U.S. Stocks Rebound as Investors Brace for Earnings Reports
US stocks recovered some ground on Friday after a volatile week, while investors looked ahead to the start of earnings season. The FTSE 100 outlook also drew…
The FTSE 100’s direction matters to investors weighing company performance against shifting market confidence. US stocks rebounded on Friday after a volatile week, while attention turned to upcoming earnings reports and a separate account of improving sales at Burberry.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 423 points, or 0.8%, to 51,655. The S&P 500 added 46 points, or 0.6%, to 7,812, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 173 points, or 0.6%, to finish at 27,366, according to the market report published by Yahoo Finance.
The rebound followed Thursday’s selloff. Concerns about artificial intelligence revenues appeared to ease, helping the three indexes recover some ground after consecutive sessions of losses.
Investors now face a fresh test. Earnings season is starting, giving markets a new look at corporate performance and companies’ outlooks for the months ahead.
Bank results in focus as earnings season starts
JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs are due to report next Tuesday, alongside Johnson & Johnson, Domino’s Pizza and UnitedHealth. Later in the week, investors are set to hear from semiconductor companies ASML and TSMC, as well as Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo and Bank of America.
The reports could help establish whether corporate earnings can support the market’s recovery. Investors are still assessing the growth prospects of the AI sector, the source said.
Short-term nerves remain.
The same market coverage noted pressure on several individual companies. Delta Air Lines cut its 2026 adjusted earnings forecast to $5.10 to $5.60 per share from $6.50 to $7.50, citing higher jet fuel costs. Its quarterly earnings also missed analyst expectations.
Telecom stocks AT&T, T-Mobile US and Verizon Communications moved lower after news that SpaceX was expanding Starlink into mobile services. The development adds a company-specific pressure point for investors assessing the sector, though the source did not quantify the impact.
Burberry offers a separate FTSE 100 signal
A separate Yahoo Finance report focused on Burberry, a constituent of the FTSE 100, and signs of a business turnaround under CEO Joshua Schulman. The report said retail revenue rose 5% to £455m in the latest Q1, with growth across all four product categories for the first time in three years.
Comparable retail sales also rose 5%, while total retail floor space fell by 1%. The report said handbag sales were up in double digits on Mother’s Day in the Americas, and digital sales recorded mid-teens growth.
Those gains follow a steep decline. Burberry shares had fallen 44% in five years and 61% since April 2023, according to the report. In a trading update for Q1 FY25 released in July 2024, the company reported retail revenue dropping 22%, from £589m to £458m, and an operating loss of £53m in the first half of that year.
Schulman said the company was attracting customers across product categories, channels and geographies. He also said sales at full price meant less discounting and markdown activity than the previous year.
The report cautioned that inflation remains a challenge for Burberry. It also said weaker tourism linked to conflict in the Middle East could affect sales in the company’s EMEIA region.
For investors, the figures point to different forces shaping market sentiment: a broad recovery in US equities, upcoming corporate results and distinct risks facing individual businesses. Burberry’s retail revenue in its latest Q1 reached £455m.
Source: uk.finance.yahoo.com
