• Subscribe
  • Log In
  • Home
  • Daily Diary
  • Asset Class
    • U.S. Equity
    • Fixed Income
    • Global Equity
    • Commodities
    • Currencies
  • Sector
    • Basic Materials
    • Consumer Discretionary
    • Consumer Staples
    • Energy
    • Financial Services
    • Healthcare
    • Industrials
    • Real Estate
    • Technology
    • Telecom Services
    • Transportation
    • Utilities
  • Latest
    • Articles
    • Video
    • Columnist Conversations
    • Best Ideas
    • Stock of the Day
  • Street Notes
  • Authors
    • Bruce Kamich
    • Doug Kass
    • Jim "Rev Shark" DePorre
    • Helene Meisler
    • Jonathan Heller
    • - See All -
  • Options
  • RMPIA
  • Switch Product
    • Action Alerts PLUS
    • Quant Ratings
    • Real Money
    • Real Money Pro
    • Retirement
    • Stocks Under $10
    • TheStreet
    • Top Stocks
    • Trifecta Stocks
  1. Home
  2. / Investing
  3. / Economic Data

The Day Ahead: Alcoa Spurs Optimism

The aluminum producer's sunny outlook has generated enthusiasm as earnings season gets under way.
By KATE STALTER Jan 10, 2012 | 08:29 AM EST
Stocks quotes in this article: AA, SNX, JNPR, TIF, LULU, AAPL, T

In the Headlines

A better-than-expected start to earnings season helped boost stocks around the world. Wall Street was poised for a higher open Tuesday, on the heels of gains on the indices Monday.

In its fourth-quarter report after the bell Monday, Alcoa (AA) issued a sunny outlook for aluminum demand, sending shares higher in the premarket. As expected, the company reported a quarterly loss that was in line with analyst forecasts.

European stocks were trading sharply higher Tuesday, on Alcoa-generated optimism about the fourth-quarter earnings season.

On the sovereign debt front, Fitch said that Italy's debt burden makes that nation the largest threat to the euro's survival. The bond rater is reviewing Italy's debt, and may issue a downgrade before the end of this month. The euro inched up vs. the U.S. dollar Tuesday morning.

In Asia, the Shanghai Composite extended its winning streak to three sessions. The upside action followed news that Chinese regulators would institute market reforms, including monetary easing.

Alcoa's outlook spurred gains in aluminum companies and other resource-related issues in Asia. Japanese markets re-opened for business after a holiday, finishing the session with a gain of 0.38%.

Economic Docket

There isn't much on the U.S. economic calendar today. At 10 a.m. EST, the Commerce Department reports wholesale inventories for November. Analysts see a gain of 0.6%, following October's increase of 1.6%. This release generally does not have much effect on equity markets.

Also at 10, the Labor Department issues its monthly job opportunities and labor turnover survey, dubbed JOLTS. These data indicate how many workers are voluntarily quitting their jobs, which is interpreted as a sign of confidence: People don't generally quit their jobs unless they anticipate an opportunity ahead.

Commodities Corner

In commodities news, gold attempted a rebound after Monday's downside trade, gaining $22.90 early Tuesday, to $1,631 per ounce.

Crude oil advanced $1.33 per barrel in electronic trade, to $102.64.

Earnings

While the Alcoa earnings news grabbed attention after the bell Monday, the pace slows down today, with not much on the docket.

After the close, electronics distributor Synnex (SNX) is expected to report fourth-quarter earnings of $1.14 per share and revenue of $2.82 billion. Shares of the California-based small-cap are working on their fourth straight month of gains.

Market Movers

Turning to premarket movers, Alcoa advanced $0.26, or 2.8%, to $9.69.

Juniper Networks (JNPR) slumped $0.08 to $21.45 in early trade. On Monday, the stock bolted 5.4% in heavy volume, before the company lowered its fourth-quarter earnings outlook. It reports on Jan. 26. Nonetheless, Piper Jaffray upgraded the stock to Overweight from Neutral this morning, saying it expects fiscal 2012 to be strong. 

Tiffany & Co. (TIF) wasn't looking too lustrous early Tuesday, after slashing its earnings guidance for 2011. Its fiscal year ends this month, and the company is expected to report results in March. Shares skidded $4.97, 7.42%, to $61.97 in the premarket.

Meanwhile, Lululemon Athletica (LULU) raised its fourth-quarter earnings outlook. It now sees profit in the range of $0.47 to $0.49 per share, vs. earlier guidance of $0.40 to $0.42. In a statement, CEO Christine Day cited strong customer response to holiday-season offerings. Shares vaulted $5.71, 10.68%, to $59.15 ahead of the open.

Apple (AAPL) rose $4.38, or 1.04%, to $426.11 in the premarket. The company was in the news for a couple of reasons this morning. According to Securities and Exchange Commission filings, CEO Tim Cook's total compensation tallies $378 million.  Some company watchers say Steve Jobs had been instrumental in determining Cook's pay level.

In product news, Apple is not showing its TV technology at this week's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. However, many industry analysts are anticipating that developments from the Cupertino, Calif., company will have a dramatic impact on the TV business. Other manufacturers are showing their latest-generation screens at CES.

Analyst Actions

In addition to Piper Jaffray's upgrade of Juniper, analyst moves Tuesday included a Deutsche Bank resumption of coverage of AT&T (T). The telecom got started with a rating of Hold, with Deutsche Bank citing pressures on wireless margins and strategic uncertainty ahead. Shares of the DJIA component rose $0.21 to $29.87 in early trade.

Get an email alert each time I write an article for Real Money. Click the "+Follow" next to my byline to this article.

At the time of publication, Stalter had no positions in the stocks mentioned.

TAGS: Investing | U.S. Equity | Economic Data | Stocks

More from Economic Data

When Did We Stop Worrying About the Wealth Effect?

Peter Tchir
Jul 5, 2022 1:00 PM EDT

This looks like a market pricing in a recession/policy mistake.

Recession Worries Build as Earnings Season Beckons

James "Rev Shark" DePorre
Jul 5, 2022 7:46 AM EDT

Earnings season is going to determine where the trend is headed, and right now there is growing concern that there will be some very poor news.

Tuesday Setup, Semiconductor Gut Punch, Tradable July? Stay Inside the Lines

Stephen Guilfoyle
Jul 5, 2022 6:43 AM EDT

Earnings season kicks off in about 10 days. It does not look to the plain eye that analysts are ready.

Welcome Break, Sellers at the Ready, Defense on Offense, GDP Sags, Yield Watch

Stephen Guilfoyle
Jul 1, 2022 7:20 AM EDT

Plus, disappointing personal spending figures and an explanation of how the Fed views inflation (hint: it isn't how you view it).

As Carnival, Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Sink, Here's When to Dive In

Ed Ponsi
Jun 30, 2022 1:30 PM EDT

These stocks are priced for an industry-wide calamity, but how realistic is that considering their customer base?

Real Money's message boards are strictly for the open exchange of investment ideas among registered users. Any discussions or subjects off that topic or that do not promote this goal will be removed at the discretion of the site's moderators. Abusive, insensitive or threatening comments will not be tolerated and will be deleted. Thank you for your cooperation. If you have questions, please contact us here.

Email

CANCEL
SUBMIT

Email sent

Thank you, your email to has been sent successfully.

DONE

Oops!

We're sorry. There was a problem trying to send your email to .
Please contact customer support to let us know.

DONE

Please Join or Log In to Email Our Authors.

Email Real Money's Wall Street Pros for further analysis and insight

Already a Subscriber? Login

Columnist Conversation

  • 12:01 PM EDT PAUL PRICE

    A Recent Director Buy in Children's Place (PLCE)

    Four of the most recent insider trades in Children...
  • 07:34 AM EDT PAUL PRICE

    A $525,000 Vote of Confidence on Macerich (MAC)

  • 09:49 AM EDT JAMES "REV SHARK" DEPORRE

    This Weekend on Real Money

    Stop Wishing, Hoping, and Praying and Take Control...
  • See More

COLUMNIST TWEETS

  • A Twitter List by realmoney
About Privacy Terms of Use

© 1996-2022 TheStreet, Inc., 225 Liberty Street, 27th Floor, New York, NY 10281

Need Help? Contact Customer Service

Except as otherwise indicated, quotes are delayed. Quotes delayed at least 20 minutes for all exchanges. Market Data & Company fundamental data provided by FactSet. Earnings and ratings provided by Zacks. Mutual fund data provided by Valueline. ETF data provided by Lipper. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions Group.

TheStreet Ratings updates stock ratings daily. However, if no rating change occurs, the data on this page does not update. The data does update after 90 days if no rating change occurs within that time period.

FactSet calculates the Market Cap for the basic symbol to include common shares only. Year-to-date mutual fund returns are calculated on a monthly basis by Value Line and posted mid-month.

Compare Brokers

Please Join or Log In to manage and receive alerts.

Follow Real Money's Wall Street Pros to receive real-time investing alerts

Already a Subscriber? Login