NEW YORK (Thomson Financial) - U.S. stock futures turned higher early
Wednesday, as better-than-expected second-quarter results and a dividend hike by
Wells Fargo & Co. boosted sentiment in the financial sector and the broader
market.
S&P 500 futures were last up 5.70 points at 1,217.20 and Nasdaq 100 futures
were rising 15.00 points to 1,814.00. Just prior to Wells Fargo's results and
dividend announcement, S&P 500 futures were down 4.80 points at around 1,206.70
and Nasdaq 100 futures were losing 3.75 points at around 1,795.25.
The Dow industrials "Diamonds" ETF (DIA) was up 47c, or 0.4%, at $109.77,
vs. a pre-Wells Fargo price of around $108.93.
Wells Fargo reported earlier second-quarter earnings of 53 cents a share,
down from 67 cents a share in the same period a year ago, but above the mean
estimate of analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters of 50 cents a share. Revenue
rose to $11.46 billion from last year's $9.89 billion, topping analyst forecasts
of $10.65 billion.
The company also said it raised its quarterly dividend to 34 cents a share
from 31 cents a share.
Wells Fargo's stock rallied 12% to $23.02 in premarket trading.
Tomi Kilgore
tk1
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