PayPal, Tesla, Honeywell, P&G and DowDuPont - 5 Things You Must Know

U.S. stock futures are rising on Friday, following a rebound for stocks in China; PayPal jumps as earnings beat forecasts; Tesla unveils a Model 3 version with a starting price of $45,000.
By Joseph Woelfel ,

Here are five things you must know for Friday, Oct. 19:

1. -- Stock Futures Suggest a Slight Wall Street Rebound

U.S. stock futures were rising on Friday, Oct. 19, following a rebound for stocks in China, which was set off by a pledge from China's central bank governor to support the nation's financial system.

Yi Gang's pledge led to a 2.58% gain for the benchmark Shanghai Composite. Worrisome, however, was data that showed the weakest economic growth in China since the financial crisis.

Contracts tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 101 points, futures for the S&P 500 gained 10.25 points, and Nasdaq futures were up 46 points. Stocks in the U.S. fell sharply on Thursday, Oct. 18, with the Dow dropping 327 points, over worries on rising interest rates.

Honeywell International Inc. (HON) - Get Report reported third-quarter adjusted earnings of $2.03 a share, topping estimates of $1.99. Revenue came in at $10.76 billion, matching estimates. The company lowered its outlook for 2018 to reflect spinoffs.

The stock rose 2.9% in premarket trading on Friday.

Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) - Get Report posted fiscal first-quarter adjusted earnings of $1.12 a share, 3 cents ahead of estimates. Sales of $16.69 billion also topped forecasts.

P&G said it would buy back $5 billion in stock but noted organic sales would match its previous guidance range as the consumer brands giant faces trade war headwinds and a stronger U.S. dollar. Shares were up 4.9% in premarket trading.

Schlumberger NV (SLB) - Get Report reported third-quarter adjusted earnings of 46 cents a share, beating forecasts of 43 cents. Revenue of $8.504 billion came up just shy of estimates of $8.58 billion. Schumberger rose 1%.

The third-quarter earnings season so far has been strong. Of the 69 S&P 500 companies that have reported this quarter, 88% have beaten bottom-line forecasts while 64% have topped estimates for revenue growth.

Honeywell and Schlumberger are holdings in Jim Cramer's Action Alerts PLUS member club. Want to be alerted before Jim Cramer buys or sells HON or SLB? Learn more now.

The economic calendar in the U.S. on Friday includes Existing Home Sales for September at 10 a.m.

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2. -- PayPal Jumps on Strong Results, Guidance

PayPal Holdings Inc. (PYPL) - Get Report  rose 7.3% in premarket trading on Friday after the payments company reported third-quarter adjusted earnings of 58 cents a share on revenue of $3.68 billion, higher than Wall Street estimates, and guided for 2019 revenue slightly above forecasts.

Analysts expected PayPal to report earnings of 54 cents share on revenue of $3.66 billion.

Total payment volume rose to $143 billion, up from $114 billion a year earlier, but came in below forecasts that were calling for $145 billion.

During its conference call after the release of earnings, PayPal guided for 17% forex-neutral 2019 revenue growth and roughly 20% per-share earnings growth. 

The company also announced an expanded digital-payments partnership with American Express Co. (AXP) - Get Report .

"The PayPal trends remain solid and the newly announced partnerships increase the value proposition of the platform, making it more of an indelible product in today's society," said Jim Cramer and the Action Alerts PLUS team, which holds PayPal in its portfolio. "But also, we are excited with the increased efforts to monetize Venmo, which management cited is seeing an expansion in both the number of users and the percent of users making a monetizable event."

3. -- American Express Tops Profit Estimates

American Express topped third-quarter earnings expectations, posting profit of $1.88 a share, 11 cents higher than estimates.

Shares rose 1.2% in premarket trading on Friday.

Revenue in the quarter was $10.14 billion, just beating expectations of $10.06 billion.

"We delivered strong results this quarter driven by higher card member spending, fee income and loans," Chairman and CEO Stephen Squeri said in a press release.

The company said it expects adjusted earnings in 2018 of between $7.30 and $7.40 a share, higher than its previous guidance, on a revenue increase of 9% to 10%.

4. -- Tesla Unveils $45,000 'Mid-Range' Model 3

Tesla Inc. (TSLA) - Get Report introduced a new $45,000 version of its Model 3 sedan, as the promised base-level version of the car, with a starting price of $35,000, was earlier pushed back until next year.

The new, rear-wheel model comes with a "mid range" battery pack and a range of 260 miles. The "long range" model 3 - which starts at $49,000 and has been out for more than a year - has a range of 310 miles.

The delivery period for the new model is six to 10 weeks. Reuters noted that would make customers eligible for the current $7,500 U.S. tax credit if they take delivery by the end of the year. The tax credit for Tesla cars will drop by half on Jan. 1.

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5. -- DowDuPont to Take $4.6 Billion Charge

DowDuPont Inc. (DWDP) - Get Report fell slightly on Friday after the chemicals giant said it would take a $4.6 billion impairment charge related to its agriculture division.

The company also forecast reduced cash flow at the division because of weak sales in North America and Latin America.

DowDuPont is a holding in Jim Cramer's Action Alerts PLUS member club. Want to be alerted before Jim Cramer buys or sells DWDP? Learn more now.

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