Stock Market News For October 26, 2016

A spate of disappointing quarterly reports dragged the major indexes down on Tuesday. As one of the busiest earnings day got under way, behemoths including Whirlpool, General Motors (NYSE:GM), Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) and 3M, all lost ground. Consumer confidence, meantime, tumbled ahead of the presidential election, which in turn dampened investor sentiment.

For a look at the issues currently facing the markets, make sure to read today’s Ahead of Wall Street article.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) declined 0.3%, to close at 18,169.27. The S&P 500 fell 0.4% to close at 2,143.16. The tech-laden Nasdaq Composite Index closed at 5,283.40, decreasing 0.5%. The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) advanced 3.4% to settle at 13.46. A total of around 3.7 billion shares were traded on Tuesday on the NYSE. Decliners outpaced advancing stocks on the NYSE. For 58% stocks that declined, 38% advanced.

Lackluster Quarterly Results

U.S. stocks fell on Tuesday following a string of discouraging corporate results. Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE:WHR) ( WHR) delivered a dismal third-quarter 2016 as both the top and the bottom lines missed estimates. The largest home-appliances manufacturer posted third quarter earnings per share of $3.66 that fell short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.88. Whirlpool’s net sales of $5,248 million also missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $5,310 million. Shares of Whirlpool tanked 10.8% (read more: Whirlpool Falls as Q3 Earnings Miss, Curtails '16 View ).

Caterpillar Inc.’s (CAT) third-quarter earnings of 85 cents per share beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 75 cents, but plunged 19% from the prior-year quarter. Revenues of $9.16 billion in the quarter fell short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $9.80 billion, while it plummeted 16% year over year. Decline in commodity prices across the globe along with economic weakness in developing countries were cited to be reasons behind this fall in revenues. Shares of Caterpillar dropped 1.8% (read more: Caterpillar Q3 Earnings Top, Stock Down on View Cut ).

Despite a challenging macroeconomic environment, 3M Company (NYSE:MMM) (MMM) reported relatively healthy third-quarter results with earnings of $2.15 per share that exceeded the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a penny. However, net sales were $7,709 million, down from $7,712 million in the year-ago quarter and in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Shares of 3M declined 3% (read more: 3M Marginally Beats Q3 Earnings, Trims 2016 Guidance ).

General Motors Co.’s (GM) earnings of $1.72 per share in the third quarter surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.44. Revenues of $42.8 billion also beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $40.09 billion. But, the auto manufacturer signaled continued weakness in Europe due to Brexit. Its Europe segment witnessed a 7.3% fall in revenues to $4.2 billion in the quarter. As a result, its shares dipped 4.2 (read more: General Motors Beats on Q3 Earnings & Revenues ).

Consumer Confidence Dips

The confidence of Americans about the U.S economy also took a beating in October. In fact, consumer confidence dropped to 98.6 this month, a three-month low, according to the Conference Board. Last month, the level of confidence was at 103.5, a one-and-a-half year high. A measure of current conditions, the present situation index declined to 120.6 from 127.9, while the future expectations index also fell from 87.2 to 83.9, the lowest level since July.

Americans seems less optimistic about the state of the economy, with some saying that jobs are a bit hard to find. This has adversely affected consumer discretionary goods, which is also influenced by the state of the economy. The Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY) decreased 1.8%, the highest among the S&P 500 sectors. One of its key components, the Home Depot (NYSE:HD), Inc. (HD) weighed on the blue-chip index by declining 3.5%. Home Depot possess a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here .

Stocks That Made Headlines

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) Q3 Earnings in Line, Revenues Beat

Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) reported mixed financial results in the third quarter of 2016. (Read More)

Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB) Beats on Q3 Earnings; Tecfidera Propels Sales

Biotech company Biogen Inc.’s (BIIB) shares were up in pre-market trading, with the company surpassing earnings as well as sales expectations. ( Read More)

Express Scripts Q3 Earnings in Line, Revenues Lag

Express Scripts Holding Company (ESRX) posted in line third-quarter 2016 earnings per share. However, revenue missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate. ( Read More)

Canadian National Q3 Earnings Beat, Revenues Miss

Canadian National Railway Company’s (CNI) third-quarter 2016 earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate. (Read More)

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) Q3 FFO In Line, Revenues Beat

Equity Residential (EQR) came up with third-quarter 2016 normalized funds from operations (“FFO”) per share of 78 cents, in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate. ( Read More)

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