US Markets End Mixed, As Investors Eye Earnings

Tepid results from Tesla and 3M weighed on Wall Street on Tuesday, with the main indexes ending mixed as investors focused on wave of earnings reports from Microsoft, Alphabet and other corporate heavyweights.

Electric-car maker Tesla dropped after its quarterly results late on Monday fell short of some investors' expectations, with its revenue beat largely supported by sales of environmental credits and selling bitcoin, rather than vehicle sales.

Microsoft and Alphabet saw choppy trade ahead of their quarterly reports after the bell. Shares of Apple, Facebook and Amazon,, slated to report later this week, were mixed for much of the session.

"Everyone is waiting to see the big tech earnings after bell today. If it's good, I think I think we'll have a lot of positive momentum. If they're disappointing, we may be in for a very volatile week," said Jake Dollarhide, chief executive officer of Longbow Asset Management in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Shares of 3M fell after the conglomerate said supply chain disruptions from the Covid-19 pandemic and the February winter storm were pushing up its costs.

First-quarter overall earnings per share for S&P 500 companies are expected to jump 35 percent from a year earlier, which would be the biggest surge se the fourth quarter of 2010, according to Refinitiv IBES data.

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq ended at record levels on Monday, recently supported by improving economic data, a swift vaccine distribution and unprecedented monetary and fiscal measures.

"We are in that spot where the economy is recovering, there is stimulus money to be spent and people have reased their desire and propensity to consume. For the remainder of the year, you're going to see some fairly optimistic thoughts," said Tom Martin, senior portfolio manager at Globalt Investments in Atlanta.

Investors will monitor the Federal Reserve's two-day meeting for cues on the central bank's thinking on inflation, bond buying and risks to the financial system posed by soaring asset prices. The Fed is not expected to change its policy guidance at the end of the meeting on Wednesday.

In the latest upbeat economic data, US consumer confidence jumped to a 14-month high in April as more services businesses reopened on reased vaccinations and additional fiscal stimulus.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose three points to end marginally higher at 33,984, the S&P 500 lost just under a point to finish slightly lower at 4,186 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.3 percent to 14,090.

Also expected to report after the bell on Tuesday were companies luding Visa, Texas Instruments, Amgen and Starbucks.

United Parcel Service jumped after it topped estimates for quarterly revenue.

General Electric fell after it disappointed investors who were expecting the industrial conglomerate to upgrade its 2021 outlook. (Reuters)