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The first-quarter earnings season is in full swing. Here is a recap of the major companies that have reported their results this week.
Of the 41 S&P 500 companies that reported, 32 had EPS above analyst expectations, six missed consensus, and three were in line. For revenue, 29 companies reported a beat, while 12 reported a top-line miss.
Netflix (NFLX) on Thursday surpassed expectations on subscriber growth and beat financial forecasts, showing off double-digit gains, but said it would stop reporting subscriber numbers in time. Wall Street on Friday reacted negatively to that latter announcement, sending the streaming giant’s stock down more than 9%.
On Wednesday, United Airlines (UAL) reported strong underlying results and said its earnings reflect the about $200 million impact from the Boeing 737 MAX 9 grounding, without which it would have reported a quarterly profit. In the quarter, the airline generated $2.8 billion in operating cash flow and an FCF of $1.5 billion.
A quick glance sector-wise
In the financial sector, Goldman Sachs (GS) boasted strong results as debt underwriting helped revive its investment banking revenue in the quarter. Bank of America’s (BAC) earnings exceeded Wall Street expectations as both net interest income and noninterest income increased from the prior quarter, helped by a rebound in investment banking. Morgan Stanley’s (MS) results were driven by a credit benefit, a recovery in investment banking activity, and a surge in its wealth management revenue. American Express’ earnings beat as interest income rose and expenses and provision for credit losses declined sequentially. However, the volume of payments over the credit card company’s network missed the consensus.
For the broader healthcare sector, Abbott Laboratories (ABT) posted better-than-expected results as sales from its Medical Devices division exceeded Wall Street forecasts while its Diagnostics business underperformed, driven by a decline in COVID-19 testing. Pharma bellwether JNJ’s revenue reached $21.4B with ~2% YoY growth in line with consensus on a reported basis. The company revised its full-year outlook below consensus after sales from its MedTech division fell short of forecasts. Health insurer UnitedHealth (UNH) posted adjusted earnings per share that topped Wall Street estimates.
In energy, pipeline operator Kinder Morgan (KMI) reported adjusted earnings that matched expectations, helped by higher volumes in its natural gas pipelines segment, while issuing guidance for full-year earnings of $1.22 per share that beat consensus by $0.01. Oilfield services provider SLB’s (SLB) adjusted earnings and revenues were in line with estimates, and the company affirmed previous guidance of mid-teens EBITDA growth for the full year.
Under REITS, Crown Castle (CCI) posted better-than-expected earnings, revenue, and adjusted EBITDA, even as the metrics declined sequentially and from a year ago. Industrial REIT Prologis (PLD) trimmed its guidance for full-year 2024 as it prepares for a slower leasing environment for the next quarter or two while posting slightly weaker-than-expected earnings.
For the upcoming week, 145 S&P 500 names are scheduled to report results, with the likes of Verizon (VZ) on Monday, NextEra Energy (NEE), Tesla (TSLA), Visa (V), PepsiCo (PEP), and UPS (UPS) on Tuesday.
Meta (META), Boeing (BA), and Qualcomm (QCOM) are reporting on Wednesday. Thursday would see Microsoft (MSFT), Alphabet (GOOGL) (GOOG), Intel (INTC), and Caterpillar (CAT) put out their results. AbbVie (ABBV) and Phillips 66 (PSX) will post their earnings on Friday.
