Dow went up 56 but below early highs, decliners over advancers 3-1 & NAZ was off 14.  The MLP index slid 2 to 281 & the REIT index declined 4+ to 355.  Junk bond funds were little changed & Treasuries had limited selling, raising yields slightly.  Oil crawled up pennies in the 85s & gold rose 13 to 2396.

AMJ (Alerian MLP Index tracking fund)

Jjohnson & Johnson (JNJ), a Dow stock & Dividend Aristocrat, first-qtr adjusted earnings that topped  expectations as sales in its medical devices business surged.  Meanwhile, the total revenue for the period was largely in line with estimates.  The medtech division provides devices for surgeries, orthopedics & vision.  The company is benefiting from a rebound in demand for nonurgent surgeries among older adults, who deferred those procedures during the Covid pandemic.  CFO Joseph Wolk said that consumers may be pulling back in other areas but “don’t want to compromise when it comes to their health, their mobility, their ability to live a fulfilling life.”  He added that the company has seen elevated procedure levels after the pandemic, & “we haven’t seen any backtracking of that.”  The company posted $21.4B in total sales for the first 3 months of 2024, up more than 2% from the same qtr in 2023.  EPS was $2.20 during the qtr, that compares with a net loss of 19¢ per share, for the year-earlier period.  At the time, JNJ recorded costs tied to its talc baby powder liabilities & the spinoff of its consumer health unit Kenvue.  Excluding certain items for the first qtr of 2024, adjusted EPS was $2.71.  JNJ also narrowed its full-year guidance for the year.  The company expects sales of $88.0-$88.4B.  That compares with a previous forecast of $87.8-$88.6B.  JNJ expects adjusted EPS of $10.57 - $10.72.  That compares to a previous guidance of $10.55 - $10.75 per share.  JNJ said it will increase its quarterly div to $1.24 per share, up 4.2% from $1.19 per share.  That marks the company's 62nd year of consecutive div increases.  The stock fell 2.74.

Johnson & Johnson tops quarterly profit estimates as medical device sales jump

Bank of America (BAC) reported first-qtr earnings that topped estimates for profit & revenue on better-than-expected interest income & investment banking.  EPS fell 18% to $6.7B (76¢ a share) excluding a $700M FDIC assessment, EPS was 83¢.  Revenue slipped 1.6% to $25.98B as net interest income declined from a year earlier.  Net interest income, or the difference between what the company earns from loans & investments & what it pays customers for their deposits, was $14.2B, topping the $13.9B estimate.  Total deposits of $1.95T climbed roughly 1% from the 4th qtr, while loans were essentially unchanged at $1.05T.  CFO Alastair Borthwick said that NII will likely dip in the 2nd qtr to about $14B on drops in wealth management & markets interest income, & could grow in the 2nd ½ of the year.  NII has been declining in recent qtrs as funding costs have climbed along with the rise in interest rates.  The stock fell 1.64.

Bank of America tops estimates on better-than-expected interest income, advisory

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