Posted on 10/25/2009 5:20:51 AM PDT by Erik Latranyi
U.S. stocks posted their first weekly decline in three weeks as several major companies forecast earnings that trailed Wall Street estimates.
Boeing slid 6.2 percent, the steepest drop among companies in the Dow Jones industrial average, as it posted a loss that was bigger than analysts forecast and reduced its full-year profit projection. Boston Scientific posted its biggest drop since February on concerns that sales of heart devices are slowing. Burlington Northern, meanwhile, fell 8.4 percent -- the most since March -- on concerns that shipments of consumer products will remain weak.
"Given that the market has moved up so far, investors are looking for more demand," said Richard I. Sichel, chief investment officer at Philadelphia Trust. "The earnings get more difficult to beat when it needs to come from sales, rather than just cost-cutting."
"Given that the market has moved up so far, investors are looking for more demand," said Richard I. Sichel, chief investment officer at Philadelphia Trust. "The earnings get more difficult to beat when it needs to come from sales, rather than just cost-cutting."
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
1) Sales are down versus Q2. Profits are coming from cost-cutting, not increased sales.
2) Shipping companies are reporting Q3 weakness when they should have been having the best quarter of the year filling store shelves with goods for the Christmas shopping season.
One can only conclude that while the economic steep plunge is over, we are still drifting lower and lower with no real signs that demand is picking up.
Expect the stock market to go down next weeks as more earnings reports come in.
We are in a stock-market bubble made from taxpayer money (bailouts) while the rest of the economy continues to slide.
>> “Given that the market has moved up so far, investors are looking for more demand,”
Stupid is as stupid does. Buy stocks because they’re going up... and then “look for” fundamentals later.
....Chevron(CVX) and Exxon Mobile(XOM) report this week and I’m sure all the Lefty pundits are getting their “obscene profits of big oil” rants prepared....of course, they never talk about my household where we depend on dividend checks.
.....Visa(V), the world’s largest credit card issuer will also report....now that one is going to be very interesting.
The problem is, the financial reports are all lies.
Sorry, but I part company with you here. For the most part, you can trust most publicly-traded companies' financial reports.
The consequences post-Enron, etc are way too high.
just look at the revenue line. All down.
I saw an advertisement on TV last for Kmart bragging on their layaway plan. First ad for layaway I have seen in YEARS. This is exactly what we’ve moved back to with credit drying up and people not being able to afford to use credit cards anymore with the ridiculous fees and such.
Walmart got rid of their layaway a few years back to focus on online, in store delivery. Back then, credit cards were booming. I wonder if they are regretting it, or will come Christmas.
Why would Wall Street care? It’s no longer a vehicle for connecting capital to good businesses, it’s a paper based casino where the big boys skim off the ups and downs, rinse, and repeat.
Earnings actually aren’t so bad. The area that portends doom and gloom is corporate revenues. Many of the companies that are reporting higher earnings are reporting lower revenues. Smart investors know that earnings can’t continue to grow if revenues aren’t growing.
ROFL...what consequences? Oh, that's right...all of the executives of these companies that have cheated shareholders going to prison...NOT. Empty declarations and lies are all people hear. Almost NO consequences have been handed down to anyone for financial fraud post-Enron. Tell me some more.
Exactly. So eloquently put, I'll say.
Can’t claim credit for that. I’m paraphrasing that filthy leftist journalist Matt Taibbi.
Citigroup and Bank of America are experimenting with annual fees for those who pay their balances on time. The story becomes more surrealistic every day.
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