3 Stocks Set to Beat the S&P Today

Updated

LONDON -- European equity markets are trading somewhat mixed again Friday, though generally lacking conviction in either direction. Support has still been found in the comments from European Central Bank president Mario Draghi yesterday, bolstered further after French newspaper Le Monde reported the ECB is preparing to buy Spanish and Italian bonds to help alleviate the record-high yields seen for the countries' debt. Premarket trade has the U.S. set to open on a mildly positive note, with the S&P 500 (INDEX: ^GSPC) up 0.1%.

Within this mixed market, there are still some individual names squeezing out gains. Here are three American depositary receipts that are set to beat the S&P today.

Nokia (NYS: NOK)
The Finnish handset maker is outperforming again Friday, up 5.8% after reporting yesterday that it will scrap a software project that was designed to rival Google Android phones. This comes as rival firm Samsung (KRX: 0005930.KS) overtook Nokia as the world's biggest seller of mobile phones for the second straight quarter, although Samsung's forecast of improved demand for smartphones and advanced TVs is lending a helping hand to Nokia's shares.


Barclays (NYS: BCS)
The bank at the center of the LIBOR scandal is up 5.5% in London after reporting better-than-expected earnings results, saying first-half income climbed 13% year on year to 4.2 billion pounds. This beat estimates of around 3.8 billion pounds, despite the inclusion of the 290 million pound fine levied on the bank for its role in LIBOR fixing. The company apologized for "recent events," assuring that it will repair the damage done to the bank's reputation.

At the same time, Barclays' set aside a 450 million pound provision to cover costs associated with the Financial Service Authority's investigation into the mis-selling of interest rate swaps to small businesses, although it did say it expects around 100 million pounds of this to be unwound eventually.

Total (NYS: TOT)
The oil and gas major is up almost 3% in Paris after reporting Q2 profits climbing to a better-than-expected 2.9 billion euros. Total said second-quarter production fell 2% due to field halts in the North Sea, Nigeria, and Yemen, offsetting growth from new products. At the same time, the company raised its quarterly dividend for the first time since 2008, up 3.5% to 0.59 euros per share.

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Karl Loomes does not own any share mentioned in this article. Motley Fool newsletter services have recommended buying shares of TOTAL. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days.

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