All the stewing and fretting over the shape of second-quarter earnings, after early disappointments like Motorola’s, proved needless once again as in previous quarters when company after company lined up last week to post better-than-anticipated results.
Caterpillar, for example, put up $1.94 a share, which beat analysts’ estimates by about 30 cents. A stronger dollar, the company warned, could cut into export sales of construction equipment. Ford reported a surprisingly strong gain of 21 percent–much of it from financial services–while General Motors did better than expected with a slight gain in earnings from continuing operations, to $2.1 billion.
Major banks looked healthy, thanks to revenue growth and cost-control programs. BankAmerica profits rose 12 percent from a year earlier, First Chicago NBD earnings advanced 9 percent and Northern Trust profits jumped 19 percent.
Even a loss was cheered. Apple Computer Inc. said the deficit for its fiscal third quarter, ended June 28, totaled $39 million, far less than anticipated.
