2:30PM NY – U.S. Movers: Breakfast menu and high calorie burger lift sales at Burger king.

Burger King (BKI), fast food chain operator reported third quarter earnings of 25 cents per share vs. loss of 11 cents a year ago. The company reported earnings of $34 million in the quarter compared to a loss of $12 million on revenue growth of 8.9% to $539 million. The same-store sales in the U.S. and Canada rose 2.6% and gained 3.2% system-wide across the globe. Burger King has made an aggressive push to increase its breakfast sales that trails the others in the industry. The company introduced $1 breakfast and also introduced 1,000 calorie Double Texas Whoppers. In the quarter the company incrased number of stores in operation by 92.

Waste Management (WM), largest trash manager, reported first quarter earnings of $222 million compared to $186 million on a slight revenue fall to $3.19 billion. The company is paying more focus on profitability. In the quarter the company cut its service to several businesses and cities by 5.2% and increased its profit by 16%. The company revised its earnings guidance for the full year between $2.03 and $2.07 per share from $1.96 and $2.00 per share.


Gehl Co. (GHL), agricultural and construction equipment maker, reported first quarter $6.3 million compared to a loss of $2.7 million or 51 cents in the quarter vs. loss of 12 cents a year ago. The company revenue fell 5.7% to $115.2 million. The company revised its sales guidance from the range of $465 to $495 million to $475 million to $500 million. The company revised continuing income between $2.15 and $2.35 per share from $2.00 and $2.30 per share.


1:00AM NY, 5:00 PM Frankfurt - European stocks closed lower on surging euro.

European stock markets retreated from recent highs on Friday as the euro hit an all-time record versus the dollar on the back of weaker-than-expected U.S. growth data. Major oil companies were the biggest decliners, followed by Spanish property stocks. In the energy sector, Statoil fell 2.3% after making a $2 billion acquisition of a Canadian oil sands producer. BP dropped 1.7% and Royal Dutch Shell fell 1.3%.

Among Spanish property stocks, Grupo Immarcal dropped 2.3%. Banks were also in focus, with shares of Dutch bank ABN Amro up 1.2%. Royal Bank of Scotland slipped 1.5%, Banco Santander dropped 2.7%, and Fortis lost 1.7%. Deutsche Post climbed 5.3% and Deutsche Postbank rose 2.3%, lifted by takeover speculation.

In the tech sector, Infineon Technology fell 2.3% after the chipmaker said its Q2 net loss narrowed, but missed analysts' expectations. The U.K. FTSE 100 fell 0.8% at 6,418.70, the German DAX Xetra 30 lost 0.1% at 7,378.12 and the French CAC-40 slipped 0.2% at 5,930.77. Spain's Ibex-35 index lost 1.4% to end at 14,403.60.


11:30AM U.S. stock averages traded in a lackluster fashion. Airlines declined.

U.S. stock market averages traded in a lackluster fashion, as investors weighed a weaker-than-expected GDP report against surging quarterly profit at Microsoft (MSFT). The tech-heavy Nasdaq was given a boost by the software giant which traded up 4.3%.

Among other gainers, Flextronics International (FLEX), the world's largest contract electronics manufacturer, climbed 6.7% on higher quarterly profit. However, the chip sector came under pressure, led by Broadcom (BRCM), down 4.8% and SanDisk (SNDK), falling 2.3%. Among Internet shares, Amazon (AMZN) dropped 2% on brokerage downgrade.

The Dow was led down by General Motors (GM), down 1.9%, J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM), down 1.4%, and Home Depot (HD), falling 0.9%. At the same time, the downward move for the blue-chip average was limited by General Electric (GE) which rose 2.3% after positive comments from Citigroup.

Airlines stocks moved steeply lower after JP Morgan downgraded the whole sector. Continental Airlines Inc. (CAL) dropped 3.9%, UAL Corp. (UAUA) fell 4.4% and AMR Corp. (AMR) slipped 3%. The Dow Jones industrial average was up 3.25 points, or 0.02%, at 13,108.75. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was down 2.09 points, or 0.14%, at 1,492.16. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 3.05 points, or 0.12%, at 2,557.51.


9:45AM U.S. markets opened mixed on weak GDP data.

U.S. stocks started trading mixed on Friday, after the government's estimate of Q1 economic growth came in weaker than expected, while a measure of employment costs showed continued gains. After the data, the dollar dropped to an all-time low against the euro, which rose as high as $13682.

However, surging profit at Microsoft helped to limit the downside move. Microsoft (MSFT) posted 65% earnings increase, helped by sales of its new Vista operating system. The software giant offered support to the blue-chip average, as well as tech stocks, with its shares moving up 4.7%. Not all tech stocks were trading in the positive. SanDisk (SNDK) dropped 1.6% after saying weak prices for flash-memory chips will continue through the summer. Broadcom (BRCM) dropped 5% after it posted Q2 revenue forecast below expectations.

Among other earnings-related stocks, Cummins (CMI), diesel engine maker, surged 15% after it said its Q1 profit rose 6% to $143 million, or $1.42 per share, from $135 million, or $1.35 per share, during the same period last year. Revenue grew 5% to $2.82 billion from $2.68 billion. Quarterly results beat expectations of a profit of 86 cents per share on revenue of $2.62 billion.