S&P 500 Companies Projected to Report a 3.8% Growth in Earnings - S&P 500 Index at a 5-Year High

Research Driven Investing Provides Stocks Research on Freeport-McMoRan and Verizon

NEW YORK, NY -- (Marketwire) -- 01/23/13 -- A string of positive economic data helped propel the Dow Jones industrial average and the S&P 500 Index to five-year highs last week. The Dow's and S&P 500's weekly gain of 1.2 percent and 1 percent, respectively, were the third consecutive week of gains. Research Driven Investing examines investing opportunities in the S&P 500 Index and provides equity research on Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. (NYSE: FCX) and Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ).


Access to the full company reports can be found at:

www.RDInvesting.com/FCX

www.RDInvesting.com/VZ


A steadily improving U.S. housing market combined with a 5-year low in jobless claims has helped boost investor optimism heading into 2013. Last week, the Labor Department reported initial claims for unemployment benefits declined 37,000 to a seasonally adjusted total of 335,000, which was the largest weekly drop in nearly 2 years. Strong earnings from major companies such as Alcoa and General Electric have also contributed to the market's recent surge. Collectively, companies in the S&P 500 Index are projected to report a 3.8% earnings growth in the fourth quarter, according to S&P's Capital IQ.

"The economy is entering the year maybe not with a running start, but certainly a head start," Jack Ablin, BMO Private Bank's chief investment officer, said in a recent telephone interview, according to Bloomberg. "It helps build a nice story for 2013."

Research Driven Investing releases regular market updates on the S&P 500 Index so investors can stay ahead of the crowd and make the best investment decisions to maximize their returns. Take a few minutes to register with us free at www.RDInvesting.com and get exclusive access to our numerous stock reports and industry newsletters.

Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold holds a dynamic portfolio of operating, expansion and growth projects in the copper industry and is the world's largest producer of molybdenum. The company reported a net income of $743 million for the fourth quarter of 2012, an increase of 16 percent when compared to the fourth quarter of 2011.

Verizon Communications is a global leader in delivering broadband and other wireless and wireline communications services to consumer, business, government and wholesale customers. The company reported that for full year 2012 revenues totaled $115.8 billion, an increase of 4.5 percent when compared to a year ago.

Research Driven Investing has not been compensated by any of the above-mentioned publicly traded companies. Research Driven Investing is compensated by other third party organizations for advertising services. We act as an independent research portal and are aware that all investment entails inherent risks. Please view the full disclaimer at: http://www.rdinvesting.com/disclaimer