To be frank we have not really learned anything from the third quarter results. During this time the bailout money has been almost fully dispersed, quantitative easing has allowed stocks to run, and cuts to the labor force have lowered drag on corporate profits. Therefore, it is very hard to judge right now if these earnings point to further expansion for the US economy, or if its just funny accounting hiding the true value. I am in the camp that Q4 will give us a much better idea of how the economy is really doing. Especially when the retail reports come in after Christmas.

Some of the big companies that have reported strong earnings are

Apple (AAPL), International Business Machines (IBM). JP Morgan and Chase (JPM), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Google (GOOG), Nokia (NOK), Southwest Airlines (LUV), General Electric (GE)

Companies that reported worse than expected earnings.

Harley Davidson (HOG), Winnebago (WGO), Bank of America (BAC)

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Disclosure The Trade Machine does not hold any positions at this time in the above mentioned companies.