US Stocks finished yesterday’s extremely volatile trading session near the flat line. The DOW traded in a 1000 point range yesterday eventually settling nearly unchanged. We also saw a sharp drop in oil prices back below $30/barrel.
Coca-Cola reported 4th quarter revenue of $10 Billion which was $100mm above Wall St. expectations. The company reported EPS of 28 cents per share which was way above the 17 cents per share they reported over the same period last year. Shares of Coke traded 1.5% higher on that news.
Walt Disney reported the highest quarterly earnings in the company’s history as the success of the latest installment of Star Wars offset continued woes at ESPN. Disney said revenue in its movie business jumped 46% in the quarter to $2.72 Billion. The woes at ESPN though continue to weigh on the stock price. Shares of Disney are 5% lower right now.
Oregon Insurance regulators removed MODA Health from State Control as MODA agreed to remain in business and stabilize their shaky finances by selling assets and taking other steps to raise $179mm. The Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services issued a consent order that outlines a plan to raise sufficient funds so they can serve their 62K Oregon customers without interruption.
And the Fed Chair Janet Yellen is out this morning sounding a bit more cautious about the Fed’s outlook for the US economy, but didn’t back away from expectations for additional, gradual, interest rate hikes.
