UAL Corp. (UAUA), parent of United Airlines, and US Airways Group (LCC) both announced losses that were not as bad as last quarter and not as bad as expected.

Radio Shack (RSH) earnings were reported after the bell today. RSH earnings for the first-quarter improved as Radio Shack sales rose 4%, topping Wall Street forecasts. Specifically, RadioShack earnings included first-quarter net income of $50.1 million or 39 cents a share, up 16% from $43.1 million, or 34 cents a share in the year ago period.

If you're feeling trapped and held hostage by your own portfolio, don't fret. Here are five different trade-ups that allow you to move your money into similar companies that are a much better investment than what you may currently be holding: In the auto sector, sell Toyota (TM) and buy Ford (F). In pharmaceuticals, sell Pfizer (PFE) and buy Merck (MRK). In consumer staples, sell General Mills (GIS) and buy Kraft (KFT). In tech, sell Apple (AAPL) and buy Intel (INTC). In the ulilities sector, sell PG and E (PCG) and buy Exelon (EXC).

There's a whole lot of fuss on Wall Street right now about the impact of a first-time homebuyer credit expiring this week. The $8,000 question -- whether the housing market will continue to improve without the payday, or whether we are in for another round of falling home prices and rising foreclosures.

Nearly five years ago Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. (PAA) bought two natural gas storage facilities from Sempra Energy (SRE). Bluewater Gas Storage in Michigan has a working gas capacity of 20 billion cubic feet, and Pine Prairie Energy Center in Louisiana also has 20 billion cubic feet of capacity. Today, Plains has commenced an IPO of the two businesses as another master limited partnership named PAA Natural Gas Storage, L.P. (PNG) that will trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol 'PNG'.

BlackRock Inc (BLK), one of Wall Street's most iconic money management stocks, reported strong first-quarter earnings that were up more than 400% over the 2009 numbers. However, BlackRock earnings still fell short of the consensus profit forecast. BLK earnings estimates on Wall Street were a bit higher.

Eagle Materials Inc. (EXP), a housing stock that produces wallboard and cement products, reported fiscal fourth-quarter earnings today that significantly topped profit forecasts. Eagle Materials earnings actually pulled into the black, with fourth-quarter net earnings of $1.9 million or 4 cents a share, compared with projections of a loss by most Wall Street analysts. The consensus earnings estimate was a loss of -2 cents a share.

The latest batch of major bank earnings is in the books, and the news has been stellar. Bank of America (BAC), Citibank (C), JPMorgan Chase (JPM) and Wells Fargo (WFC) all reported better-than-expected earnings over the past two weeks, and all appear to be fully on the path to recovering from the depths of the 2008 financial crisis. And while not all of these banks have fully recovered from the ravages of the meltdown, their recent earnings showings have many investors pining for a bigger slice of the pie via increased dividends.

The oil field services sector got a bump of about 2.5% earlier this week when Halliburton (HAL) reported results and indicated that the outlook for the rest of 2010 was looking better. So far today, the sector is up nearly 7% on a similar earnings outlook from Schlumberger Ltd. (SLB), even though the company's revenues dropped in the quarter. Even Weatherford International Ltd. (WFT) is getting a nice boost on Schlumberger's coattails.

When you're looking for stocks to add to your portfolio, a good thing to ask yourself is "What are those who are 'in the know' buying?" Those in the know could be analysts, or they could be top stock advisors. Insider buying is a key indicator of success, and some big-name stocks including Simon Property Group (SPG), Enterprise Products (EPD), CVS Caremark (CVS), DirecTV (DTV) and Dr. Pepper Snapple Group (DPS) have all seen high levels of insider buying lately.

Tobacco companies may get more than their share of bad press for some things, but when it comes to earnings the companies do much better. Three of the world's largest tobacco companies -- Phillip Morris (PM), Altria (MO) and Reynolds American (RAI) -- have recently announced first quarter results, and while those results are mixed, there are still plenty of tobacco users to go around.

While the price tag of $100 or $200 may be jaw-dropping to those who grew up sporting jeans to mow the lawn or lounge on the couch, it's not uncommon in today's retail marketplace. Companies like Joe's Jeans (JOEZ) and True Religion (TRLG) are peddling trendy jeans for teenagers, and companies like Ralph Lauren (RL), Aeropostale (ARO) and The Gap (GPS) commonly market premium jeans for the older crowd with a price tag of $75 to $150.

The oil field services sector got a bump of about 2.5% earlier this week when Halliburton (HAL) reported results and indicated that the outlook for the rest of 2010 was looking better. So far today, the sector is up nearly 7% on a similar earnings outlook from Schlumberger Ltd. (SLB), even though the company's revenues dropped in the quarter. Even Weatherford International Ltd. (WFT) is getting a nice boost on Schlumberger's coattails.

The recent jump in auto sales are attributable to manufacturers' incentives and a significant increase in Chinese buying. It's not totally unexpected then that parts suppliers should be seeing some black ink from the sales jump. Those companies include Johnson Controls, Inc. (JCI) which just reported earnings.

2010 is becoming the year of the dividend as a common theme for investors. And the mover toward exchange-traded funds, ETFs and ETNs, has been a growing trend for years. So what about marrying the ETF world to the dividend world? The Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF (BND), SPDR Barclays Capital High Yield Bond ETF (JNK), SPDR S and P Dividend ETF (SDY), Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF (VIG) and JPMorgan Alerian MLP Index ETN (AMJ) do exactly that.