AT&T, 3M: Thursday's Headlines

(Updated with earnings from McDonald's, Kimberly-Clark, Schering-Plough, and Philip Morris, and initial jobless claims data.)

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Here are the top stock market headlines for the morning of Thursday, Oct. 22, 2009.

Thursday's Earnings Roundup

• AT&T (T Quote) reported third-quarter net income of $3.2 billion, or 54 cents a share, unchanged from the year-ago quarter and sequentially. Analysts were looking for a profit of 50 cents a share, according to Thomson Reuters. Revenue totaled $30.9 billion, compared with $31.3 billion in the year-earlier quarter and the consensus target of $30.85 billion. AT&T said it had 3.2 million Apple (AAPL Quote) iPhone activations in the quarter, its best-ever total. Nearly 40% of iPhone activations were for subscribers new to AT&T, the company said.
• McDonald's (MCD Quote) said it had third-quarter earnings of $1.26 billion, or $1.15 a share, rising from a year ago, topping the Thomson Reuters average estimate. However, revenue slid more than 3% from a year ago to $6.05 billion, disappointing analysts who expected sales to total $6.1 billion.
• Merck (MRK Quote) reported third-quarter net income of $3.42 million, or $1.61 a share, more than triple year-ago results. Excluding one-time items, the company said it earned 90 cents in the quarter, topping the Thomson Reuters average estimate of 82 cents a share. Revenue climbed 1.8% from a year ago to $6.05 billion, slightly above the $6 billion consensus target. Looking ahead, Merck reaffirmed its guidance for full-year 2009 of $23.2 billion to $23.7 billion. The company also said it expects adjusted full-year earnings to fall in a range between $3.20 and $3.30 a share, in line with the consensus estimate of $3.23 a share.
• Travelers Companies (TRV Quote) reported third-quarter earnings of $935 million, or $1.65 a share, quadrupling earnings in the year-ago quarter. Excluding items, the company had earnings of $1.61 a share, coming in well ahead of the average analyst target of $1.31 a share. Travelers upped its full-year earnings outlook, raising the guidance range to $5.30 to $5.50 a share from the prior estimate of $4.80 to $5.05 a share. Analysts have been expecting profit of $5.28 a share, according to Thomson Reuters. Travelers also raised its quarterly dividend by 10% to 33 cents.
• 3M (MMM Quote) said third-quarter earnings fell slightly from a year ago to $957 million, or $1.35 a share, although the company still came in ahead of the average analyst target of $1.17 a share. Revenue also fell from a year ago to $6.19 billion, but also came in ahead of targets.