Market Minute: On Verge of Earnings Decline, Apples Wins Patent Spat

Apple (AAPL) has the market on edge, and Netflix (NFLX) is the new 'it' stock.

The Dow Industrials rose 19 points yesterday, the S&P 500 added 7 and the Nasdaq gained 27.

The market is on Apple watch today. After the close, the company is expected to post its first earnings decline in a decade.

Separately, a government agency has handed Apple a victory in the latest of a series of legal skirmishes with Google (GOOG). The International Trade Commission ruled that Apple did not infringe on a phone sensor patent held by Google's Motorola unit.

Netflix has a blockbuster on its hands: its stock. Shares of the movie streaming service are set to soar after the company's earnings easily topped expectations. Analysts say the results show that the company's push to develop original content is working, as it added 2 million new subscribers. Netflix shares are up 88 percent already this year.

Two of the big Dow Industrials companies are out with earnings this morning. United Technologies (UTX) beat the Street by 10 cents a share, but revenue was a bit shy of expectations. And DuPont's (DD) net jumped, helped by some one-time gains, and strong sales of agricultural seeds and chemicals.

A third Dow stock, the insurer Travelers (TRV), also beat expectations. Its net rose 11 percent, helped by few natural disasters and higher premiums. Its stock is set to jump.

AT&T (T), Amgen (AMGN) and Yum Brands (YUM) also report later today.

The Senate, defying eBay (EBAY) and other internet retailers, appears set to pass a bill that would force them to collect sales taxes – even in states where they don't have a physical presence.

Both Bristol-Myers (BMY) and AbbVie (ABBV) report progress in their efforts to fight helpatits C. They both say new drug cocktails wiped out the hepatitis C virus in almost all of the patients in test programs. And the brokerage firm Cowen has begun coverage of discount retailers Ross Stores (ROST) and TJX (TJX) with an 'outperform' rating.

–Produced by Drew Trachtenberg

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