Goldman Sachs posted a profit of $1.66 billion for the quarter, another sign of improving conditions on Wall Street. Earnings exceeded analysts’ estimates and were posted a day earlier than anticipated. Along with the earnings announcement, Goldman said it will raise $5 billion through a public offering of common equity and indicated it will use the proceeds plus additional funds to repay $10 billion in capital it received from the government under the TARP. In addition, Goldman declared a dividend of $0.35 per share. Meanwhile, Johnson & Johnson announced their earning before the bell, topping estimates, and Intel will report after the close.
Economic data will also be in focus today. Total March PPI surprised the markets with a 1.2% decline. It was expected to be flat. The CPI will be released tomorrow. Separately, the March Retail Sales Report put an end to the good news we had seen in the reports from January and February. Total sales declined 1.1%, while analysts were expecting a 0.3% rise. Sales, excluding autos were expected to be flat but fell 0.9%. As of this writing, the markets are expected to open slightly lower.
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