Dow Futures

It’s official, folks: The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEX: ^DJI  ) skated by previous records to close at multiyear highs today. The index, comprised of 30 blue chip stocks, closed at 12,878 for the day, eclipsing the high water mark set in May 2008.

So what’s the fuel pushing the index higher? Greece.  Though the debate about Greek debt seems stuck in a Mobius strip of never-ending back and forth, there seems to be just a little progress today as Greece made process to secure international aid.

A breakdown
An amazing 28 of the Dow’s 30 components rode the wave of enthusiasm to close higher today, with 19 of them gaining 1% or more. You’d think with the tech-heavy Nasdaq hitting decade-plus highs that it’d be tech companies fueling all the enthusiasm today, but actually it was consumer goods and financials.

 All of the indices opened sharply lower this morning on continued concerns about the eurozone’s debt situation. At today’s European summit in Brussels, German Chancellor Angela Merkel refused to discuss the Greek situation. Her stated reason was that the parties responsible for overseeing the Greek bailout package are still engaged in discussion with bondholders, banks, and the Greek government.

Determined not to let Europe’s woes sour the day too badly, though, stocks fought back to smaller losses and closed the day moderately in the red.

Noteworthy
All things considered, it’s no surprise that Bank of America (NYSE: BAC  ) was today’s biggest Dow loser, falling 3% for the day: Goldman Sachs downgraded its rating from buy to neutral. Despite today’s woes, however, the company is still the Dow’s best performing stock for the year, climbing an impressive 27% for 2012 alone. My fellow Fool Anand Chokkavelu believes they’ve still got room to run and thinks Bank of America could be the Dow’s biggest winner of 2012.

What to watch
Tomorrow, investors will be eagerly awaiting earnings from Pfizer (NYSE: PFE  ) and Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM  ) . Pfizer releases at 10:00 am tomorrow and Exxon releases an hour later. Analysts are expecting $0.47 per share out of Pfizer, exactly what they produced in the same quarter last year. Exxon is expected to report earnings of $1.95 per share, $0.10 above last year’s earnings of $1.85.

Pfizer faces certain difficulties coming off its Lipitor patent. The drug has been a cash cow for them over the years, and the company has decided to sell the drug at generic prices to combat the certain flurry of imitation drugs once the patent expires.

Expectations for Exxon are positive, though some doubt has been thrown into the wind after Chevron (NYSE: CVX  ) missed estimates on weak refinery operations. Companies in this space tend to swing in tangent to each other, so don’t be surprised if Exxon shows a little weakness tomorrow.

Foolish bottom line
The Greek debt situation is moving the Dow today, and with it being earnings season, there are plenty of companies out there that investors need to watch since they could move the markets. In the Fool’s “Fourth-Quarter Earnings Report: 7 Stocks You’ll Want to Watch,” you’ll find information on the latest quarter’s possible big performers. It’s completely free for our readers, so click here to access your report today.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEX: ^DJI  ) fell for the third day in a row as the Greek debt deal looks to be delayed.

The Dow opened down after German Chancellor Angela Merkel declined to discuss Greece this morning at a European summit in Brussels. The reason given was that the governing bodies that oversee the Greek bailout packages are still in talks with Greece, banks, and other bondholders. Investors believe a second debt bailout is needed to keep Greece from defaulting.

The rest of the day, though, was a slow climb for the Dow, and it nearly ended up.

Top winner
Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT  ) was today’s top stock. The company finished up $0.38, or 1.3%, to $29.61. Microsoft has been on a tear so far this year, up 14%. Fool analyst Patrick Martin has found a lot to like about the company’s offerings this year and decided to buy the stock.

Top loser
Bank of America (NYSE: BAC  ) was today’s top loser. The company finished down $0.22, or 3%, to $7.07 on the Greek debt news and a downgrade by Goldman Sachs from buy to neutral. Fool analyst Sean Williams has written about what you need to know about the Greek debt talks.

Foolish bottom line
The Greek debt situation moved the Dow today. With earnings season in full swing, there are plenty of companies out there that investors need to watch, since they could also move the Dow. In the Fool’s “Fourth-Quarter Earnings Report: 7 Stocks You’ll Want to Watch,” you’ll find information on this quarter’s possible big performers. It’s completely free for our readers, so access your free report today.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEX: ^DJI  ) is falling for the third day in a row as the Greek debt deal looks to be delayed. At 1:30 p.m. EST, the Dow was down 70 points to 12,590.60.

The Dow is down after German Chancellor Angela Merkel declined to discuss Greece this morning at a European summit in Brussels. The reason given was that the governing bodies that oversee the Greek bailout packages are still in talks with Greece, banks, and other bondholders. Investors believe a second debt bailout is needed to keep Greece from defaulting.

Top decliners

1. Bank of America (NYSE: BAC  ) is today’s top loser so far, down 3.1% to $7.06 on the Greek debt news and a downgrade by Goldman Sachs from buy to neutral. Fool analyst Sean Williams has written about what you need to know about the Greek debt talks.
2. American Express (NYSE: AXP  ) is second behind Bank of America, down 1.84% to $48.93. The company is also being pushed down by fears over the Greek debt talks. American Express posted positive earnings two weeks ago; competitor and fellow Dow component MasterCard reports earnings on Thursday.
3. Chevron (NYSE: CVX  ) is third, down 1.76% to $102.13. The company is falling with the broader market and oil prices, which are now just less than $100 per barrel. Chevron reported poor earnings on Friday; ExxonMobil reports earnings tomorrow.

Foolish bottom line
The Greek debt situation is moving the Dow today, and with it being earnings season, there are plenty of companies out there that investors need to watch since they could move the Dow. In the Fool’s “Fourth-Quarter Earnings Report: 7 Stocks You’ll Want to Watch,” you’ll find information on this quarter’s possible big performers. It’s completely free for our readers, so click here to access your free report today.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEX: ^DJI  ) is falling for the third day in a row as the Greek debt deal looks to be delayed. At 11 a.m. EST, the Dow was down 98.5 points to 12,561.96.

The Dow is down after German Chancellor Angela Merkel declined to discuss Greece this morning at a European summit in Brussels. The reason given was that the governing bodies that oversee the Greek bailout packages are still in talks with Greece, banks, and other bondholders. Investors believe a second debt bailout is needed to keep Greece from defaulting

Leading the Dow’s charge down are bank stocks Bank of America (NYSE: BAC  ) and JPMorgan (NYSE: JPM  ) , down 3% and 1.6%, respectively. These stocks have a tendency to swing with the state of the Greece talks and as such are down today. Fool analyst Sean Williams has written about what you need to know about the Greek debt talks. Also weighing on these stocks are this morning’s downgrades by Goldman Sachs. Bank of America was downgraded from buy to neutral, while JPMorgan was downgraded from conviction buy to buy.

Foolish bottom line
The Greek debt situation is moving the Dow today, and with it being earnings season, there are plenty of companies out there that investors need to watch that could move the Dow. In the Fool’s “Fourth-Quarter Earnings Report: 7 Stocks You’ll Want to Watch,” you’ll find information on this quarter’s possible big performers. It’s completely free for our readers, so click here to access your free report today.