Fourth-quarter US earnings seen up 4.4% as reporting period kicks off
12/01/2024 19:44
By Caroline Valetkevitch
NEW YORK, Jan 12 (Reuters) - Fourth-quarter earnings for
S&P 500 companies overall are expected to have increased 4.4%
from a year earlier, LSEG data showed on Friday, just as results
from four of the country's biggest banks kicked off the latest
U.S. earnings season.
That increase is down from a 5.2% gain estimated on Dec. 22,
and it follows a 7.5% rise in the third quarter and a 2.8% fall
in the second quarter of last year, based on LSEG data.
The third quarter of 2023 "marked the beginning of an
earnings recovery, which is forecasted to reaccelerate
throughout 2024," UBS equity strategist Jonathan Golub and his
team wrote in a note this week.
However, revisions for fourth-quarter estimates have been
weaker than the historical trend, he wrote.
Analysts expect S&P 500 earnings to rise by 11% in 2024
after increasing just 2.9% in 2023, based on LSEG data
Major U.S. banks reported lower profit on Friday in a
quarter hit by special charges and job cuts.
The banks - JPMorgan JPM.N , Wells Fargo WFC.N , Bank of
America BAC.N , and Citigroup C.N - also said that American
consumers remained resilient, although defaults on consumer
loans began returning to pre-pandemic levels.
Even as its quarterly profit fell, JPMorgan reported its
best-ever annual profit and forecast higher-than-expected
interest income for 2024.
Among companies due to report next week are Goldman Sachs
GS.N , Morgan Stanley MS.N and Travelers Cos TRV.N .
(Reporting by Caroline Valetkevitch; Editing by Andrea Ricci)
((caroline.valetkevitch@thomsonreuters.com))