Equity Indexes Wrap: Airli⛦nes Take Off While Health Insurers, Tesla Tumble

The Dow

IBM (IBM) shares jumped 9.5% after it delivered better-than-expected 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:fourth-quarter earnings and fꦜull-year revenue guidance on strong demand🍨 for its AI products and services. 

The Dow’s industrial components charged higher, led by Caterpillar (CAT), which advanced 3.5%. Dow (DOW) also gained 3.5% after topping Wall Street estimates with its fourth-quarter earnings report. 3M (MMM) rose 2.9%, rebounding slightly from a two-day sell-off following its 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:disappointing earnings report.

Intel (INTC) added 0.9% ahead of its q𝔉uarterly earnings report after the bell. 

Boeing (BA) fell 5.7% after the 澳洲♋幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:FAA barred it from expanding production of its 737 Max jets while regulators investig𒈔ate the company’s saf🍌ety standards. 

UnitedHealth Group (UNH) slid 3.9% after competitor Humana warned high🐲er medical expenses and changes to government regulations would weigh on profits through 2025.

Apple (AAPL) slipped 0.2% amid reports shipments in China fell in the fourth quarter. 

The S&P 500

United Rentals (URI) jumped 12.9% after its quarterly earnings and sales eﷺxcee♏ded Wall Street estimates. 

American Airlines (AAL) added 10.3% after reporting 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:better-than-expected earnings and full-year guidance. Peers Delta Airlines (DAL) and United Airlines (UAL) added 5.3% and 5.2%, respectively. 

ResMed (RMD) rose 8.5% after the medical dev🔴ice maker topped earnings estimates on wider margins. 

Humana (HUM) tumbled 11.6%. Its profit warning sent shares of competitors CVS Health (CVS) and Cigna (CI) 3% and 1.9% lower, respectively. 

Northrop Grumman (NOC) lost 6.2% after reporting a net🔴 loss in the fourth quarter following a $1.2 billionꩵ charge related to its B-21 bomber program. 

Southwest Airlines (LUV) fell 2.3% after beating adjusted earnings estimates, but reporting a decline in load factor, or the percent of seats filled, in the fourth quarter.

The Nasdaq 100

Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) rose 3.4% after it said 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:earnings and revenue increased more than expected in the fourth quarter. 

ASML Holding (ASML) rose 2.6%, adding to yesterday’s 9% gain following its 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:earnings beat. Peer Lam Research (LRCX) gained 2.1% after its quarterly earnings topped W🔜all Street estimates. 

Alphabet (GOOGL) added 2.2% despite reports the Federal Trade Commission was 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:investigating its impact, along with Microsoft (MSFT) and Amazon (AMZN), on com🌞petition in artifici🐭al intelligence. 

KLA Corp. (KLAC) and T-Mobile US (TMUS) rღose 0.5% 🍌and 0.4%, respectively, ahead of their earnings reports after the bell. 

Tesla (TSLA) led the index’s laggards, falling 12% after reporting lower-than-expected 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:fourth-quarter sales and earnings. The EV maker a෴lso warnedℱ sales growth would slow in 2024 as it works on developing a new model. 

Semiconductors slipped, with Onsemi (ON) dropping 3.3% and Broadcom (AVGO) down 1.9%. Cybersecurity stocks also lost ground—Crowdstrike Holdings (CRWD) fell 2.2% and Zscaler (ZS) slid 1.3%. 

Humana Warnings Prompts Health Insurer Sell-Off

Humana Inc. (HUM) on Thursday added to its previous warning that soaring medical costs and government regulations 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:would hurt profits, saying the issue will impact its results through 2025.

The news sent its shares, and those of other health insurance providers such as UnitedHealth Group Inc. (UNH) and CVS Health Corp. (CVS), tumbling, as Human🀅a said rising costs were reflected ac🦩ross the industry.

The 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Medicare Advantage sector is “navigating a complex and dynamic period of change,” and the health insurance industry is “navigating significant regulatory changes while also absorbing unprecedented increases in medical cost trends," Humana said in a statement, while also announcing a steep fourth-quarter loss.

The downbeat assessment of the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:health insurance industry came as the ins💧urer Thursday reported a fourth-quarter loss of $591 million, wider than its $71 million loss in the same period of 2022. Loss per share for the quarter was 11 cents versus $1.97 in earnings per share (EPS) year-on-year.

Humana shares Thursday plunged to their lowest level since the beginning of the pandemic in 2020. Atꦰ 2 p.m. ET, its shares were down 11.3% at $357, marking a nearly 30% decline in the past 12 months. UnitedHealth stock was down 5% and🍃 CVS Health was 3% lower.

-澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Bill McColl

United Rentals Leads S&P 500 High🐟er Following Earnings Beat

Shares of United Rentals (URI) jumped Thursday a♎fter the equipment rental company reported record fourth-quarter sales a💛nd earnings. 

United Rentals reported total revenue of $3.73 billion, up 13% from the year-ago quarter. Net income increased 6% to $679 million, or $10.01 per share. The company’s gross margin decreased about 120 basis points to 18.2% due to its December 2022 acquisition of Ahern Rentals and higher interest expenses.

United Rentals offered full-year guidance above analysts’ expectations. The company forecast revenue of between $14.65 billion and $15.15 bi♚llion, and adjusted EBITDA in a range of $6.9 billion to $7.15 billion. 

The company also said it would aim to repurchase $1.5 billion of stock in 2024, up from $1 billion in 2023. It also🦩 raised its dividend by 10% 

“Our fourth quarter results capped a year of new records across revenue, profits, and retur🌼ns driven by a relentless commitment to serving our customers, while staying laser focused on safety and operational excellence,” said CEO Matthew Flannery.

United Renta🥀ls shares were up 12.6% at $647 Thursday afternoon, putting them on track to close at a record high.

American Airlines Stock Soars After Q4 Earnings Beat♛, Better-Than-Expected🎀 Guidance

American Airlines Group (AAL) shares flew higher as the biggest U.S. carrier posted earnings that handily beat analysts' expectations an𓄧d gave better-than-expected guidance ♋as demand for air travel has jumped.

American reported fourth-quarter 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:earnings per share (EPS), excluding special items, of $0.29, nearly triple what analysts had been looking for. Revenue was $13.1 billion, and its load factor, a measure of seating capacity filled by passengers, was 83.6%. Both of those also beat forecasts.

The airline said the results were "driven by continued strong demand for American’s product, record revenue from its travel rewards program, strong operational performance and effective cost control.”

The carrier anticipates 🍸full-ye🎐ar EPS of between $2.25 and $3.25, ahead of analysts’ predictions.

American shares were up 10.3% at $15.37 Thursday after☂noon. Despite the big gains Thursဣday, the stock is still down about 5% over the past year.

-澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Bill McColl

Boeing Tumbles as FAA Blocks🍰 Expansion of Max 737s

Boeing (BA) shares 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:fell in early trading Thursday after the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) barred the aircraft mak🍨er from expanding production of its 737 Max jets, includiꦉng the Max 9 model involved in a mid-flight failure early this month.

However, the regulator agreed to allow grounded 737 Max 9 jets to resume flying once inspections are completed. The U.S. aviation regulator had grounded 171 Boeing planes after an Alaska Airlines (ALK) Max 9 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:lost a panel mid-flight, forcing an emergency landing early this month.

The cap on Max jet production could hamper Boeing's growth plans, especially as competition with Airbus SE increases.

Boeing shares were 6.3% lower at $200.57 early Thursday afternoon following 🍒the news. They ha🥃ve lost about 20% of their value so far this year.

-澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Fatima Attarwala

Northrop Grumman Stock Slips on $1.2B Bomber C🍨harge

Shares of aerospace and defense company Northrop Grumman (NOC) sank Thursdayꦛ morning after reporting a net loss in the fourth quarter as it recorded a charge of more than $1 billion associated with its B-21 bomber program. ඣ;

The company reported a net loss of $535 million, or $3.54 per share, for the quarter, down from a profit of $2.1 billion in the year-ago quarter. The drop was attributed to a $1.2 billion charge related to a fixed-price contract with the Pentagon for B-21 bombers, as well as a 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:mark-to-market pension expense of about $300 million. Those charges more than offset a 6% increase in sales in the quarter.

The B-21 charge reflects a reappraisal of manufacturing and funding costs, which have 🌱risen🙈 dramatically since the company was awarded the contract by the U.S. Air Force in 2015.

Still, the company was optimistic about the future. “With susta🍨ined global demand for our products, our 2024 guidance reflects continued strong sales and earnings growth. In addition, we’re reaffirming our cash flow outlook for 2024 and 2025, with free cash flow expected to grow at a greater than 15 percent CAGR through 2026,” said CEO Kathy Warden. 

Shares fell more than 7% Thursday morning. The stock has lost about 6% of its value🌄 in the la🐭st 12 months.

Tesla Stock Slumps to 8-Month Low as 🧔Earnings Come Up Short

Shares of Tesla (TSLA) tumbled in early trading Thursday after the electric vehicle maker’s 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:fourth-quarter earnings fell short of Wall Street estimates. 

The company reported adjusted earnings of 71 cents per share, a 40% decline from the prior year quarter and below the 78 cents analysts were expecting. Revenue of $25.17 billion also missed analyst estimates but was up 3% from a year ago. 

Tesla’s operating margin, at 8.2%, improved slightly from the third quarter, but was nearly half its 16% margin in the same quarter last year. The EV leader has slashed prices aggressively♔ over the last year in a 🧸bid to spur flagging demand and fend off competition.  

Investors looking to 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:the company’s earnings call for some clarity on its margin strategy were disappointed. “The near-term Category 4 hurricane around price cuts and lack of granularity, guidance, and communication from [CEO Elon] Musk and Tesla is a bitter pill to swallow for the bulls,” wrote Wedbush analyst Dan Ives.

Musk also reiterated 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:his desire for 25% voting control before investing heavily in artificial intellig🦩ence projects at Tesla. 

Shares fell about 10% in early trading Thursday, putting the stock at its lowest level since last May. With Thursday’s declines, Tesla♔’s 1-year return fell to 29%, making it the worst-performing Magnificent 7 stock.

Comcast's Q4 Earnings and Revenue Beat Powered By Peacock, Theme Parks

Comcast's (CMCSA) 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:fourth-quarter earnings and revenue surpassed analyst expectations, driven by gains in Peacock streaming services and its theme parks business. ꦦThe company's shares jumped over 4% in early trading Thursday.

Comcast reported $3.26 billion in net income or 81 cents per diluted share, higher than 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:analyst consensus compiled by Visible Alph🧸a. In the year-ago quarter, those figures stood at $🎃3 billion and 70 cents per share, respectively.

Revenue grew 2.3% year-over-year to $31.25 billion, above the $30.6 billion analysts pegged for the quarter, driven by a 12.2% increase in theme park revenue stemming from the success of Super Nintendo World in Hollywood. Comcast's Peacock streaming platform also recorded its first quarter with more than $1 billion in revenue.

-澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Mrinalini Krishna

Stocks Making the Biggest Moves Premarket

Gains:

• International Business Machines (IBM): Shares of the tech company jumped 7% after its fourth-quarter earnings and revenue surpassed analyst estimates amid an uptick in demand for artificial intelligence. 
• American Airlines (AAL): Shares of the carrier gained 5% after its fourth-quarter earnings and current-quarter guidance came in above analyst estimates. 
• Paramount Global (PARA): Shares rose more than 4% following reports David Ellison, son of billionaire Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, had made an offer to acquire a controlling stake in the entertainment company. 
  

Losses:

• Humana (HUM): The health insurer’s shares fell more than 14% after it reported a surprise loss in the fourth quarter and offered current-quarter guidance that was well below Wall Street’s expectations.
• Tesla (TSLA): Shares of the electric vehicle maker tumbled 9% after missing earnings and sales estimates in the fourth quarter and warning sales growth would slow this year. 
• Boeing Corp. (BA): Shares of the plane maker fell more than 2% after the Federal Aviation Administration said it would not permit the company to expand 737 Max production while it investigates the company's compliance with safety standards.

Earnings Send the Nasdaq Higher, Dow Lower

Futures 🅰contracts connected to the Dow Joꦰnes Industrial Average were down 0.2% in premarket trading on Thursday.

S&P 500 futures gave up earlier gains to hover around f𒆙lat about an hour before markets opened.

Nasdaq 10🦋0 futures were up a lღittle more than 0.1%.