Qualcomm earnings bounce back, stock gains

After a huge drop in profit the previous quarter, Qualcomm Inc. bounced back with gains according to a Wednesday earnings report, and shares gained more than 5% in late trading. The San Diego mobile-chip company reported earnings of $1.2 billion, or 97 cents a share, on sales of $6 billion; after adjustments for stock-based compensation and other factors, the company reported profit of $1.16 per share. Analysts on average expected adjusted earnings of 98 cents a share on sales of $5.6 billion, according to FactSet. Shares neared $59 in late trading after closing with a gain of 1.2% at $55.82.

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From:: Stock Market News

American Express shares rise after company beat EPS expectations

American Express Co. shares rose nearly 2% late Wednesday as the credit card company surpassed earnings expectations. American Express said it earned $2 billion, or $2.10 a share, in the second quarter, compared with $1.42 a share in the year-ago period. Revenue hit $8.23 billion, down slightly from $8.28 billion a year ago. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected American Express to report adjusted earnings of $1.96 a share on sales of $8.28 billion. American Express said its bottom line included a $1.1 billion ($677 million after taxes) gain from the sale of its Costco co-brand card portfolio and a $232 million charge to cover its efforts to reduce costs. Shares had ended the regular trading session up 0.5%.

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From:: Stock Market News

Intel’s quarterly earnings beat expectations while revenue falls short

​Shares of Intel Corp. slid in Wednesday’s extended session after the semiconductor giant’s quarterly earnings beat while revenue missed expectations slightly. Intel reported its second-quarter profit sank to $1.3 billion, or 27 cents a share, from $2.7 billion, or 55 cents a share, a year ago. On an adjusted basis, Intel would have earned 59 cents a share. Revenue edged up 3% to $13.5 billion. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had forecast the company to earn 54 cents a share on revenue of $13.56 billion. For the third quarter, Intel projected revenue of $14.9 billion, plus or minus $500 million, and gross margin of 60%, give or take a “couple of percentage points.” Intel shares fell 3% in after-hours trading.​

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From:: Stock Market News

Expanding mortgage credit availability isn’t hard, if you do it right

At meeting after meeting with mortgage industry executives, government officials ask all of us to expand mortgage availability to underserved borrowers. But those officials caution industry leaders in the very next breath, don’t loosen underwriting standards and return to the go-go days of the credit crisis. Hearing these seemingly contradictory requests, the lending community is left scratching its collective head. But there are ways to bridge the divide. …read more

From:: Real Estate Wire

Dow, S&P set new closing highs led by tech rally

U.S. stocks ended higher Wednesday, buoyed by a surge in tech stocks after a flurry of corporate earnings beat investors’ lowered expectations. The Dow industrials rose 36.16 points, or 0.2%, to 18,595.1, setting a closing record for the seventh day in a row. The blue-chip gauge was boosted by a 5.3% rise in Microsoft Corp. . The S&P 500 rose 9.24 points, or 0.4%, to close at 2,173.02, also an all-time closing high, led by a 1.4% gain in tech stocks. Utilities were leading the losses, down 0.5%. The Nasdaq gained 53.56 points, or 1.1%, to finish at 5,089.93, its highest close of the year.

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From:: Stock Market News

Mortgage Bankers Lift 2016 Origination Forecast

Mortgage banking economists now expect nearly $80 billion more in residential loan originations for all of this year than they forecasted just a month ago.

Home-lending is projected to reach $518 billion in the third quarter then fall to $363 billion three months later and $295 billion in the first-quarter 2017.

The outlook increased from June, when volume was expected to go from $460 billion this quarter to $343 billion in the fourth quarter then fall to $295 billion.


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From:: Financing

Monthly Mortgage Metrics Deteriorate

Home loans took longer to close last month, and the closing rate deteriorated. Meanwhile, the average credit score moved higher on a month-over-month basis.

Conventional loans accounted for 64 percent of all loans closed during June. The share, which has been the same since April, crept up from 63 percent a year prior.

Residential mortgages that were insured by the Federal Housing Administration made up 23 percent of last month’s originations, off from 24 percent in June 2015.


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From:: Financing

Former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder joining Airbnb to fight discrimination

Former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is joining Airbnb, the home rental company, to come up with an anti-discrimination policy for the platform, the company said Wednesday. In a blog post, Brian Chesky, the company’s chief executive, said the hire comes as Airbnb works to fight “bias and discrimination” on the platform, a concern that users had expressed to the company. “While we have a policy that prohibits discrimination, we want this policy to be stronger,” he wrote in a blog post. Laura Murphy, a former executive with the American Civil Liberties Union, is leading a review process on bias and discrimination that the company began in June.

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From:: Stock Market News

Gold futures finish at a three-week low

Gold futures settled lower Wednesday, at their lowest level in about three weeks, as some strength in the U.S. dollar and equities drew investors’ attention away from the precious metal. Gold for August delivery fell $13, or 1%, to settle at $1,319.30 an ounce. That was the lowest finish since June 28, according to FactSet. September silver, meanwhile, fell 39.4 cents, or 2%, to end at $19.613 an ounce–a level not seen since July 1.

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From:: Stock Market News