Stock Futures Rise on Positive Earnings From GE, Visa

New York (April 21)  Stock futures moved higher on Friday following another day of positive earnings from industry leaders including General Electric (GE) and Visa (V) .

S&P 500 futures were up 0.14%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures added 0.06%, and Nasdaq futures climbed 0.2%.

General Electric added 0.4% on Friday after swinging to a first-quarter profit. Net income of $619 million, or 7 cents a share, compared with losses of $61 million, or 1 cent a share, in the same quarter a year earlier. Adjusted earnings of 21 cents a share beat consensus by 4 cents. Revenue declined 1% to $27.66 billion, though topped analysts' estimates of $26.37 billion. GE saw growth in its oil and gas, health care, transportation, and power businesses, among others.

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Visa rose 3% before the bell following better-than-expected quarterly earnings. The credit card company earned 86 cents a share, 7 cents higher than expected. Revenue climbed 23.1% to $4.47 billion. Payments volume grew 37% to $1.7 trillion, while total processed transactions increased 42%. Visa also authorized a $5 billion stock repurchase program.

Honeywell (HON) rose 2% after exceeding analysts' estimates in its recent quarter. Net income of $1.33 billion, or $1.71 a share, compared to $1.21 billion, or $1.56 a share, in the same quarter last year. Adjusted earnings of $1.66 a share beat estimates of $1.62. Revenue of $9.49 billion came in higher than a target of $9.33 billion. Honeywell also increased the low-end bracket of its fiscal guidance by a nickel, and now anticipates earnings of $6.90 to $7.10 a share. 

Mattel (MAT) fell 6% in premarket trading after reporting a wider loss than anticipated and a double-digit percentage decline in revenue over its recent quarter. The toymaker reported a loss of 32 cents a share, 15 cents wider than anticipated. Sales dropped 15.4% to $735.6 million, $70 million short of consensus. Mattel recommitted to a quarterly dividend of 38 cents a share.

Skechers (SKX) topped analysts' estimates on the top- and bottom-lines over the first quarter. The shoe brand earned 60 cents a share, 6 cents above estimates, while revenue came in above $1 billion for the first time in the company's history.
It's been a busy week of earnings with industry bellwethers, including Goldman Sachs (GS) and American Express (AXP) , divulging their recent quarterly performances. So far, more than 16% of S&P 500 companies have reported on their quarters and nearly a third of Dow companies have reported this week. Analysts anticipate blended earnings growth of almost 11%, according to Thomson Reuters.

Investors were also looking ahead to the first round of voting in France's closely watched presidential election over the weekend. France goes to the polls Sunday in an election that could decide the fate of the European Union. Eleven candidates will be in the initial round of voting. Any of four of them, spanning the spectrum from extreme-right to extreme-left, could progress to a second round of voting on May 7, when the two most popular candidates will face off.

The outcome of the election grows even more uncertain after Thursday's shooting on Paris' Champs-Elysees boulevard that killed a police officer and wounded three other people. ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack.

Source: TheStreet