The Nasdaq Composite climbed to a new record close on Tuesday ahead of big tech earnings later this week. The tech-heavy index rose nearly 0.8% to settle at 18,712.75 for the first time, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell over 150 points and the S&P 500 Index added nearly 0.2%.
Here's how the market settled on Tuesday:
S&P 500 Index (NYSE: SPY): +0.16% or +9.40 points to 5,832.92
Dow Jones Industrial Average (NYSE: DIA): -0.36% or -154.52 points to 42,233.05
Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ: QQQ): +0.78% or +145.56 points to 18,712.75
On the Earnings Front:
Ford (NYSE: F) reiterated the low-end of its full-year outlook late Monday even as the Detroit automaker posted better-than-expected third-quarter earnings. The company now expects adjusted earnings before interest and taxes of about $10 billion, the low end of its prior guidance range of $10 billion and $12 billion.
"Our focus continues on cost and quality, which are holding back our progress and represent tremendous upside potential," CFO John Lawler told investors during the company's earnings call on Monday.
VF Corp (NYSE: VFC) shares soared higher on Tuesday after the North Face parent reported better-than-expected fiscal second-quarter results. For its third-quarter, VF expects revenue between $2.7 billion to $2.75 billion, representing a year-over-year decline of 1% to 3%.
"Looking ahead, we feel good about where we're heading in Q3," CEO Bracken Darrell said during the company's earnings call. "We expect to drive further sequential improvement that builds on the progress we've made in the last few quarters."
Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) reported strong third-quarter earnings on Tuesday as the pharmaceutical giant's COVID vaccine and antiviral pill continued to support sales growth.
The company also raised its full-year outlook, now expecting adjusted earnings per share of $2.75 to $2.95 on revenue of $61 billion to $64 billion, from its previous guidance of $2.45 to $2.65 per share on revenue of $59.5 billion and $62.5 billion. That forecast includes about $5 billion in expected revenue from its COVID vaccine and $5.5 billion from Paxlovid.
"The demand for Paxlovid seems to have stabilized at the current levels and appears to be closely correlated with each wave of COVID-19," CEO Albert Bourla said in a statement.
McDonald's (NYSE: MCD) reported better-than-expected third-quarter earnings on Tuesday as its U.S. restaurants same-store sales reversed the previous quarter's decline. Domestic sales rose 0.3%, while U.S. traffic was slightly negative and global same-store sales fell by a more-than-expected 1.5%.
Speaking on the ongoing E.coli impact on the company, CEO Chris Kempczinski told investors during its earnings call that: "while the situation appears to be contained, and though it didn't affect Q3 numbers, it's certainly an important development, which I know is on many of your minds."
PayPal (NASDAQ: PYPL) shares came under pressure on Tuesday after the payments facilitator issued weaker-than-expected guidance for its current quarter. The company expects "low single-digit growth" in its current quarter, reflecting a "price-to-value strategy and prioritization of profitable growth," according to its investor slide deck.
JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ: JBLU) also forecasted for soft 2024 revenue on Tuesday, citing expected moderation in domestic travel demand ahead of the U.S. presidential election. The airline said it expects to see a one percentage point headwind to its fourth-quarter revenue per available seat mile due to election uncertainty and a waning in discretionary spending from the consumer.
In Economic News:
Consumer Confidence rose in October, The Conference Board reported on Tuesday, as optimism grew amongst survey participants ahead of the presidential election. October's consumer confidence index rose over 11% to a reading of 138, representing the largest one-month jump since March 2021. Beneath the headline, future conditions expectations also rose nearly 8% to a reading of 89.
"Consumers' assessments of current business conditions turned positive," said Dana Peterson, chief economist at The Conference Board, in a statement. "Views on the current availability of jobs rebounded after several months of weakness, potentially reflecting better labor market data."
Job Openings declined to 7.44 million in September, the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) showed on Tuesday, more than 400,000 off from the previous month's downwardly revised pring and marking the lowest level since January 2021. The decline in job openings brought the ratio of vacancies to available workers betlow 1.1 to 1.
For Wednesday:
All eyes will be on earnings reports from companies including Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG) (NASDAQ: GOOGL), Visa (NYSE: V), Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ: AMD), Chipotle (NYSE: CMG), Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) and Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) on Wednesday, as well as October's jobs report from ADP.