U.S. equities remained volatile on Tuesday, with the Nasdaq Composite struggling to stay in positive territory, as investors remained shell shocked and nervous amid various cross currents. From higher interest rates, to worries about the sustainability of 20%+ earnings growth and, of course, the specter of ongoing policy tightening from the Federal Reserve.
Amid all this, the blue-chip stocks in the Dow Jones Industrial Average are struggling to regain their footing after a harrowing mid-day decline on Monday that put the 24,000 level — a low not seen since June — back into focus.
Here are seven Dow Jones stocks that are pulling the average lower:
Boeing (BA)
Boeing (NYSE:BA) shares fell hard below their 200-day moving average on Monday but have started to make a rebound since the drop. The breakdown is a big deal from a technical perspective, since it represents the first loss of this major long-term trend indicator since the summer of 2016. Watch for program selling to pile on from here, as worries over export orders into China weigh on sentiment.
BA will next report results on Jan. 23 before the bell. Analysts are looking for earnings of $4.49 per share on revenues of $27 billion. When the company last reported on Oct. 24, earnings of $3.58 per share beat estimates by 11 cents on a 3.8% rise in revenues.
Caterpillar (CAT)
Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) stock has been in the doghouse for weeks, suffering a 27%+ decline from its early October high and turning away from year-to-date resistance near the $160-a-share threshold. Adding to the pressure was a downgrade by analysts at Stifel, who lowered their price target to a still optimistic $142 per share. The company has been on the front lines of worries about worsening trade relations with China.
CAT will next report results on Jan. 22 before the bell. Analysts are looking for earnings of $2.98 per share on revenues of $14.4 billion. When the company last reported on Oct. 23, earnings of $2.86 beat estimates by a penny on an 18.4% rise in revenues.
Chevron (CVX)
Chevron (NYSE:CVX) shares have continued to fall away from the highs set earlier in October. Already down 14%, watch for a possible violation of the early February lows near $106, which would set up a drop back to the summertime 2017 range near $100. Note that CVX stock was recently downgraded by analysts at Redburn.
The company will next report results on Nov. 2 before the bell. Analysts are looking for earnings of $2.06 per share on revenues of $43 billion. When the company last reported on July 27, earnings of $1.78 per share missed estimates by 31 cents on a 22.5% rise in revenues.
DowDuPont (DWDP)
DowDuPont (NYSE:DWDP) shares are down nearly 30% from the highs seen in late August, returning to lows not seen since late 2016 and falling below their 200-week moving average for the first time since 2015. The company was downgraded by analysts at Stephens last week as sentiment remains fragile after management announced a goodwill impairment on its agriculture business — essentially writing down the value of that business segment.
DWDP will next report results on Nov. 1 before the bell. Analysts are looking for earnings of 71 cents per share on revenues of $20.3 billion. When the company last reported on Aug. 2, earnings of $1.37 beat estimates by 8 cents on a 75.3% rise in revenues.
General Electric (GE)
Among the hardest-hit Dow Jones stocks on this list, General Electric (NYSE:GE) is being smashed after reporting disappointing numbers. Specifically, GE stock is down nearly 11% and falling into single digits for the first time since 2009. This tops a stomach-turning decline of more than two-thirds from the high set in late 2016 amid ongoing frustration with management amid a half-baked turnaround plan. The GE dividend was cut 92% to just a penny per share.
The company reported results before the bell on Tuesday. Analysts were looking for earnings of 20 cents per share on revenues of $30.1 billion. Actual results missed estimates by 6 cents on a 3.6% decline in revenues.
IBM (IBM)
IBM (NYSE:IBM) shares are in a nose dive, down nearly another 1% on Wednesday to cap a fall of nearly 30% from the highs seen earlier this month. This returns shares to the lows seen in early 2016 and once again marks an exit from the long, tortuous sideways range that has been in play since 2011. A recent acquisition of RedHat (NYSE:RHT) software has failed to generate any excitement for this Dow Jones stock.
IBM will next report results on Jan. 15 after the close. Analysts are looking for earnings of $4.86 per share on revenues of $21.9 billion. When the company last reported on Oct. 16, earnings of $3.42 beat estimates by 2 cents on a 2.1% decline in revenues.
Microsoft (MSFT)
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) shares are threatening to fall below their 200-day moving average for the first time since the summer of 2016, marking a decline of nearly 12% from the high of early October. MSFT, a member of the big-cap tech cohort that’s been such a dominant force in the market for months, is succumbing to the same selling pressure that’s hitting the likes of Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), as investors realize that momentum works going down as well.
MSFT will next report results on Jan. 23 after the close. Analysts are looking for earnings of $1.09 per share on revenues of $32.2 billion. When the company last reported results on Oct. 24, earnings of $1.14 per share beat estimates by 18 cents on a 18.5% rise in revenues.
As of this writing, William Roth did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities.
