After initial optimism about the reporting season, early negative results from Alcoa brought the market down. Shares dropped 2.49% to $38.73 when the aluminium producer posted earnings that came in below forecasts, prompting at least three brokerages to lower their price target on the stock. The company now plans to boost its share buybacks to 25 per cent of its outstanding shares from the 10 per cent previously announced.
Monsanto results also put a damper on things when it posted a wider-than-expected quarterly loss on Wednesday. Shares were down 0.83% to $88.78. The agricultural company said its net loss widened to $210 million, from $140 million a year earlier. Monsanto also lowered its expected fiscal 2008 earnings despite strong demand for genetically modified corn.
And adding insult to injury, Chevron warned that its third-quarter results will be significantly lower than the previous quarter sending shares down 0.78% to $92.08. The second largest US oil and gas company blames outlook on a sharp drop in its refining margins. Chevron said international benchmark margins also were considerably lower.
One earnings bright spot was Costco Wholesale. Shares jumped 9.19% to a lifetime high of $69.13, helping to push the Nasdaq to its highest close in more than six years. The number one warehouse retailer posted a net income of over $372 million on stronger sales and improving margins. The September sales results marked a rebound from August, when it reported weaker-than-expected sales, hurt by a decline in store traffic that it attributed to extremely high temperatures in California.
To the best and worst performers in the Nasdaq Top 100. The best performer was Costco. Akamai Technologies came next for the second day in a row. Sirius Satellite Radio also drove the Nasdaq.
Xilinx was down 4.25% to $25.67. Petsmart was down after it lowered its quarterly and yearly outlooks; Whole Foods Market also performed poorly.
