How Iron Man Held Back the Dow's Gains Today
After yesterday's market plunge, investors welcomed today's gain for the Dow Jones Industrials , especially in light of some of the more negative economic news that came out early this morning. With continued worries about the strength and staying-power of the economic recovery, investors remain on edge about conflicting signals from rising bond yields. By the close, the Dow had given up most of its gains from earlier in the session, finishing up 22 points. The broader market held onto more of its gains, with the S&P 500 rising more than a third of a percent.
Some Dow stocks weighed especially hard on the average. Disney was the biggest decliner in the Dow, falling almost 2.5% as the company's CFO made comments that suggested the company's results for the current quarter might fall short of what optimistic investors expect. Although Iron Man 3 has brought in a whopping $1.2 billion in box office revenue, that nevertheless isn't as much as the Avengers film collected during the year-ago quarter. Moreover, adding in costs for this summer's The Lone Ranger release, Disney's movie division will see a reduction in operating income of about $150 million. Add in another $75 million in lost revenue from ESPN and some calendar effects, and investors got the message that things might not be quite as rosy at Disney as analysts believed.
Consumer stocks Coca-Cola and McDonald's also held the Dow back with losses of 1% to 1.5%. Without any company-specific news, the reason why these stocks have performed relatively badly this week might well have to do with their status as income-producing substitutes for bonds. As bond yields have risen, investors should demand higher dividend yields from these stocks, and that necessitates having their share prices fall. Given their fairly hefty valuations, the pullbacks in both of these companies are good news for those who've waited for a better opportunity to buy.
Finally, outside the Dow, Big Lots plunged 9% after a disappointing quarterly report. The retailer said that same-store sales fell 2.5% during the quarter, and although the company managed to match expectations on earnings per share, it nevertheless marked a decline from last year's levels as Big Lots blamed bad weather for its poor results. Even worse, the company guided earnings down for the current quarter. With a new CEO on board, Big Lots will have to get things turned around quickly to inspire confidence from shareholders.
Much of the enthusiasm about Disney comes from its diversity. Find out more about the case for investing in Disney today in The Motley Fool's premium research report. This report includes the key items investors must watch as well as the opportunities and threats the company faces going forward. So don't miss out -- simply click here now to claim your copy today.
The article How Iron Man Held Back the Dow's Gains Today originally appeared on Fool.com.
Fool contributor Dan Caplinger has no position in any stocks mentioned. You can follow him on Twitter: @DanCaplinger. The Motley Fool recommends Coca-Cola, McDonald's, and Walt Disney and owns shares of Big Lots, McDonald's, and Walt Disney. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Copyright © 1995 - 2013 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
