US open: Stocks mostly higher as tech earnings take centre stage

(Sharecast News) - Major indices were mostly higher early on Thursday as market participants digested quarterly earnings from several big-name tech firms. As of 1530 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.14% at 44,778.15, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.23% to 6,053.16 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 0.04% softer at 19,623.59.

The Dow opened 64.63 points higher on Thursday, taking a bite out of losses recorded in the previous session after the Federal Reserve Bank opted to keep its benchmark overnight interest rate unchanged following its two-day policy meeting, as expected.

In the corporate space, shares in Facebook parent company Meta Platforms traded higher after its Q4 numbers beat on both the top and bottom lines, while software giant Microsoft headed south after Azure cloud computing revenues narrowly missed consensus estimates and electric carmaker Tesla shares accelerated despite its Q4 results falling short of Wall Street expectations.

Elsewhere, trade bellwether Caterpillar was in the red after posting a Q4 revenue miss, while Comcast shares also traded lower on the back of declining broadband and cable TV subscriber numbers.

American Airlines was also in focus after one of its regional passenger jets collided with a United States Army Black Hawk helicopter over Washington DC and crashed down into the Potomac River. All 67 people on board both aircraft are feared dead.

Still to come, Apple will publish its latest quarterly earnings after the close of trading.

On the macro front, the US economy grew at a slower-than-expected clip in Q4, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, which said its advance GDP estimate showed the economy expanded at an annualised rate of 2.3%, below the 2.6% increase expected by economists and the 3.1% growth seen in Q3. Consumer and government spending increases drove economic growth in the quarter, while decreases in investment offset gains. For the year as a whole, the US economy grew at 2.8% clip, slightly below the 2.9% number seen in 2023 but ahead of the 2.5% seen in 2022.

On another note, US jobless claims fell more than expected in the week ended 25 January, according to the Labor Department, marking a sharp pull-back from the previous week's two-month high. Initial jobless claims fell by 16,000 week-on-week to 207,000, well and truly missing expectations for a reading of 220,000. Continuing claims fell by 42,000 from the prior week's more than three-year high to 1.85m, while the four-week moving average, which aims to strip out week-to-week volatility, was up by 6,000 at 1.87m.

Finally, US pending home sales fell 5.5% month-on-month in December, marking the first contraction since July. On an annualised basis, pending home sales decreased by 5% in December, according to the National Association of Realtors.

Also in focus, the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note dropped almost three basis points to 4.517% in early trading, providing a tailwind for major indices.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $260.33 13.87% Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $60.86 2.20% Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $11.45 1.78% Visa Inc. (V) $341.62 1.71% Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $647.15 1.53% Boeing Co. (BA) $176.23 1.48% Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $63.72 1.42% Nike Inc. (NKE) $77.61 1.34% Walmart Inc. (WMT) $98.66 1.19% 3M Co. (MMM) $153.25 1.13%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $37.91 -7.65% Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $416.55 -5.83% Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $377.12 -4.10% Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $344.49 -2.69% Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $39.27 -2.51% Intel Corp. (INTC) $19.67 -0.38% Apple Inc. (AAPL) $238.68 -0.29% Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $249.04 -0.19% McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $290.07 -0.01% Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $0.00 0.00%

S&P 500 - Risers

International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $260.33 13.87% Vornado Realty Trust (VNO) $43.36 6.43% Sl Green Realty Corp. (SLG) $67.19 6.25% Boston Properties Inc. (BXP) $73.03 6.09% Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) $218.77 6.02% Parker-Hannifin Corp. (PH) $704.59 5.82% Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (TMO) $600.77 5.73% Quest Diagnostics (DGX) $164.21 5.64% Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $79.29 5.52% Arista Networks Inc. (ANET) $113.70 5.43%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Whirlpool Corp. (WHR) $108.00 -16.78% United Parcel Service Inc. (UPS) $112.28 -16.07% Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) $33.69 -9.81% CIGNA Corp. (CI) $277.16 -8.62% Robert Half Inc. (RHI) $64.36 -6.93% Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $416.55 -5.83% Ameriprise Financial Inc. (AMP) $541.77 -5.80% CH Robinson Worldwide Inc (CHRW) $102.23 -5.28% Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $341.47 -4.97% Avery Dennison Corp. (AVY) $183.42 -4.92%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (CHKP) $221.20 8.48% Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) $218.77 6.02% Sirius XM Holdings Inc (SIRI) $23.08 5.68% Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $79.29 5.52% Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN) $88.46 5.17% Meta Platforms Inc. (META) $703.69 4.02% Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $92.32 3.72% Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $65.04 3.57% DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $20.23 3.06% Mercadolibre Inc. (MELI) $1,941.00 2.71%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) $33.69 -9.81% Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $416.55 -5.83% Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $341.47 -4.97% Qurate Retail Inc. (QRTEA) $0.36 -3.03% Microchip Technology Inc. (MCHP) $54.67 -2.43% Workday, Inc. (WDAY) $259.67 -2.16% Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $121.32 -1.92% American Airlines Group (AAL) $17.02 -1.76% Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (REGN) $677.98 -1.35% Liberty Global plc Series A (LBTYA) $11.65 -0.94%