BofA update shows where active managers are putting money
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* JPMorgan, Wells Fargo report slump in profits
* J&J beats profit estimates, boosts quarterly dividend
* Apple rises as iPhone shipments to China rebound in March
* Indexes gain: Dow 2.05%, S&P 2.56%, Nasdaq 3.49%
(Updates to early afternoon)
By Medha Singh and Akanksha Rana
April 14 (Reuters) - Wall Street jumped on Tuesday as hopes
that President Donald Trump could move to ease
coronavirus-induced lockdowns overshadowed dismal quarterly
earnings reports from JPMorgan and Wells Fargo.
White House adviser Larry Kudlow said Trump would make a
number of announcements about re-opening the U.S. economy in the
next day or two as the health crisis appeared to be ebbing, but
some state governors have said the decision to re-start
businesses lies with them. New York saw total hospitalizations fall for the first time
since the onset of the novel coronavirus pandemic, Governor
Andrew Cuomo said. "There is belief that we're past the worst part of the
pandemic and every single day it's just being bolstered
further," said Yousef Abbasi, global market strategist at INTL
FCStone Financial Inc in New York.
"If we start to get clarity on what parts of the economy
could start opening up, we're probably going to trade more on
the fundamentals and economic data."
U.S. stock markets have recovered in the past month after
slumping more than 30% from their February record highs,
supported by a raft of monetary and fiscal stimulus and early
signs of a plateauing in the number of coronavirus cases.
However, S&P 500 firms are still off about $4.7 trillion in
market value and analysts have warned of a torrid earnings
season as the containment measures ground business activity to a
shuddering halt.
JPMorgan Chase & Co JPM.N and Wells Fargo & Co WFC.N
reversed early gains to drop 3.3% and 4.5% respectively, as
first-quarter profits plunged with both banks setting aside
billions of dollars to cover potential loan-losses from the
pandemic. "Investors are looking past what's undoubtedly going to be a
very weak earnings season and are somewhat optimistic that
things will get back to normal next quarter," said Rick Meckler,
partner at Cherry Lane Investments in New Vernon, New Jersey.
Johnson & Johnson JNJ.N rose 4.9% as it reported
better-than-expected quarterly earnings and boosted its
dividend, signaling financial stability at a time when a slate
of blue-chip firms have suspended dividends to shore up cash
reserves. At 1:09 p.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI was
up 480.51 points, or 2.05%, at 23,871.28 and the S&P 500 .SPX
was up 70.77 points, or 2.56%, at 2,832.40. The Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC was up 286.13 points, or 3.49%, at 8,478.56.
A 4.6% jump for Apple Inc AAPL.O put the tech-heavy Nasdaq
on course for a fourth straight day of gains as data showed
iPhone shipments to China rebounded slightly in March after
crashing in February. Tesla Inc TSLA.O surged 12.3% and was among the top boosts
to the Nasdaq after brokerage Credit Suisse upgraded the
electric carmaker's stock to "neutral".
The S&P 1500 airlines index .SPCOMAIR gained 4.6% as
sources said some large U.S. passenger airlines were close to
accepting the terms of a $25 billion offer for government
payroll aid. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners for a 2.89-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and a 2.29-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded eight new 52-week highs and no new
low, while the Nasdaq recorded 22 new highs and eight new lows.