Why Wells Fargo & Co (WFC), Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL) and Infosys Ltd (INFY) Are 3 of Today’s Worst Stocks

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Despite a combination of better-than-expected retail sales in June, and lower-than-expected inflation, investors just couldn’t justify pushing stocks any higher headed into the weekend. The S&P 500 ended the day at 2161.74, down only 0.09%, but logging another day of waning momentum.

Why Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC), Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL) and Infosys Ltd (INFY) are Three of Today's Worst StocksLeading the bearish charge were Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL), Infosys Ltd (NYSE:INFY) and Wells Fargo & Co (NYSE:WFC), mostly stemming from earnings results and outlooks. Here’s exactly why each used more than their fair share of red ink on Friday.

Infosys Ltd (INFY)

The good news is, technology company Infosys Ltd reported a 7% increase in its year-over-year Q1 bottom line, driven by sales growth of 10%. The bad news us, the numbers reported for INFY still fell short of analyst estimates. Per-share earnings of 22 cents were just shy of the expected 23 cents, while revenue of $2.5 billion didn’t quite live up to expectations for a top line of $2.55 billion.

The crux of today’s 9% pullback from INFY, however, was mostly the result of lowered full-year guidance. The company now anticipates sales growth of between 10.5% and 12%, down measurably from prior growth guidance of between 11.5% and 13.5%.

CEO Vishal Sikka noted that weakness from the all-important banking sector in the wake of Brexit as a key reason for the lowered outlook.

Wells Fargo & Co (WFC)

INFY wasn’t the only stock to get hit hard by a disappointing earnings report and outlook on Friday. Wells Fargo shares fell 2.5% following the release of the bank’s fiscal Q2 numbers, which were down on a year-over-year basis despite meeting expectations.

For the quarter ending in June, Wells Fargo earned $1.01 per share on revenue of $22.2 billion, up 4% from the second quarter of 2015. The bottom line was in line with estimates, but two cents short of the year-ago comparison.

Lower interest rates are taking a toll on the bank’s profit margins. But, more alarming than weakening margins is the fact that Wells Fargo set aside $1.1 billion for loan losses last quarter, tripling the loan loss reserve total from the comparable quarter a year earlier.

Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL)

Last but not least, Delta Air Lines (along with most other travel-related stocks) ended the day and the week more than a little deep in the red following a terror attack in Nice, France, at a Bastille Day celebration.

The attack — a large truck plowing into a crowd, killing 84 people — has not yet been explicitly identified as a terrorist attack by any known terrorist groups. But it has many of the typical markers of terrorism, and rekindles fears domestically and abroad that events, let alone travel, are unnecessarily risky. It’s the second terrorist attack in Paris in eight months, and the eighth major terrorist event this year. The events are starting to take a mental toll on travelers.

DAL closed down 2.4% today, with travel industry peer Carnival Corp (NYSE:CCL) not far behind.

As of this writing, James Brumley did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities.

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Article printed from InvestorPlace Media, https://investorplace.com/2016/07/wells-fargo-co-wfc-delta-air-lines-inc-dal-infosys-ltd-infy-three-todays-worst-stocks/.

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