Dow Closes on a 6 year high

[zendari]

Text

On a day when the Dow Jones industrial Average had its highest close since January 2000, Google (GOOG, news, msgs) rocketed higher in after-hours trading after the Internet search engine company astonished investors with another huge earnings increase.

Google shares were up 7.8% to $447.50 from a regular close of $415 after Google reported first-quarter earnings of $2.29 a share, up from $1.54 a year ago. The earnings were 22 cents ahead of the consensus analyst estimate. Revenue of $1.53 billion (after payments to partners) was up 92% from a year ago and nearly $110 million higher than the consensus estimate.

The report is "proof Google continues to gain market share on Yahoo on paid search," said Martin Pyykkonen, an analyst at Hoefer & Arnett told Reuters.

The company is "still spending pretty heftily on marketing expenses," he said, "but, strategically, it's the right thing to do and the underlying reason why revenue growth was so strong."

The strong showing provides another lift for Google's stock, which has surged by more than 20% since it was added to the Standard & Poor's 500 index a month ago.

The inclusion in the S&P 500 reversed the negative sentiment that had been swirling around Google after the company missed analyst earnings estimates in its previous quarter. Those concerns were compounded in late February when Google's chief financial officer said it was becoming more difficult for the company to find new ways to get people to click on its ads.

Dow at best levels since early 2000

Google's report came after a day in which the stock market seemed to go in two directions.

The Dow closed up 64 points, or 0.6%, at 11,342, its best close since Jan. 20, 2000, thanks to a 10% jump in shares of troubled auto giant General Motors (GM, news, msgs). GM reported a smaller-than-expected first-quarter loss. Strong earnings from the likes of Merck (MRK, news, msgs) and food-and-tobacco giant Altria (MO, news, msgs) also helped the average.

The S&P 500 moved 1.5 points higher to 1,311. GM's big gain offset weakness in eBay (EBAY, news, msgs) and metals stocks like Newmont Mining (NEM, news, msgs) and Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold (FCX, news, msgs), which fell because of a blow-off in silver and gold prices today. Gold fell $12.90, or 2%, to $623.10 an ounce. Silver slumped nearly 14% to $12.525 an ounce.

Ebay's weakness ? shares fell 8.9% -- was a big reason the Nasdaq Composite fell 8.3 points, or 0.4%, to 2,362.

EBay announced strong first-quarter results Wednesday, with net revenues of $1.39 billion, a year-over-year increase of 35%, but some analysts say that?s not enough to protect eBay shares in the long term, Forbes.com reported.

"While we believe eBay is generally doing well," wrote Piper Jaffray analyst Safa Rashtchy in a research note, "we do believe the overall consumer trends that helped eBay grow so fast in 2003 and 2004 have changed and eBay now is facing a general headwind."

Also pressuring Nasdaq: Dell (DELL, news, msgs), down 1.3%; and Cisco Systems (CSCO, news, msgs) down 1.1%.

Google's big report could make investors bullish on Friday, a day where investors will also study earnings and outlooks from such companies as Dow component 3M (MMM, news, msgs), Ford Motor Co. (F, news, msgs) and oil services giant Halliburton (HAL, news, msgs).


Definitely great news for all investors and everyone in America. My energy funds are doing very well.

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Thanks, but this is a repost of this current thread.

AnandTech Moderator

 

[dullard]

6 years for zero gain (dividends excluded).

 

[zendari]

Originally posted by: dullard
6 years for zero gain (dividends excluded).

6 years from basically its all time high. We might break the 11723 mark soon.

 

[dullard]

Originally posted by: zendari
6 years from basically its all time high. We might break the 11723 mark soon.

I've been predicting for months that the next local high is 11500. Although, I may be off a bit and we'd hit 11723. But then, I think we'll get it to back down off that point to the mid 10000s. We'll probably have to wait a few more months after that until we truely break the all time high (non-inflation adjusted, because inflation from Jan 2000 to now makes the Dow Jones all time high be 13875 in today's dollars).

 

[Harvey]

Originally posted by: zendari
Dow Closes on a 6 year high

So did the price of a barrel of oil. Exxon Mobil's got to find some way to pay for that $400 million retirement package for their CEO. Might as well do it on the backs of working communters and anyone who has to buy anything that includes transportation and energy costs in the price of production. :|

Definitely great news for all investors and everyone in America. My energy funds are doing very well.

You forgot to say a special thanks to George Bushwhacko and Dickwad Cheney, those stellar advocates for special interests, especially their own special pockets. :|

 

[Whoozyerdaddy]

Originally posted by: Harvey

Originally posted by: zendari
Dow Closes on a 6 year high

So did the price of a barrel of oil. Exxon Mobil's got to find some way to pay for that $400 million retirement package for their CEO. Might as well do it on the backs of working communters and anyone who has to buy anything that includes transportation and energy costs in the price of production. :|

Definitely great news for all investors and everyone in America. My energy funds are doing very well.

You forgot to say a special thanks to George Bushwhacko and Dickwad Cheney, those stellar advocates for special interests, especially their own special pockets. :|

Oil companies don't set the price, commodities traders do.

And what have George and Dick put in their pockets? Care to elaborate on that?

 

[conjur]

REPOST

 

[Steeplerot]

YAY! the rich get richer! Now thats progress!

We are all going to feel the trickle down soon.

 

[zendari]

Originally posted by: Harvey

Originally posted by: zendari
Dow Closes on a 6 year high

So did the price of a barrel of oil. Exxon Mobil's got to find some way to pay for that $400 million retirement package for their CEO. Might as well do it on the backs of working communters and anyone who has to buy anything that includes transportation and energy costs in the price of production. :|

Definitely great news for all investors and everyone in America. My energy funds are doing very well.

You forgot to say a special thanks to George Bushwhacko and Dickwad Cheney, those stellar advocates for special interests, especially their own special pockets. :|

You mean the exxon mobil CEO is doing his job and increasing the wealth of stockholders?

 

[Harvey]

Originally posted by: Whoozyerdaddy
Oil companies don't set the price, commodities traders do.

Oh... That's right... Oil companies don't set prices for the products they make from crude oil. They just stumbled across an extra $400 million to contribute to someone left on their doorstep. Of course, they have all that competition to keep their prices honest.

I didn't post the text of the article in my link, but since you need a reality check:

Oil: Exxon Chairman's $400 Million Parachute

Exxon Made Record Profits in 2005

April 14, 2006? Soaring gas prices are squeezing most Americans at the pump, but at least one man isn't complaining.

Last year, Exxon made the biggest profit of any company ever, $36 billion, and its retiring chairman appears to be reaping the benefits.

Exxon is giving Lee Raymond one of the most generous retirement packages in history, nearly $400 million, including pension, stock options and other perks, such as a $1 million consulting deal, two years of home security, personal security, a car and driver, and use of a corporate jet for professional purposes.

Last November, when he was still chairman of Exxon, Raymond told Congress that gas prices were high because of global supply and demand.

"We're all in this together, everywhere in the world," he testified.

Raymond, however, was confronted with caustic complaints about his compensation.

"In 2004, Mr. Raymond, your bonus was over $3.6 million," Sen. Barbara Boxer said.

That was before new corporate documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission that revealed Raymond's retirement deal and his $51.1 million paycheck in 2005. That's equivalent to $141,000 a day, nearly $6,000 an hour. It's almost more than five times what the CEO of Chevron made.

"I think it will spark a lot of outrage," said Sarah Anderson, a fellow in the global economy program at the Institute for Policy Studies, an independent think tank. "Clearly much of his high-level pay is due to the high price of gas."

Exxon defends Raymond's compensation, pointing out that during the 12 years he ran the company, Exxon became the largest oil company in the world and that the stock price went up 500 percent.

A company spokesman said the compensation package reflected "a very long and distinguished career."

Some Exxon shareholders are now trying to pass resolutions criticizing the company's executive pay policies. The company is urging other shareholders to vote against those resolutions.

Oh... That's right... That's why they haven't invested in refining capacity, either, because they wanted to be sure they would have an excuse for not being able to deliver gasoline manufactured from the available crude supply.

And what have George and Dick put in their pockets? Care to elaborate on that?

Oh... That's right... Bushwhacko and Dickwad were never in the oil business, and their oil lobbiest buddies never contributed to their campaigns or lobbied them about keeping legislative hands off their corporate agendas. And of course, oil companies had no interest or intentions of promoting a war based on lies to go after Iraq's oil fields. And of course, we all know that war was over in a matter of weeks, and the Iraqis welcomed us with bouquets of flowers, and it didn't cost anything because it's all being paid for out of all those fine oil profits. :roll:

Originally posted by: zendari

You mean the exxon mobil CEO is doing his job and increasing the wealth of stockholders?

No, I mean he, his company, and the rest of the oil cabal are raping American citizens while lining their pockets with more money than any of them could possibly spend in any one lifetime, and they're doing it at the expense of far too many people who can't afford the cost of getting themselves to work, heating their homes, or buying, let alone cooking their meals.

zendari -- Please get a brain transplant. Yours isn't working.

 

[zendari]

Originally posted by: Harvey
No, I mean he, his company, and the rest of the oil cabal are raping American citizens while lining their pockets with more money than any of them could possibly spend in any one lifetime, and they're doing it at the expense of far too many people who can't afford the cost of getting themselves to work, heating their homes, or buying, let alone cooking their meals.

zendari -- Please get a brain transplant. Yours isn't working.

That's kind of odd. I thought his bosses were the stockholders, not the "American citizens".

 

[dmcowen674]

Originally posted by: zendari

Originally posted by: Harvey
No, I mean he, his company, and the rest of the oil cabal are raping American citizens while lining their pockets with more money than any of them could possibly spend in any one lifetime, and they're doing it at the expense of far too many people who can't afford the cost of getting themselves to work, heating their homes, or buying, let alone cooking their meals.

zendari -- Please get a brain transplant. Yours isn't working.

That's kind of odd. I thought his bosses were the stockholders, not the "American citizens".

Originally posted by: Harvey

April 14, 2006? Soaring gas prices are squeezing most Americans at the pump, but at least one man isn't complaining.

Last year, Exxon made the biggest profit of any company ever, $36 billion, and its retiring chairman appears to be reaping the benefits.

His $51.1 million paycheck in 2005.

That's equivalent to $141,000 a day, nearly $6,000 an hour.

Zentroll must be making at least $5,000 hr, only reasonable explanation of how you can defend a $6,000 hr salary.