The increase in global sales was primarily driven by a return to growth in Apple's two largest markets, China and the United States, preliminary data from Counterpoint Research showed. "Q2 iPhone performance looks promising at the moment, but as always, swings either way are dictated by two markets - the U.S. and China," Ivan Lam, Senior Analyst at Counterpoint Research said. Calculations based on data from the government-affiliated China Academy of Information and Communications Technology showed that April shipments of foreign-branded phones in China rose to 3.52 million units from 3.50 million a year earlier...

While the S&P 500 (^GSPC) includes industry leaders, not every stock in the index is a winner. Some companies are past their prime, weighed down by poor execution, weak financials, or structural headwinds...