Stocks Tick Higher as Oil Dips Again
07/23/08 - 02:59 PM EDT
Mike Taylor
Meanwhile, soda and chips provider PepsiCo (PEP Quote - Cramer on PEP - Stock Picks) beat expectations, reaffirmed guidance and announced a $1 billion share buyback.
Elsewhere in the beverage space, brewer Anheuser-Busch (BUD Quote - Cramer on BUD - Stock Picks), which earlier this year agreed to be bought by Belgian beer purveyor InBev, reported increasing second-quarter earnings and said it would raise its dividend. Tobacco concern Philip Morris International (PM Quote - Cramer on PM - Stock Picks) likewise delivered strong profits, and also raised its own earnings expectations for 2008. Outside the earnings sphere, members of Congress have worked out a housing relief pact that would prop up homeowners as well as mortgage companies Fannie Mae (FNM Quote - Cramer on FNM - Stock Picks) and Freddie Mac (FRE Quote - Cramer on FRE - Stock Picks). The White House press secretary said this morning that President Bush, who previously had opposed the housing bill, has now elected to sign it. In other government-related news, The Wall Street Journal reported that a tentative deal for a merger between XM Satellite Radio (XMSR Quote - Cramer on XMSR - Stock Picks) and Sirius (SIRI Quote - Cramer on SIRI - Stock Picks) had been reached, sending both stocks higher. Retailer Costco (COST Quote - Cramer on COST - Stock Picks) saw shares drop 11% after it issued a warning that, due to rising energy costs, its fourth-quarter profit would be far below the Street's view. The company also announced a $1 billion share buyback plan. Banking titan Citigroup's (C Quote - Cramer on C - Stock Picks) chief financial officer Gary Crittenden said that the company is not due to split up and said the company's earnings would probably stem losses resulting from having to account for its off-balance-sheet securities. Automaker General Motors (GM Quote - Cramer on GM - Stock Picks) announced that its second-quarter global sales slipped on weak U.S. demand, placing the company behind rival Toyota (TM Quote - Cramer on TM - Stock Picks).
RSS
