Major US stock indexes rose slightly, the reason for which were "dovish" statements by the representative of the Fed Williams, after which sharply increased the likelihood of reducing the Fed rate by 50 basis points at the July meeting

Williams said that in an environment where the stakes were lower than they were in the past, the Central Bank must resist any signs of weakness quickly and aggressively. Futures on federal funds imply that traders now see a 59% chance of a cut in the Fed rate by 50 basis points at the July meeting, compared with 34% on Wednesday and earlier today.

Investors also analyzed mixed corporate reports and looked forward to new statements about trade negotiations between the US and China. Netflix shares fell by almost 11% after the company reported an unexpected loss of subscribers in the United States, combined with a slower-than-expected increase in the number of subscribers abroad. Against this background, investors ignored the fact that the declared quarterly profit of $ 0.60 per share exceeded the market forecast ($ 0.55 per share).

IBM's quarterly reports (IBM, + 4.35%) showed that its revenue declined for the fourth consecutive quarter. At the same time, the profit reached $ 3.17 per share, which turned out to be higher than the average forecast of analysts at $ 3.08. IBM net profit increased due to growth in the cloud business.

In the focus of investors were also statistical data on the United States. As the report of the Ministry of Labor showed, initial applications for unemployment benefits rose by 8,000 to 216,000, taking into account seasonal fluctuations in the week ending July 13. The data for the previous week was revised to show 1,000 requests less received than previously reported. The increase in claims last week met the expectations of economists.

At the same time, the data published by the Conference Board showed that by the end of June, the leading indicators index (LEI) for the USA fell by 0.3% and amounted to 111.5 points (2016 = 100), after stabilizing in May and increasing by 0.1% in April . Experts predicted that the index will grow by 0.1%.

Most of the components of DOW recorded an increase (18 out of 30). The growth leader was IBM (IBM; + 4.45%). Outsiders were UnitedHealth Group (UNH; -2.46%).

Most sectors of the S & P finished trading in positive territory. The consumer goods sector grew the most (+ 0.7%). The largest decline was shown by the conglomerate sector (-0.3%).

At the time of closing:

Dow 27,221.58 +1.73 +0.01%

S & P 500 2,995.05 +10.63 +0.36%

Nasdaq 100 8,207.24 +22.04 +0.27%

U.S. stock-index futures fell slightly on Thursday, as investors were concerned about Q2 earnings reports of Netflix (NFLX) and IBM (IBM).

Global Stocks:

(company / ticker / price / change ($/%) / volume)

Exxon Mobil (XOM) downgraded to Sector Perform from Outperform at RBC Capital Mkts; target lowered to $90

Advanced Micro (AMD) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Mizuho; target raised to $37

Apple (AAPL) upgraded to Outperform from Mkt Perform at Raymond James; target $250

Morgan Stanley (MS) reported Q2 FY 2019 earnings of $1.23 per share (versus $1.30 in Q2 FY 2018), beating analysts’ consensus of $1.16.

The company’s quarterly revenues amounted to $10.244 bln (-3.4% y/y), beating analysts’ consensus estimate of $10.021 bln.

MS fell to $43.70 (-0.16%) in pre-market trading.

Honeywell (HON) reported Q2 FY 2019 earnings of $2.10 per share (versus $2.12 in Q2 FY 2018), beating analysts’ consensus estimate of $2.08.

The company’s quarterly revenues amounted to $9.243 bln (-15.3% y/y), missing analysts’ consensus estimate of $9.373 bln.

The company also issued raised FY 2019 EPS guidance of $7.95-8.15 versus prior guidance of $7.90-8.10 and analysts’ consensus estimate of $8.10.

HON fell to $167.13 (-0.88%) in pre-market trading.

UnitedHealth (UNH) reported Q2 FY 2019 earnings of $3.60 per share (versus $3.14 in Q2 FY 2018), beating analysts’ consensus of $3.46.

The company’s quarterly revenues amounted to $60.595 bln (+8.0% y/y), generally in line with analysts’ consensus estimate of $60.587 bln.

The company raised FY19 EPS guidance to $14.70-14.90 from prior $14.50-14.75 versus analysts’ consensus estimate of $14.71.

UNH rose to $268.68 (+0.76%) in pre-market trading.

eBay (EBAY) reported Q2 FY 2019 earnings of $0.68 per share (versus $0.53 in Q2 FY 2018), beating analysts’ consensus of $0.62.

The company’s quarterly revenues amounted to $2.687 bln (+1.8% y/y), generally in line with analysts’ consensus estimate of $2.673 bln.

The company also raised FY 2019 EPS guidance to $2.70-2.75 from prior guidance of $2.64-2.70 (versus analysts’ consensus estimate of $2.70) but lowered FY 2019 revenues guidance to $10.75-10.83 bln from $10.83-10.93 bln (versus analysts’ consensus estimate of $10.92 bln).

EBAY rose to $41.14 (+5.41%) in pre-market trading.

Alcoa (AA) reported Q2 FY 2019 loss of $0.01. per share (versus earnings of $1.52 in Q2 FY 2018), beating analysts’ consensus of -$0.02.

The company’s quarterly revenues amounted to $2.711 bln (-24.3% y/y), missing analysts’ consensus estimate of $2.772 bln.

AA closed Wednesday's trading session at $23.1587 (-0.73%).

Netflix (NFLX) reported Q2 FY 2019 earnings of $0.60 per share (versus $0.85 in Q2 FY 2018), beating analysts’ consensus of $0.55.

The company’s quarterly revenues amounted to $4.923 bln (+26.0% y/y), generally in line with analysts’ consensus estimate of $4.935 bln.

The company also issued in-line guidance for Q3 FY 2019, projecting EPS of $1.04 versus analysts’ consensus estimate of $1.04 and revenues of $5.25 bln versus analysts’ consensus estimate of $5.24 bln.

NFLX fell to $323.16 (-10.84%) in pre-market trading.

IBM (IBM) reported Q2 FY 2019 earnings of $3.17 per share (versus $3.08 in Q2 FY 2018), beating analysts’ consensus estimate of $3.08.

The company’s quarterly revenues amounted to $19.200 bln (-4.0% y/y), generally in line with analysts’ consensus estimate of $19.201 bln.

The company also reaffirmed FY 2019 EPS guidance of “at least $13.90” versus analysts’ consensus estimate of $13.90.

IBM fell to $141.55 (-1.06%) in pre-market trading.