Tuesday’s return to market action saw stocks take a bump after President-elect Donald Trump rattled stocks by lashing out against the strong U.S. dollar. The S&P 500 Index lost 0.3%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite was 0.6% lower.
As we head into Wednesday, earnings were driving a number of stocks higher (and lower). In the spotlight today are Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C), Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) and United Continental Holdings Inc (NYSE:UAL).
Citigroup Inc (C)
So much for that.
C shares, which have been trailing the performance of many other large-cap bank stocks, were unable to get a bump Wednesday following the company’s fourth-quarter earnings report.
Earnings of $1.14 per share managed to top expectations by 2 cents. However, revenues of $17.01 billion were plenty short of estimates for $17.26 billion. Weighing on Citigroup’s results were trading revenues, which came in at $3.26 billion versus expectations of $3.44 billion. Fixed income of $2.21 billion also was well shy of a consensus mark of $2.83 billion.
A couple of bright points from the report: Debt underwriting revenues improved by 4%, and investment banking revenues of $1.13 billion topped expectations.
C shares were off fractionally following the report, and are now pitted against support at their 50-day moving average.
Target Corporation (TGT)
TGT shares were off substantially on Wednesday morning after it became the latest retailer to telegraph a weak holiday season.
Target said its comparable-store sales for the November-December period declined 1.3%, and total sales were off 4.9%, forcing the company to guide its fourth-quarter and full-year results lower.
Now, Target is forecasting fourth-quarter earnings in a range of $1.45 to $1.55 per share, down from $1.55 to $1.75 per share. For the full year, Target’s earnings range dropped from $5.10 to $5.30 per share to $5 to $5.10 per share.
Q4 comps are expected to come in at a decline of 1% to 1.5%. This metric was brought down by weakness in food & essentials, as well as electronics & entertainment.
TGT stock was off more than 3% in Wednesday’s premarket trade.
United Continental Holdings Inc (UAL)
UAL shares were slipping early Wednesday despite a quarterly beat.
The airline company earned $1.78 per share over the course of its fourth quarter, surpassing the consensus estimate by 13 cents per share. While that figure was off nearly 52% year-over-year, most of that decline came on the back of an income tax hit.
Meanwhile, revenues of $9.1 billion were up just 0.2% year-over-year.
United Airlines has been dogged by profitability issues, even ranking as the least profitable U.S. carrier in a 2016 study. UAL has put forth a few initiatives to counter its weak margins, including trimming management and developing a new basic economy class to compete with low-cost carriers.
UAL shares were off nearly 2% before Wednesday’s bell.
