Equities in Toronto were slightly lower near midday Thursday amid several weak earnings reports from heavily weighted companies.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index reached noon ET off 1.34 points to 12,109.72
The Canadian dollar erased 0.08 cents, to 101.61 cents U.S.
The TSX materials sector was off as Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan disappointed on its first-quarter earnings with sales and profit down even more than analysts expected.
Canada’s largest fertilizer company said net income fell to $491 million U.S. or 56 cents per share in the first three months of 2012, down from record high $732 million U.S. or 84 cents per share in the first quarter of 2011. Potash shares dropped 3%, or $1.22, to $42.43.
Domtar Corp. said its first-quarter profit fell sharply from the same time last year, missing analyst estimates, as it felt the impact of lower global prices for pulp and higher costs.
The Montreal-based company posted net income or 76 cents per share. That’s down from $133 million U.S. or $3.14 per share in the comparable period of 2011. Its shares were off 7% to $87.73.
Goldcorp Inc. shares were impacted by the company’s disappointing first-quarter results as it faced difficult conditions at its Red Lake mine and lower grade ore. Late Wednesday, the company reported a first-quarter profit of $479 million U.S., or 51 cents per diluted share, down from $651 million or 81 cents per diluted share a year ago. Its stock dropped 5.8%, or $2.36, to $38.13.
Imperial Oil Ltd. says its first-quarter profit was up 30% from the same time last year, rising slightly above $1 billion, or $1.19 per share and coming in ahead of analyst expectations.
Husky Energy Inc. posted earnings of $591 million or 60 cents per diluted share as it reported that higher oil production and prices offset tighter refining margins and lower natural gas prices.
The results compared with $626 million or 70 cents in the prior-year period when the company recorded an after-tax gain of $143 million on the sale of non-core assets. Its shares rose 52 cents, or 2.14%, to $24.82.
Power producer TransAlta Corp. posted quarterly earnings of $89 million or 40 cents per share after a sharp drop in profits as it was hit by lower prices and an increase in maintenance activities. The results compared with a profit of $204 million or 92 cents per share a year ago.
TransAlta stock was down 27 cents at $16.45.
Forest products company Tembec Inc. widely missed analyst forecasts with a $14-million loss, or 14 cents per share, on a 10% drop in sales in the second quarter to $407 million. Its shares were down 6.9%, or 24 cents, at $3.24.
On a light day for economic numbers, Statistics Canada reported this morning that average weekly earnings of non-farm payroll employees registered at $886.45 in February, up 0.2% from January, a jump of 1.8% year over year.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange gained 17.53 points to 1,388.65, while the Nasdaq Canada index advanced 6.46 points to 416.04
Eight of the 14 Toronto subgroups were in the red by lunch hour. Materials sagged 0.9%, health-care stocks eased 0.7%, and gold was off 0.6%. .
The half-dozen gainers were led by information technology, chugging ahead 2.6%, energy, stronger by 1.1%, and industrials, inching up 0.3%.
ON WALLSTREET
In New York, stocks rose Thursday, as hopes for more stimuli from the Federal Reserve overshadowed concerns about the job market and mixed corporate earnings.
The Dow Jones Industrials added 56.46 points to 13,147.18. Exxon was the biggest drag on the Dow after the oil company reported a decline in profit. Wal-Mart led gainers on the blue-chip index, despite a Mexican bribery scandal that is hanging over the world's largest retailer.
The S&P 500 grew 2.13 points to 1,392.82, with shares of tax preparation company H&R block among the worst performers. UPS also weighed on the index after the delivery company reported earnings that missed analysts’ expectations
The tech-rich Nasdaq added 5.35 points to 3,034.98.
Exxon Mobil reported earnings of $2 U.S. per share, below expectations of $2.09 U.S. The nation's number-one oil company generated $9.45 billion U.S. in profits the quarter, compared to $10.65 billion U.S. a year earlier.
In anticipation of its profits, the oil industry went on the offensive, saying that one in 10 U.S. jobs created in 2011 came from Big Oil.
Shares of H&R Block plunged a day after the tax preparer said that it would cut 350 full-time jobs nationwide and close 200 "underperforming" offices. The move should save H&R Block between $85 million and $100 million U.S. annually by the end of fiscal year 2013.
Pepsi's stock edged higher after the company reported earnings of 69 cents U.S. per share and net revenue of more than $12.4 billion U.S., beating expectations.
UPS reported earnings of $1 U.S. per share, missing expectations by two cents U.S. The parcel delivery company, often seen as a bellwether of economic activity, reported revenue that was roughly in line with estimates.
Amazon and Starbucks will release their earnings after the bell. Analysts predict Amazon will post earnings of seven cents U.S. a share, an 84% drop from a year earlier, on revenue of $12.9 billion U.S. Meanwhile, Starbucks is expected to report earnings of 39 cents U.S. per share on revenue of $3.1 billion U.S.
Thursday's gains came one day after Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said central bank policy is "approximately in the right place at this point." But he added that the Fed is "prepared to take further action" if the economy deteriorates.
Some investors took the comments as a sign the Fed is willing to extend its asset purchasing program, known as quantitative easing, according to some experts.
Economically, the number of people filing for first-time unemployment benefits dipped 1,000 to 388,000 in the most recent week, according to the U.S. Labor Department's weekly initial claims report.
The jobless claims number fell to four-year lows a few months ago, but has been climbing recently. Economists had expected the report to show that 365,000 people filed for their first week of jobless claims last week, down from 386,000 the week before.
Meanwhile, pending home sales rose 4.1% in March, according to the National Association of Realtors.
The pending home sales index, which reflects contracts but not closings, was expected to have risen 0.5%, according to a consensus of analysts.
The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury gained ground, lowering the yield to 1.94% from Wednesday’s 1.98%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil for May delivery picked up 46 cents to $104.58 U.S. a barrel.
Gold futures for June delivery rose $16.20 to $1,658.50 U.S. an ounce.
