Stocks tumbled Friday, giving back all of their gains for the week. Some disappointing earnings reports and mounting tensions along the Russia-Ukraine border sent stocks sharply lower.
The Dow Jones industrial average (^DJI) slid 140 points, the Standard & Poor's 500 index (^GPSC) lost 15 and the Nasdaq composite (^IXIC) plunged 72 points.
The biggest loser on the Dow was Visa (V), tumbling 4.5 percent. Visa is the highest priced stock on the Dow 30, which is a weighted index, meaning its drop had a huge impact. The company's revenue was below expectations.
Going online, Amazon.com (AMZN) tumbled 10 percent even though earnings were in line with expectations. But investors focused on rising expenses, and are less forgiving about the company's slim profit margins. So far this year, Amazon has lost 23 percent of its value.
Facebook (FB) lost 5 percent, Google (GOOG) declined 1.5 percent, Netflix (NFLX) all fell 6 percent, while Twitter (TWTR) dropped 7 percent. And travel sites -- Priceline Group (PCLN) and TripAdvisor (TRIP) -- were booked on a trip south; they both fell by more than 5 percent. HomeAway (AWAY), the online vacation rental firm, fell 10 percent.
Pandora Media (P) tumbled 16.5 percent after reporting another quarterly loss.
Transports were weak, with airlines, rail and package delivery stocks all stalling out. United Continental Holdings (UAL) lost 5 percent.
We've now passed the halfway point in the earning season.
- Microsoft (MSFT) posted lower net, but it wasn't as bad as expected. The stock edged higher, which has to be considered a victory on a day like this.
- Ford Motor (F) fell 3 percent. Earnings fell short of expectations as the company increased its warranty reserves for older models.
- Chubb (CB) fell 2 percent. Its net was hurt by high weather-related insurance claims.
On the upside, for-profit education firm DeVry Education Group (DV) jumped 14 percent on stronger than expected earnings. And health care providers bucked the downtrend: Universal Health Services (UHS), Tenet Healthcare (THC) and Community Health Systems (CYH) all jumped by at least 6 percent.
Finally, the biotech firm Cytokinetics (CYTK) tumbled 65 percent after reporting disappointing results on a drug to treat Lou Gehrig's disease, or ALS.
What to Watch Monday:
- The National Association of Realtors releases pending home sales for March at 10 a.m. Eastern time.
- The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas releases its April survey of manufacturing conditions in Texas.
-
Produced by Drew Trachtenberg.
-
"Your daily habits and routines are the reason you got into this mess," writes Trent Hamm, founder of TheSimpleDollar.com. "Spend some time thinking about how you spend money each day, each week and each month." Do you really need your daily latte? Can you bring your lunch to work instead of buying it four times a week? Ask yourself: What can I change without too much?
1. Change your habits -
Remove all credit cards from your wallet and leave them at home when you go shopping, advises WiseBread contributor Sabah Karimi. "Even if you earn with credit card purchases, stop spending with your credit cards until you have your finances under control," she writes.
2. Leave your credit cards at home -
If you do a lot of online shopping at one retailer, you may have stored your credit card information on the site to make the checkout process easier. But that also makes it easier to charge . So clear that information. "If you're paying for a recurring service, use a debit card issued from a major credit card service linked to your checking account," Hamm writes.
3. Delete credit-card info from online stores -
Reward yourself when you . "The only way to completely pay off your credit card debt is to keep at it, and to do that, you must keep yourself motivated," Bakke writes. Just make sure to reward yourself within reason. For example, instead of a weeklong vacation, plan a weekend camping trip. "If you aim to reduce your credit card debt from $10,000 to $5,000 in two months," Bakke writes, "give yourself more than a pat on the back."
4. Reward yourself when you reach milestones -
"Establish a budget," writes Money Crashers contributor David Bakke. "If you don't scale back your spending, you'll dig yourself into a deeper hole." You can use like Mint.com, or make your own Excel spreadsheet that includes your monthly income and expenses. Then scrutinize those budget categories to see where you can cut costs.
5. Create a budget -
Sort your credit card interest rates from highest to lowest, then tackle the card with the . "By paying off the balance with the highest interest first, you increase your payment on the credit card with the highest annual percentage rate while continuing to make the minimum payment on the rest of your credit cards," writes Mint.com spokeswoman Hitha Prabhakar.
6. Pay off the most expensive debts first -
To make a dent in your debt, you need to pay more than the minimum balance on your credit card statements each month. "Paying the minimum -– usually 2 to 3 percent of the outstanding balance -– only prolongs a debt payoff strategy," Prabhakar writes. "Strengthen your commitment to pay everything off by making weekly, instead of monthly, payments." Or if your minimum payment is $100, try doubling it and paying off $200 or more.
7. Pay more than the minimum balance -
If you have a high-interest card with a balance that you're confident you can pay off in a few months, Hamm recommends moving the debt to a card that offers a . "You'll need to pay off the debt before the balance transfer expires, or else you're often hit with a much higher interest rate," he warns. "If you do it carefully, you can save hundreds on interest this way."
8. Take advantage of balance transfers -
Have any birthday gifts or old wedding presents collecting dust in your closet? Look for items you can or Craigslist. "Do some research to make sure you list these items at a fair and reasonable price," Karimi writes. "Take quality photos, and write an attention-grabbing headline and description to sell the item as quickly as possible." Any profits from sales should go toward your debt.
9. Sell unwanted gifts and household items -
If you receive a job or during the year, allocate that money toward your debt payoff plan. "Avoid the temptation to spend that bonus on a vacation or other luxury purchase," Karimi writes. It's more important to fix your financial situation than own the latest designer bag.
10. Put work bonus toward paying off your debt - More from U.S. News
Source : http://www.dailyfinance.com/on/after-market-stocks-tumble-earnings-ukraine-worries/
