US OPEN: Wall Street gains despite batch of mixed quarterly earnings

• US stocks move higher
• 10-year Treasury yield reached highest level since 2018
• Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.US) posted mixed quarterly figures

US indices are trading higher after a muted start of the session as investors digested a set of mixed quarterly earnings and await Fed policymakers' speeches this week for more hints regarding the central bank's tightening plans. Recently James Bullard echoed the Fed's intention to tighten monetary policy, saying that hikes of 75 bps could be necessary to tame runaway inflation. Traders also kept an eye on the bond market, where the 10-year Treasury yield rose to 2.92%, its highest level since 2018. On the data front, Housing starts in the US unexpectedly rose 0.3% to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 1.793 million in March, a level not seen since June of 2006 and beating market forecasts of 1.745 million. Building permits increased 0.4% from a month earlier to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.873 million in March, above analysts’ estimates of 1.825 million. On the corporate front, Netflix and IBM will reveal their quarterly results after market close.

US30 has been moving in a downward channel since the beginning of the month. However today the index is heading towards the upper limit of the formation. Should break higher occur, upward move may accelerate towards local resistance at 3500 pts which coincides with 61.8% Fibonacci retracement of the last downward correction. On the other hand, if sellers manage to regain control, then local support lies at 34000 pts. Source: xStation5

Company news:

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.US) stock dropped more than 3.0% in premarket after the drugmaker posted mixed quarterly results. Company earned $2.67 per share beating analysts’ estimates of $2.56 per share however revenue came in slightly below Wall Street estimates. Company also suspended sales guidance for its Covid-19 vaccine due to a global supply surplus, and increased dividend by 6.6%. 

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.US) stock pulled back sharply from recent ATH at $183.85 per share and if current sentiment prevails major support at $173.42 may be at risk. Source: xStation5

Halliburton (HAL.US) shares plunged nearly 3.0% in premarket despite the fact that the oil services company  posted upbeat quarterly results. Halliburton earned 35 cents per share, slightly above analyst projections as demand for oilfield services equipment remained high. However, the company recorded a charge of $22 million for the write-down of its assets in Ukraine. 

Twitter (TWTR.US) – Apollo Global Management is considering providing financing for a Twitter buyout, however it is not interested in joining other firms in a buyout bid, according to sources who spoke to CNBC. 

Hasbro (HAS.US) stock fell slightly before the opening bell after the toymaker missed quarterly profit expectations and warned that Russian aggression on Ukraine may cause approximately $100 million revenue decline this year.