully franked
Spheria Emerging Co (ASX:SEC) is paying 2.8 cents fully franked
Dividends payable
Graincorp (ASX:GNC)
Sources: Bloomberg, FactSet, IRESS, TradingView, UBS, Bourse Data, Trading Economics, CoinMarketCap.
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