Stocks appear poised to open slightly higher after yesterday’s tech led selloff. Results from 3M, the industrial and consumer products company delivered a slight beat to the top and bottom line, with a guidance cut that was not as bad as many feared. 3M’s revenue results paint the same story we have seen so far this earning season, with strong US sales and nothing to brag about from the Asia-Pacific region.
The positive open is limited with the Dow and S&P futures poised to open 0.1% higher, while the Nasdaq is up 0.2%. After the close we will see Apple’s earning report. Markets were warned at the beginning of the year of that the results will be poor. They delivered a guidance cut that showed iPhone upgrades eased on January 2nd and their earning results are widely expected to show their first holiday quarter sales decline since the iPhone was launched. The stock is down roughly a third and value investors may start finding valuations attractive after one last push lower. Analysts will closely watch to see if they are able to deliver optimism on call regarding the services revenue stream.
