In the first hour of trading Thursday, the Dow Jones industrials were down 0.54%, the S&P 500 down 0.62% and the Nasdaq 0.55% lower.

After U.S. markets closed on Wednesday, Tesla reported earnings per share (EPS) exactly on the consensus estimate and revenue that fell slightly short. Some 83.65 million shares of Tesla stock were shorted ahead of the earnings report, according to S3 Partners, and Wednesday’s options volume of 1.53 million contracts probably set up some investors to dump their options Thursday morning. The stock traded down about 7.4% in early action.

IBM beat the bottom-line estimate but missed on revenue. The stock traded up about 0.2%.

Kinder Morgan beat Wall Street’s estimated EPS and missed on revenue. The energy infrastructure company also increased its annual dividend. Shares traded down 2.6% Thursday morning.

Las Vegas Sands beat estimates on both the top and bottom lines. Traffic rose sharply in March, and the company said it remains “enthusiastic” about further visitor growth to its Macau and Singapore resorts. Shares traded up 5.2%.

Before markets opened on Thursday, American Express missed the consensus EPS estimate but beat on revenue. The company also issued fiscal 2023 guidance that was in line with the consensus EPS estimate and above the consensus revenue estimate. The stock traded down 3.4%.

AT&T beat the consensus EPS estimate by a penny and missed on revenue. Shares retreated due to a steep decline in postpaid (contract) subscriber growth. The stock traded down 8.1%.

Taiwan Semiconductor also delivered mixed results, beating Wall Street’s consensus EPS estimate but falling short on revenue. The semiconductor maker issued second-quarter revenue guidance that was lower than analysts’ consensus estimate. Shares traded up 4.4%.

CSX, Freeport-McMoRan, Procter & Gamble, Regions Financial and Schlumberger are on deck to report quarterly earnings late Thursday or first thing Friday morning.

Here are previews of four companies set to report results on Monday.

Cleveland-Cliffs

Shares of iron ore miner and steelmaker Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (NYSE: CLF) have dropped by about 46% over the past 12 months, including a boost of 14% over the past six months. The decline began just over a year ago, and the stock posted its 52-week low in early November. The company released preliminary results for the first quarter last week, forecasting a profit of around $200 million on sales of $5.2 billion. That sent the stock up about 10%, a gain that has since been given back. The company reports first-quarter results after markets close on Monday.
Of 12 brokerages covering Cleveland-Cliffs stock, five have a Buy or Strong Buy rating and the others rate it at Hold. At a recent price of around $16.90 a share, the implied gain based on a median price target of $22.50 is 33.7%. At the high price target of $27.00, the upside potential is nearly 60%.

Analysts forecast first-quarter revenue of $5.21 billion, which would be up 3.4% sequentially but down 12.6% year over year. Analysts anticipate an adjusted loss per share of $0.14, down from a per-share loss of 0.43 in the prior quarter and way below EPS of $1.57 in the year-ago quarter. For the full 2023 fiscal year, analysts expect to see EPS of $1.75, down 33.6%, on sales of $21.35 billion, down 7.1%.

The stock trades at 9.6 times expected 2023 EPS, 7.1 times estimated 2024 earnings of $2.39 and 7.9 times estimated 2025 earnings of $2.14 per share. The stock’s 52-week trading range is $11.82 to $32.72, and the company does not pay an annual dividend. Total shareholder return over the past year was negative 46.23%.

Coca-Cola

The share price of Dow component and Warren Buffett favorite Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE: KO) has declined by about 2.1% over the past 12 months. For the year to date, the stock is up a bare 0.1%, worse than the consumer staples sector’s increase of about 1.7% for the same period. Coke raised its dividend in the fourth quarter of 2022 for the 61st consecutive year, putting it among the top 10 for consecutive raises among the Dividend Aristocrats. The soft drinks maker reports quarterly results early Monday morning.

Analysts are bullish on the stock, with 20 of 27 brokerages having a Buy or Strong Buy rating. The others have Hold ratings. At a share price of around $63.70, the upside potential based on a median price target of $69.00 is 8.3%. At the high price target of $77.00, the upside potential is 20.9%.

First-quarter revenue is forecast at $10.79 billion, up 5.9% sequentially and by 2.8% year over year. Adjusted EPS are pegged at $0.64, up 43.3% sequentially and flat year over year. For the full 2023 fiscal year, consensus estimates call for EPS of $2.60, up 4.9%, on revenue of $44.9 billion, up 4.3%.

Coca-Cola stock trades at 24.5 times expected 2023 EPS, 22.7 times estimated 2024 earnings of $2.80 and 21.1 times estimated 2025 earnings of $3.01 per share. The stock’s 52-week range is $54.02 to $67.20. Coca-Cola pays an annual dividend of $1.84 (yield of 2.89%). Total shareholder return for the past year was 0.76%.

First Republic Bank

First Republic Bank (NYSE: FRC) stock began its plunge on March 6 and did not slow until it had dropped by nearly 90%. An 11-bank consortium, including JPMorgan and BofA, put together a $30 billion loan package that saved the bank. First Republic has suspended its dividend, and its credit rating has tumbled into junk territory. Shares jumped more than 12% on Wednesday, following a surprisingly good March-quarter report from Western Alliance. The fact that First Republic is still in business and reporting results at all on Monday is probably the biggest surprise of all.
Of the 13 analysts covering First Republic, one has a Buy or Strong Buy rating and the others rate the shares at Hold. At a price of around $13.75 a share, the upside potential to a median price target of $25.00 is 81.8%. At the high price target of $150.00, someone has obviously forgotten how the game is played.

Analysts expect the bank to post first-quarter revenue of $1.13 billion, down 21.4% sequentially and 21.5% lower year over year. Adjusted EPS are forecast at $0.64, down 4.8% sequentially but 16.4% higher year over year. For the full 2023 fiscal year, the bank is expected to report revenue of $3.32 billion, down 43.3%, and a loss per share of $0.87, compared to last year’s EPS of $8.25.

The stock’s 52-week range is $11.52 to $171.06. Total shareholder return for the past year was negative 91.45%.

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Range Resources

Independent oil and gas producer Range Resources Corp. (NYSE: RRC) has posted a 12-month share price decrease of nearly 20%. If not for periodic rumors that the company was a takeover target, the price decline could be worse. Natural gas prices have declined by more than 70% since their peak in September, and crude oil has dropped 24.5% over the past year. If the company misses Wall Street estimates after markets close on Monday, an acquisition may be seriously on the agenda.

As a group, analysts are wary. Of 26 brokerages covering the stock, 12 have a Hold rating and 10 have a Buy or Strong Buy rating. At a share price of around $26.00, the stock’s upside potential based on a median price target of $30.50 is 11.5%. At the high price target of $51.00, the upside potential is 96%.

For the first quarter, Range Resources is expected to report revenue of $797.66 million, down 51.1% sequentially but up from sales of $180.74 million a year ago. Adjusted EPS are forecast at $0.84, down 35.6% sequentially and by 28.8% year over year. For the full 2023 fiscal year, analysts are looking for EPS of $2.65, down 48.1%, and revenue of $2.98 billion, down 28.3%.

Range Resources stock trades at 9.8 times expected 2023 EPS, 7.3 times estimated 2024 earnings of $3.56 and 5.5 times estimated 2025 earnings of $4.75 per share. The stock’s 52-week range is $22.61 to $37.44, and the company pays a dividend of $0.32 (yield of 1.2%). Total shareholder return for the past 12 months was negative 19.74%.

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