Earnings season begins

Earnings season for corporate America has begun and tonight, investors got the first reading on quarterly earnings from the one-time Dow component Alcoa. The aluminum giant posted earnings that came in better than expected: 9 cents a share, compared to estimates of 5 cents and excluding charges for closing smelters. But revenues missed analyst estimates falling to $5.4 billion dollars on lower aluminum prices. Alcoa shares traded higher in the regular session and rose slightly in after-hours on those first quarter results. So, now that Alcoa’s numbers are in what can investors expect as more reports start filing in? Thomson Reuters predicts overall earnings should be about one percent higher, a lot lower from the 6.5 percent outlook at the start of the year. Others, like FactSet are gloomier, forecasting a decrease in profits.