Earnings lift Russell, Dow
The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) and the Dow (INDU) are higher following news of strong quarterly earnings from major players.
At 10:05 a.m. ET, the small-cap index had added 3.43 points, or 0.42%, to 813.19. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 76.09 points, or 0.55%, to 13,842.79.
Trading got off to a bullish start following news that Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE), the world’s largest maker of athletic shoes, reported a 51% increase in its fiscal first-quarter profit, beating Wall Street’s expectations.
The Beaverton, Ore-based company had a net income of $569.7 million, or $1.12 per share, for the quarter ended Aug. 31, compared with $377.2 million, or $0.74 per share, a year earlier. Analysts were looking for earnings of $0.87 per share.
The tech sector added to the positive sentiment.
Redwood City, Calif.-based software maker Oracle Corp. (Nasdaq: ORCL) also announced better-than-expected fiscal first-quarter results, while mobile-phone chip maker Texas Instruments Inc. (NYSE: TXN) increased its dividend and raised its budget for stock buybacks by $5 billion.
Overseas, the major European indices rose, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 dropped 0.6% but Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index grew by the same percentage.
In other economic news, investors will be paying attention to the Weekly Leading Index, which will be released by the Economic Cycle Research Institute at 10:30 a.m. ET. The index is considered a leading index of overall economic conditions.
