Stocks to Watch: Google, JPMorgan, Infosys

NEW YORK -- Google (GOOG), the Internet search giant, posted strong quarterly earnings and announced a two-for-one stock split.

Google reported first-quarter earnings of $10.08 a share on revenue of $8.14 billion, excluding traffic acquisition costs. Total revenue came in at $10.65 billion. Revenue in the U.S. rose 22% year over year to $4.9 billion, while revenue outside the U.S. jumped 26% to $5.8 billion.

Analysts were expecting revenue of $8.146 billion, excluding traffic acquisition costs, and earnings of $9.65 a share.

Google also said it would be creating a new class of stock, effectively issuing a stock split that is "designed to preserve the corporate structure that has allowed Google to remain focused on the long term."

On a conference call, CEO Larry Page said that many investors have asked for a stock split, and this effectively grants it to them.

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JPMorgan Chase (JPM) and Wells Fargo (WFC) report their quarterly earnings Friday before the opening bell.

Analysts expect JPMorgan to post first-quarter earnings of $1.18 a share on revenue of $24.68 billion, while Wells Fargo is seen posting profit of 73 cents a share in the March-ended period on revenue of $20.46 billion.

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Infosys Technologies (INFY), the Indian software services company, said fourth-quarter profit rose 15.2% in dollar terms and sales jumped 10.5%, but revenue for fiscal 2013 would rise only 8% to 10%, below forecasts for the industry.

The stock fell more than 10% in Mumbai on Friday.

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Dow Chemical (DOW) raised its second-quarter dividend by 28% to 32 cents a share from 25 cents.

The dividend will be paid on July 30.

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Coinstar (CSTR), whose businesses include the Redbox DVD rental kiosks, provided a first-quarter outlook above analysts' estimates.

Coinstar said it sees core earnings from continuing operations of $1.36 to $1.40 a share on revenue of $567 million to $569.2 million for the three months ended March 31. Analysts are calling for profit of 90 cents a share on revenue of $537.7 million.

Coinstar attributed the forecast, in part, to strong DVD demand from consumers in February and March.

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-- Written by Joseph Woelfel



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