Hope Fading Fast for Fourth-Quarter Earnings Rebound in S&P 500
- Analysts cutting estimates at one of swiftest rates in years
- Morgan Stanley’s model predicts flat profit growth for 2020
A pedestrian passes a tube releasing steam near the New York Stock Exchange.
Photographer: Michael Nagle/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Wall Street analysts are slashing projections for fourth-quarter earnings at a furious pace, making it more likely that a profit recession will hit Corporate America for the first time in almost four years.
Two months into the quarter, analysts have shaved 4% off their estimates to $41.12 a share, a drop of almost 1% compared with a year ago after a 1.3% decline last quarter. While they almost always lower expectations as a period progresses the current pace has been exceeded only twice since 2015.