3M’s stock slumps after downbeat profit outlook

Shares of 3M Co. slumped 1.4% in premarket trade Tuesday, after the diversified industrial and consumer products company reported third-quarter earnings that topped expectations but cut its full-year outlook. Earnings for the quarter to Sept. 30 rose to $1.33 billion, or $2.15 a share, from $1.30 billion, or $2.05 a share, in the same period a year ago. The FactSet consensus for earnings per share was $2.14. Revenue was $7.71 billion, in line with a year ago and with the FactSet consensus. For the full year, the company cut its EPS outlook to a range of $8.15 to $8.20 from $8.15 to $8.30. The FactSet consensus is $8.21. The stock had run up 14% year to date through Monday, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average has gained 4.6%.

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From:: Stock Market News

Lockheed Martin beats third-quarter earnings expectations

Lockheed Martin [S: LMT] shares rose 1% in premarket trade Tuesday after the company beat third-quarter earnings expectations. The company reported net earnings of $2.4 billion, or $7.93 per share, up from $865 million, or $2.77 per share in the year-earlier period. It reported adjusted earnings per share of $3.61, above the FactSet consensus of $2.89. It reported sales of $11.55 billion, up from $10.06 billion in the year-earlier period and above the FactSet consensus of $11.45 billion. It said it expects a 2016 EPS of $12.10 and sales of $46.5 billion, both adjusted for divested business. It expects its 2017 net sales to increase by 7%. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expect a 2016 EPS of $11.92 and revenue of $46.2 billion. Shares of Lockheed have fallen 9% in the past three months compared to the S&P 500’s drop of 1%.

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From:: Stock Market News

London’s Heathrow Airport gets the greenlight for new runway

Heathrow Airport has won approval for the construction of a new runway, the U.K.’s Transport Department [l: said in a statement Tuesday. Business and local communities have waited for more than a decade for the government to decide whether to expand either Heathrow Airport or Gatwick Airport. Heathrow’s new runway is expected to bolster the wider economy by up to £61 billion ($74.6 billion) and create up to 77,000 local jobs, the Transport Department said.

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From:: Stock Market News

Whirlpool misses profit and sales expectations, provides downbeat outlook

Shares of Whirlpool Corp. were indicated more than 4% lower in premarket trade Tuesday, after the appliance maker reported third-quarter profit and sales that missed expectations, and provided a downbeat outlook. Net earnings rose to $238 million, or $3.10 a share, from $235 million, or $2.95 a share, in the same period a year ago. Excluding non-recurring items, adjusted earnings per share came to $3.66, below the FactSet consensus of $3.86. Revenue slipped to $5.25 billion from $5.28 billion, missing the FactSet consensus of $5.32 billion, as weakness in Europe sales offset beats in North America and Latin America. For 2016, adjusted EPS is expected to be $14.00 to $14.25, below the FactSet consensus of $14.61. “”We are pleased with strong revenue growth, market share gains and ongoing margin expansion in North America and Latin America that overcame industry softness and currency volatility,” said Chief Operating Officer Marc Bitzer. “In Europe, the U.K. environment remains challenging, but we continue to execute brand and product transitions while adjusting our production levels to right-size our inventory.” The stock has climbed 16% year to date through Monday, while the S&P 500 has gained 5.3%.

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From:: Stock Market News

Whirlpool slumps 4.3% premarket after profit miss

Shares of Whirlpool Corp. dropped 4.3% in thin premarket trade on Tuesday after the appliance maker reported a surprise drop in revenue and warned of softness ahead. For the third quarter, the company reported a profit of $238 million, or $3.10 a share, up from $235 million, or $2.95 a share, in the year-ago period. On an adjusted basis, profit came in at $3.66 a share. Sales slipped to $5.25 billion from $5.28 billion in the same quarter last year. Analysts polled by FactSet expected earnings of $3.86 a share on revenue of $5.32 billion. For the full year, the company said it now expects earnings of $11.50 to $11.75 a share, compared with the $11.50 to $12.00 a share it predicted in its second-quarter statement. “These changes are primarily related to demand softness in the U.S. and the U.K., along with the continued devaluation of the British pound,” Whirlpool said.

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From:: Stock Market News

Eurozone fund approves €2.8 billion bailout loans to Greece

Greece’s eurozone creditors on Tuesday morning approved a €2.8 billion ($3.04 billion) disbursement to the debt-laden country after the government completed a round of economic reform. The approval marks the end of the first review of Greece’s €86 billion bailout, approved last summer after fears the country would default and ultimately leave the eurozone. “Today’s decision to disburse €2.8 billion to Greece is a sign that the Greek people are steadily making progress in reforming their country,” the Board of Directors of the European Stability Mechanism said in a press release. “The government has completed key milestones in the area of pension reform, bank governance, the energy sector, and revenue collection,” it added. The fresh loans approved on Tuesday consist of two parts: €1.1 billion to be used for debt servicing and a further €1.7 billion for clearing arrears.

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From:: Stock Market News

Mortgage Lates Inch Up, Foreclosures at 9-Yr Low

Despite a modest up tick in the mortgage delinquency rate, the rate of properties in the foreclosure process descended to the lowest level in nine years.

A total of 2,674,000 U.S. residential loans were either delinquent at least 30 days or in the foreclosure pre-sale inventory as of Sept. 30 of this year.

The inventory was slightly diminished versus the prior month, when the total was 2,678,000, but much less than a year prior, when the number was 3,194,000.


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From:: Financing

Twitter set to slash 8% of workforce: report

Twitter is planning to announce this week it will lay off about 8 percent of its workforce, according to a report Monday night by Bloomberg News. That would be about 300 people. Twitter announced a similar number of job cuts last October, after Jack Dorsey reclaimed his spot as CEO. Twitter will report quarterly earnings Thursday morning, but Bloomberg said the cuts may be announced before that. Twitter shares are down more than 20% year to date, and the money-losing company been the subject of merger speculation with a number of companies in recent months.

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From:: Stock Market News

HomeStreet’s Mortgage Business Grows

Quarterly home-lending volume, mortgage earnings and residential loan servicing all increased at HomeStreet Inc., as did mortgage assets.

Income before taxes climbed to $43 million during the three months that ended on Sept. 30 from $35 million in the prior three-month period.

Details about the Seattle-based bank-holding company’s results were disclosed on Monday in its third-quarter 2016 earnings report.


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From:: Financing