Stocks Closed Higher Yesterday, Earnings In Focus Stocks closed higher yesterday, led by the tech-heavy Nasdaq, which gained 0.78%. Before the open yesterday, Analog Devices reported earnings and posted a positive EPS surprise of 6.96%, and a positive sales surprise of 1.36%. That translated to a quarterly EPS growth rate of 50.9% vs. this time last year, and a sales growth of 30.6%. Operating margins expanded by 5 percentage points. And they upped their revenue guidance for Q2 to an all-time record high. They were up 2.63% yesterday. The solid report lifted other semiconductors, as it underscores the robust demand for AI. After the close we heard from a variety of non-tech companies. And it was a mixed bag. Booking Holdings posted a positive EPS surprise of 1.18%, and a positive sales surprise of 3.87%. That equated to a quarterly EPS growth rate of 16.1%, and a sales growth of 16.1% as well. They were up 3.14% in the regular session before earnings, and another 2% in after-hours trade following earnings. Carvana also reported after the close, and posted a positive EPS surprise of 273%, and a positive sales surprise of 7.32%. That came out to a quarterly EPS growth rate 654%, and a sales growth of 57.7%. But EBITDA came in 4.61% under expectations ($511M vs. $535.7M), and margins were at 10.1% vs. 10.4% expected. They were up 3.02% in the regular session, but tanked by more than -23% in after-hours. Seems a bit overdone. For context, over the last 13½ months, they were up 77.8%. And Occidental Petroleum went after the close and posted a positive EPS surprise of 63.2%, and a negative sales surprise of -7.81%, for a quarterly EPS growth rate of -61.3%, and a sales growth of -20.8%. They were up 2.55% in the regular session, and another 3% in after-hours. Today we'll hear from another 234 companies, including retail powerhouse Walmart, before the open. In other news, yesterday's FOMC Minutes from January's meeting, didn't pack any surprises. Most agreed to keep rates steady. There was talk from some that interest rates could go up if inflation did not ease. And the Minutes showed that some "commented that further downward adjustments to the target range for the federal funds rate would likely be appropriate if inflation were to decline in line with expectations." Gladly, inflation has eased. And there's optimism that inflation will continue to go down as expected. That leaves the door open for a rate cut in June. (Fed Chair Jerome Powell's term ends in in May, and the new nominee, Kevin Warsh, is expected to push for cuts in the first month he's at the helm.) Today we'll get Weekly Jobless Claims, the Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Index, and the Pending Homes Sales Index. On Friday, we'll get another look at inflation (for December), with the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index. Friday is also the next 'opinion day' for the Supreme Court, which is when they release written decisions on argued cases. Everybody is waiting to hear their verdict on President Trump's authority to implement tariffs under the IEEPA (or International Emergency Economic Powers Act). But note, just because Friday is an opinion day, there's no guarantee they'll release one. Two opinion days, so far, have come and gone this year without mention of the tariffs case. If there's no ruling on Friday, the next opinion days are 2/24 and 2/25. In the meantime, stocks are up for the week. We'll see if they can build on those gains again today in this shortened trading week. See you tomorrow,  Kevin Matras
Executive Vice President, Zacks Investment Research | 
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