Earnings Reports!

(Newser) - General Motors is almost out of money, the company said today, reporting a quarter far worse than Wall Street was prepared for. The nation’s largest automaker lost $4.2 billion, or $7.35 a share, excluding special items, nearly double the $3.70-per-share analysts expected. After burning through $6.9 billion this quarter, the company says it "will approach the minimum necessary to operate its business" this quarter, and fall "significantly short" of that in 2009. More »

(Newser) - Ford Motor Company’s sales plunged 22% in the third quarter, the company said today, as the struggling economy eviscerated demand. The company lost $2.98 billion, or $1.31 a share, far worse than the 93 cents-per-share analysts expected, while burning through $7.7 billion in cash, Bloomberg reports. Another round of job cuts is on the way, the company says, including a 10% reduction of its salaried-personnel costs. More »

(Newser) - A strengthening yen and declining demand—especially from the US—for consumer electronics provided a one-two punch that knocked Sony profits down 72% for the third quarter, reports the New York Times. Sony shares slid to a 16-year low on Monday, and are down 67% for the year. More »

(Newser) - Wachovia reported losses of $23.9 billion in the third quarter, a whopping hit of $11.18 per share that blew by analysts’ estimates of a 2-cent-per-share loss, reports Bloomberg. But Wachovia’s loss—virtually all tied to mortgages or mortgage-related securities—may be Wells Fargo’s gain. More »

(Newser) - Downbeat earnings put the kibosh on yesterday’s outbreak of optimism on Wall Street, sending stocks down at the open. The Dow dropped 107 points, while the Nasdaq and S&P fell 1.7% and 1.4% respectively, the Wall Street Journal reports. Dow components DuPont, Caterpillar, and Pfizer all released dour guidance, with DuPont reporting a 30% net-income drop. More »

(Newser) - Southwest Airlines posted a $120-million third-quarter loss today, due almost entirely to a one-time $247-million charge on an oil bet gone wrong, the New York Times reports. Southwest aggressively locks in its fuel costs far in advance, which looked brilliant last year, as oil prices skyrocketed. But oil’s steep decline this quarter has turned the contracts toxic. More »

(Newser) - A pair of earnings reports from Citigroup and Merrill Lynch for the third quarter shows just how deeply wounded the big brokerage is, while painting a slightly brighter picture fo