From Briefing.com: 4:23 pm Benchmark Electronics beats by $0.08, beats on revs; guides Q2 EPS below consensus, revs in-line (BHE) :Reports Q1 (Mar) earnings of $0.34 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.08 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of $0.26; revenues rose 3.1% year/year to $566.5 mln vs the $540.5 mln two analyst estimate.
The Company projects that new program bookings for the first quarter will result in annualized revenue of $118 to $149 million when fully launched in the next 12-18 months. The new program bookings align with Benchmark's strategic focus on higher-value markets.
Co issues guidance for Q2, sees EPS of $0.31-0.35, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $0.37 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate; sees Q2 revs of $565-585 mln vs. $574.20 mln two analyst estimate.
4:23 pm Qualcomm beats by $0.14, beats on revs; guides Q3 in-line (QCOM) :
Reports Q2 (Mar) earnings of $1.34 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.14 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of $1.20; non-GAAP revenues rose 8.1% year/year to $5.99 bln vs the $5.86 bln Capital IQ Consensus; 3/4G device shipments 398-402 mln (+19%).
Co issues in-line guidance for Q3, sees EPS of $0.90-1.15, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $1.10 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate; sees Q3 revs of $5.3-6.1 bln vs. $5.92 bln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate; MSM chip shipments 180-200 mln.
"We delivered strong results this quarter, with healthy year-over-year growth across our QTL licensing and
QCT semiconductor businesses, especially in the important automotive, networking and IoT growth areas." During the second quarter of fiscal 2017, we returned $1.1 billion to stockholders, including $782 million, or $0.53 per share, of cash dividends paid and $283 million through repurchases of 4.8 million shares of common stock.
Expects NXP (NXPI) deal to close by end of 2017.
4:16 pm Closing Market Summary: Bears Steal One from the Bulls on Wednesday (:WRAPX) :
Investors opened Wednesday's session with a modicum of optimism, but the positive sentiment seeped through the cracks, leaving the S&P 500 (-0.2%) lower for the second consecutive session. The Dow also settled in negative territory, losing 0.6%, while the Nasdaq (+0.2%) outperformed.
There were several factors that weighed on the equity market on Wednesday, not the least of which was another disappointing performance from the financial sector (-0.3%). The sector failed to capitalize, yet again, on a positive earnings report from one of its top components. Morgan Stanley (MS 42.04, +0.83) jumped 2.0% after beating top and bottom line estimates, but, in similar fashion to last week's reports from JPMorgan Chase (JPM 84.46, -0.70) and Citigroup (C 57.73, -0.69), the company's upbeat figures did little to rally the troops.
Crude oil also weighed on investor sentiment, plunging 3.6%, after the Energy Information Administration reported a smaller than expected draw (1.0 million bbl actual vs 1.4 million bbl consensus) in U.S. crude stocks for the week ending April 14. Unsurprisingly, the energy sector (-1.4%) settled at the bottom of the day's leaderboard by a relatively wide margin; the utilities group finished one spot higher in the standings with a loss of 0.7%. WTI crude ended its trading day at $50.96/bbl.
Other concerning factors that lingered in the market on Wednesday included:
Stretched valuations as earnings season heats up
IBM (IBM 161.69, -8.36) reporting a year-over-year decline in revenue for the 20th consecutive quarter
Heightened geopolitical uncertainty, especially in regards to the upcoming French presidential election
Growing angst about the state of tax reform
However, despite numerous unanswered questions, the day's risk-off tone was largely contained in the equity market as Treasuries and gold ended the session in negative territory. The benchmark 10-yr yield added four basis points, settling at 2.21%, while the yellow metal ended 0.8% lower at $1,283.40/ozt. Also of note, the domestically-oriented Russell 2000 outperformed, adding 0.4%.
The bulls didn't win Wednesday's session, but they did do enough to keep the bears in check, something not to be overlooked as the S&P 500 continues to drift below its 50-day moving average (2355).
On the earnings front, investors received the weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index:
The weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index decreased 1.8% to follow last week's 1.5% increase.
Tomorrow, investors will receive Initial Claims (Briefing.com consensus 242,000) and the Philadelphia Fed Survey for April (Briefing.com consensus 23.7) at 8:30 ET and March Leading Indicators (Briefing.com consensus 0.3%) at 10:00 ET.
Nasdaq Composite +8.9% YTD
S&P 500 +4.4% YTD
Dow Jones Industrial Average +3.3% YTD
Russell 2000 +0.7% YTD
4:16 pm Analog Devices enters into commercial licensing agreement with Sonavation (ADI) : Under the agreement, Sonavation licensed its high performance ultrasonic biometric sensor technology to ADI. Sonavation's pioneering research in ultrasound, combined with ADI's industry leading semiconductor technology and manufacturing expertise, will enable the development and delivery of complete biometric system solutions for markets where secure authentication is essential.
4:12 pm Plexus beats by $0.08, misses on revs; guides Q3 EPS below consensus, revs below consensus (PLXS) :
Reports Q2 (Mar) earnings of $0.84 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.08 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of $0.76 and vs company guidance of $0.71-$0.79; revenues fell 2.3% year/year to $604.3 mln vs the $633.72 mln Capital IQ Consensus and company guidance of $620-$650 mln.
Co issues downside guidance for Q3, sees EPS of $0.68-$0.76 vs. $0.84 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate; sees Q3 revs of $595-$625 mln vs. $687.53 mln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate.
"Looking ahead to the fiscal third quarter, we currently expect that continued end-market weakness within our Communications market sector and a forecast adjustment with a large Industrial/Commercial customer will offset meaningful growth within the remainder of our business."
