ThinkstockSchlumberger Ltd. (NYSE: SLB) reported fourth-quarter and full-year 2012 results before markets opened this morning. The oil field services firm reported adjusted diluted quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $1.08 on revenues of $11.17…
Courtesy of American ExpressIn line with its preliminary results released last week, American Express Co. (NYSE: AXP) today reported adjusted fourth quarter earnings per share (EPS) of $1.09 on revenues of $8.1 billion in…
U.S. equity markets opened higher this morning following the report that new claims for unemployment benefits had fallen by 37,000 to a level not seen since 2008 (more coverage here). The government report on…
thinkstockCrude oil futures topped $96 a barrel earlier today, the highest price since last September. Rising prices follow today’s reports on new jobless claims and new housing starts, both of which indicate that the…
ThinkstockToday’s announcement from CBS Corp. (NYSE: CBS) that it will convert its outdoor advertising business into a REIT and seek buyers for the foreign properties owned by the company could fire up interest among…
Wikimedia CommonsOnce exempt from most state and local sales taxes, Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) now collects the taxes in at least nine states, including New York, Texas, California, and Massachusetts. Some early research indicated…
ThinkstockA new survey by customer satisfaction research firm ForeSee has found that luxury shoppers are not getting the kind of service they expect from retailers catering to the high-end market. The top scoring retailers…
thinkstockThe U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) today reported the U.S. natural gas stocks declined by 148 billion cubic feet last week, above an average expected drop of around 137 billion to 141 billion cubic…
thinkstockAnalysts at Credit Suisse today have initiated coverage on what they call the North American Agricultural Sciences sector with a look a seven fertilizer makers. Some of the companies have performed well over the past…
ThinkstockMining giant Rio Tinto PLC (NYSE: RIO) said this morning that the company expects to take a noncash impairment charge totaling $14 billion in its full-year 2012 results. Rio Tinto’s CEO, Tom Albanese, and…
ThinkstockThe U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development reported this morning that new housing starts in December rose to an annual seasonally adjusted rate of 954,000, a sharp increase of…
ThinkstockCitigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) shared its fourth-quarter and full-year 2012 results before markets opened this morning. The bank reported adjusted diluted quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $0.69 on revenues of $18.66 billion. In…
Brian Katt / Wikimedia Commons / GNU Free Documentation LicenseBank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) reported fourth-quarter and full-year 2012 results before markets opened this morning. The mega-bank reported diluted quarterly earnings per share…
ThinkstockUnitedHealth Group Inc. (NYSE: UNH) reported fourth-quarter and full-year 2012 results before markets opened this morning. The health insurance and benefits management firm reported diluted quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $1.20 on revenues…
ThinkstockBoth Kinder Morgan Energy Partners L.P. (NYSE: KMP) and Kinder Morgan Inc. (NYSE: KMI) reported fourth quarter and full year 2012 results after markets closed today. KMP will pay a distribution of $1.29 per…
U.S. equity markets opened mixed this morning with the Nasdaq Composite slightly higher, while the DJIA and the S&P 500 were lower. Earnings from several U.S. financial institutions were due today and investors were…
The hostage count in an early morning attack on a natural gas field in Algeria could be above 150 according to some reports. The first reports from the field indicated that at least 8…
ThinkstockThe U.S. will soon become the world’s second-largest economy according to a new report from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). Measured on purchasing power parity (PPP) basis, China will overtake the U.S. in 2017; on a market…
ThinkstockThe National Association of Homebuilders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo housing market index remained unchanged in January, at 47, still clinging to the highest index reading since April 2006. An index reading below 50 indicates that more…
ThinkstockFollowing the lead of EPA administrator Lisa Jackson, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, and other presidential appointees, U.S. Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salazar, said this morning that he will…