Nasdaq leads Wall Street higher as investors brace for megacap earnings By Reuters

By Amruta Khandekar and Shreyashi Sanyal

(Reuters) – Wall Street’s main indexes rose for the third straight session on Tuesday, led by the Nasdaq, as a fall in U.S. Treasury yields lifted megacap growth companies including Microsoft (NASDAQ:) and Alphabet (NASDAQ:) ahead of their earnings reports later in the day.

Shares of Microsoft and Google-owner Alphabet were up 0.6% and 1.2% respectively, while Apple (NASDAQ:) and Amazon.com (NASDAQ:) also rose ahead of reporting quarterly earnings this week. Earnings from the companies will offer a glimpse into how corporate America is holding up in the face of decades-high inflation and tighter financial conditions.

“There is a positive view (on technology earnings),” said Giuseppe Sette, president of AI investment platform Toggle. “In a way, their ability to play through an inflationary cycle is strong, especially because tech has always had a very flexible ability to adjust prices.”

The tech-heavy Nasdaq jumped against a drop in the which touched a session low of 4.06% from 4.23% on Monday.

The earnings season has been better than expected, with nearly three quarters of the 129 companies in the having beaten estimates, according to Refinitiv data.

Among Dow components, Coca-Cola (NYSE:) Co rose 0.7% after the company raised its annual revenue and profit forecasts, banking on steady demand amid price increases.

3M, on the other hand, fell 0.8% as it cut its full-year revenue and profit forecasts due to a stronger dollar.

Meanwhile, General Motors (NYSE:) added 2.8% after reaffirming its full-year outlook.

Raytheon Technologies (NYSE:) Corp fell 2.1% after the aerospace supplier trimmed its 2022 sales outlook, while United Parcel Service Inc (NYSE:) added 3.0% on posting a stronger-than-expected quarterly adjusted profit.

While earnings reports are expected to influence trading decisions this week, U.S. stock markets rose in the past two sessions after signs of economic softness suggested the effects of the Federal Reserve’s policy aimed at curbing decades-high inflation were taking root.

Markets are still pricing in a fourth straight 75 basis point rate hike from the Fed on Nov. 2, but as a survey showed U.S. consumer confidence ebbed in October amid rising concerns about inflation and a possible recession next year, bets of another jumbo-sized raise in December eased.

Toggle’s Sette noted that it is not yet a done deal that investors are shifting towards a more dovish Fed. However, “it’s quite possible that we see a classic Fed error.” At 10:18 a.m. ET, the was up 138.99 points, or 0.44%, at 31,638.61, the S&P 500 was up 35.21 points, or 0.93%, at 3,832.55, and the was up 170.87 points, or 1.56%, at 11,123.48.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 5.16-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 4.03-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P index recorded 10 new 52-week highs and one new low, while the Nasdaq recorded 41 new highs and 76 new lows.