Wells Fargo, BP & Stocks Trending On Social Media This Thursday

iSentium is a company that tracks sentiment on Twitter and enables users to sift through Tweets with ease. The application plots sentiment over a price chart and helps to identify changes that may impact pricing trends. Each morning, the firm generates a Pre-Market report for end-users. Benzinga uses the application and is republishing their morning note with iSentium's blessing.

Wells Fargo & Co WFC: Wells Fargo reported increased profits and earnings in its fourth-quarter performance report this morning, largely in line with analyst estimates. The bank and mortgage lender recorded lower interest margins but a larger and more credit-worthy loan portfolio from a year earlier, and it anticipates continued growth despite growing expenses. Although earnings and revenues matched consensus, early morning sentiment was predominantly negative for Wells Fargo. The sentiment activity created a bearish iSENSE alert at 8:30AM, and WFC was roughly flat in the pre-market.

BP plc (ADR) BP: BP has decided to cut 200 employees in its North Sea operations, the latest measure in a series of restructurings the oil company has embarked on since last year in response to weak energy prices. Continued weakness in crude oil has led to decreased capital expenditures and layoffs across the energy space. The morning’s news brought consistent negative sentiment and a bearish iSENSE alert at 8:03AM for BP, up slightly in the pre-market.

Citigroup Inc C: Citigroup reported weaker-than-expected earnings in its fourth-quarter report this morning, driven by legal and restructuring costs of $3.4 billion as the bank shrinks its global footprint to meet tighter capital standards. Market analysts had expected slightly higher profits and revenues from the US bank, which despite its pullbacks retains significant exposure to international and developing markets sensitive to weak commodity prices and US dollar strength. The earnings report produced consistently negative sentiment and a bearish iSENSE alert at 8:06AM, and C was down over 1 percent in the pre-market.

Taiwan Semiconductor Mfg. Co. Ltd. (ADR) TSM: Taiwan Semiconductor experienced a surge in tweet volumes this morning after reporting strong growth in net profit attributed to rising demand for integrated circuits in mobile devices. Both earnings and revenues exceeded analyst consensus figures, and the company plans to raise capital expenditures for the coming year. The sentiment reaction on Twitter was one of overwhelming positive sentiment, with a bullish iSENSE alert at 8:27AM. TSM was up over 6 percent in the pre-market.