Zions Bancorp Bottom Line Climbs In Q2

Zions Bancorp (ZION) announced a profit for its second quarter that climbed from the same period last year.

The company’s earnings totaled $189 million, or $0.99 per share. This compares with $187 million, or $0.89 per share, in last year’s second quarter.

Analysts had expected the company to earn $1.10 per share, according to figures compiled by Thomson Reuters. Analysts’ estimates typically exclude special items.

Zions Bancorp earnings at a glance:

-Earnings (Q2): $189 Mln. vs. $187 Mln. last year.
-EPS (Q2): $0.99 vs. $0.89 last year.
-Analysts Estimate: $1.10

Microsoft settles SEC corruption charges for $25 million

NEW YORK — Microsoft is paying more than $25 million to settle federal corruption charges involving a bribery scheme in Hungary and other foreign offices.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said Microsoft will pay about $16.6 million to settle charges that it violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. While the case centered on Hungary, the SEC said it also found improprieties at Microsoft offices in Saudi Arabia, Thailand and Turkey.

The Justice Department said Microsoft MSFT, +1.32%  will also pay an $8.75 million criminal fine stemming from the Hungarian bid-rigging and bribery scheme.

Federal prosecutors said that from 2013 through 2015, a senior executive and other employees at the Hungary office took part in a scheme to “inflate margins in the Microsoft sales channel” in connection with Microsoft software licenses sold to Hungarian government agencies.

Savings were falsely recorded as discounts and used for corrupt purposes, the prosecutors said.

Microsoft President Brad Smith said in a letter to employees Monday that the misconduct was “completely unacceptable” and involved a small number of employees.

Smith outlined changes to prevent public sector discounts from being used improperly and said the company is expanding its use of artificial intelligence to flag suspicious transactions.

Oil Futures Settle Higher On Geopolitical Tensions

Crude oil prices moved higher on Monday, amid escalation in tensions in the Middle East.

West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for August settled up $0.59, or about 1.1%, at $56.22 a barrel on the expiration day.

On Friday, WTI crude oil futures ended at $55.63 a barrel, gaining $0.33, or about 0.6%.

Tensions in the Middle East rose after a senior Iranian intelligence officer told reporters in Tehran that Iran has detained CIA-trained Iranian nationals who were attempting to gather information on the country’s military and nuclear capabilities.

The officer also said that the rulings for these spies have been issued and a numer of them will be executed as “corruptors on earth.”

U.S. President Donald Trump, however, said Iran’s claim about capturing 17 people spying for the U.S. is “totally false.”

“The Report of Iran capturing CIA spies is totally false. Zero truth. Just more lies and propaganda (like their shot down drone) put out by a Religious Regime that is Badly Failing and has no idea what to do,” tweeted Trump. He added, “Their Economy is dead, and will get much worse. Iran is a total mess!”

On Friday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they had captured a British-flagged oil tanker in the Gulf in response to Britain’s seizure of an Iranian tanker earlier this month.

The move has increased the fear of potential supply disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz at the mouth of the Gulf, through which about 20% of the world’s oil supply flows.

Whirlpool Corp. Q2 adjusted earnings Beat Estimates

Below are the earnings highlights for Whirlpool Corp. (WHR):

-Earnings: $67 million in Q2 vs. -$657 million in the same period last year.
-EPS: $1.04 in Q2 vs. -$9.50 in the same period last year.
-Excluding items, Whirlpool Corp. reported adjusted earnings of $363 million or $4.01 per share for the period.
-Analysts projected $3.71 per share
-Revenue: $5.19 billion in Q2 vs. $5.14 billion in the same period last year.

-Guidance:
Full year EPS guidance: $14.75 – $15.50

Gold Edges Up Marginally After Moving Sideways

Gold futures moved in a very narrow range around the flat line on Monday, as traders made cautious moves, looking ahead to the upcoming Federal Reserve Monetary policy meeting.

The dollar stayed fairly steady above the unchanged line amid fading optimism about steep interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve, thus restricting gold’s uptick.

Geopolitical tensions and uncertainty about a progress in U.S.-China trade negotiations prompted traders to seek the safe haven asset.

The dollar index advanced to 97.29 before paring some gains and easing to 97.23, still up from previous close of 97.15.

Gold futures for August ended up $0.20, at $1,426.90 an ounce.

Silver futures for September ended up $0.216, at $16.411 an ounce, while Copper futures for September settled at $2.7220 per pound, losing $0.0305 in the session.

Geopolitical tensions have risen after Iran said that it had arrested 17 Iranian citizens on charges of spying for the United States and some of them have already been sentenced to death.

According to reports, an Iranian intelligence official told a press conference in Tehran that those taken into custody allegedly worked on “sensitive sites” in the country’s military and nuclear facilities.

The mood was cautious also due to the leadership election in the U.K. and the policy meeting of the European Central Bank.

Next week, the U.S. Federal Reserve is scheduled to meet and announce its policy move.

Acadia Realty Trust Reports Gain In Q2 Profit

Acadia Realty Trust (AKR) reported earnings for its second quarter that increased from last year.

The company’s earnings totaled $9.08 million, or $0.11 per share. This compares with $7.67 million, or $0.09 per share, in last year’s second quarter.

Analysts had expected the company to earn $0.05 per share, according to figures compiled by Thomson Reuters. Analysts’ estimates typically exclude special items.

The company’s revenue for the quarter rose 11.8% to $71.06 million from $63.57 million last year.

Acadia Realty Trust earnings at a glance:

-Earnings (Q2): $9.08 Mln. vs. $7.67 Mln. last year.
-EPS (Q2): $0.11 vs. $0.09 last year.
-Analysts Estimate: $0.05
-Revenue (Q2): $71.06 Mln vs. $63.57 Mln last year.

-Guidance:
Full year EPS guidance: $0.39 to $0.46