MARKET SNAPSHOT: U.S. Stock Market Awaits Signs Of Revenue Growth

By Kate Gibson

With Alcoa Inc. spearheading the start of the second-quarter earnings season, analysts say the lack of revenue growth from the aluminum giant and the other 29 companies that make up the Dow Jones Industrial Average is a major factor contributing to Wall Street's lackluster sentiment.

On Thursday, energy shares led limited gains and health care shares fronted sector declines as Wall Street registered a mixed performance. The Dow was off 15.34 points at 8,163.0. The S&P 500 (SPX) rose 1.04 points to 880.6, while the Nasdaq Composite (RIXF) added 4.14 points to 1,751.3.

The first Dow component to report results for the quarter, Alcoa (AA) late Wednesday reported a narrower-than-expected loss. .

Since pretty much every company in the country has trimmed costs during the current recession, positive earnings surprises that stem from cost-cutting translate into limited upside to stocks, analyst say.

"As the old saying goes, you can't save your way to prosperity," said Nicholas Colas, chief market strategist at BNY ConvergEx Group.

Judging from individual company weightings that make up the Dow, nearly 40% of the blue-chip index is unlikely to show positive revenue comparisons until 2010, at the earliest, said Colas. The strategist lists IBM (IBM), Chevron (CVX), 3M Co. (MMM) and Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) as examples.