hi, everyone, welcome to on the money. i'm becky quick. it's the apple of wall street aes eye, but can the tech giant overshadow fears of a show me market? how you can hedge against the risk. it's a very, very, very fine house, but can you afford it? and stars can't rock without it. the legendary martin guitar. find out how this american brand amplified sales to new heights. >> this is america's number one financial news program. "on the money". now, becky quick. >> here's a look at what's making news as we head into a new week on the money. wall street flirting around all

time highs as first quarter earnings. more than 150 s&p earnings reportinging this week. among those beating ek peckations, microsoft, facebook, dow chemicals, boeing, delta and caterpillar. ford narrowly missed on weather impacts and slower sales and gm just beat profit impacted recalls. apple making news with strong earnings. a raise dividend and an increased stock buyback program, plus, a survey surprise 7-1 market. maybe making it easier for individual investors to get in on the stock. the market closed lower on wednesday after six straight days of gains, then staying exactly unchanged on thursday for the first time in 12 years. bank of america is discussing a $10 billion deal to settle charges that it misled investors on the quality of mortgage-backed securities just after jpmorgan paid $15 million.

and books, diapers and now, t"te soprano sopranos". they have a $300 million deal to stream is network's programming to amazon prime subscribers. we are wrapping up a busy week of earnings seasons. alison deans is senior adviser at varick asset management. whatç do you think so far abou how this earnings season is shaping up? >> there's a vibe toward deposit that's not positive. that the economy is picking up steam. truth is, the companies had expected better than expected results. more of the confusion. >> i will say though, i have been pleasantly surprised, maybe just because my expectations

were so low coming into this. there have been some that seem the industrials in particular, have a little bit more steam. >> expectations were beaten down low. we had a noisy first quarter. we didn't know how much that mattered, if that was a real slow down in the making or not. i think the results have kind of reassured that nothing dramatic happened in a way of slowing, but we didn't necessarily see indications it was accelerating slowly either. but the overall stock market kind of keeps bumping up against the all-time highs and hasn't seen enough to say we had a high. >> there have been a loft pulls and push from the bears. i had a chance to talk to warren buffett this week. asked him if there was a lot of froth in the market. >>ç so, as a reasonableness, b stocks ought to be higher every ten years. there's a plowback of earnings that goes back year after year. stocks will be cut more and more decade after decade. >> i agree.

the market appears fairly valued and with the extent we thought we were going back into a big slowdown, but things do seem to be improving. we've been used to a boom and bust type of error and now, it's going to be a gradual improvement. total returns of 8%. >> mike, do you think there's going to be some sort of resolution soon to this idea of whether or not we'll get a 3% growth for the overall economy? >> second half of the year every year. i don't really know if we'll have that soon. we've had four months so far this year of the market figuring out if last year's great gains were justifiable in all those sectors that did the very best and even the ones that didn't, so i did feel as if we're in a year of kind of transitioning, but for right now, we're seeing the federal reserve is on the margin of becoming less generous. we have to adjust, then we're seeing if corporate america can

really deliver again withç prot marg margins so high. >> let's talk specifics. apple. it came in with a raised dividend. came in with a 7 for 1 stock split. raised more for stock buyback. answered just about everybody question. >> apple certainly did and i think it's good representation of how the whole season has gone because nobody really expected gang busters. over came the fact that ipads are very sluggish at the moment and i think those kind of capital structured moves they're making, they make sense right now. you never needed the cash to fund the growth, so it seems as if they're kind of doing what they can. think idea that they're failing to innovate is kind of unreasonable, to be honest with you. they can't change the world every two years. they put movies in your pocket.

it's not really something you can just sort of flip the switch and expect. i think they're doing what they can. the split is kind of an interesting move. >> now, is there anything from the global risk perspective that truly worries you? especially with the latest concerns about russia and ukraine? >> that is. that worries me a çlot. when i look at what's going on there, i think at this point, you're not asked to go into some type of militaristic war to stop russia. it's going to an economic war and that could be significant. europe, they're so relying on russia for energy and i think putin knows with the economic clout and while it doesn't look if we do have some type of energy crisis, that's a big deal. visa made a comment about they're feeling the impact, there's a lot of unknowns as to what the ripple effect would be, so that's a big deal. >> what about next week? is there anything that really jumps out? what's on your radar screen? >> jobs numbers and the fed.

we're going to hear from janet yellin, get another picture if she's going to emphasize that she's going to do everything possible to help the economy or just emphasize hey, steady as she goes, we have a plan, we're going to be reducing our stimulus and just expect that for a time to come. i think those things, i hear a lot of people saying, you know, the ukraine thing is something to keep fixating on. we don't have something specific and acute to worry about yet. >> thank you both for being here. up çnext, we are on the money. might suffer from sicker shock this spring. home prices are rising fast and maybe out of reach for the average buyer. and later, what does a nearly 200-year-old family business know about innovation? reinvention is music to the ears of fans of martin guitars. take a look at how the stock market ended the week.

sales took a dip last month. home prices are flying high. what should homeowners know about the prices this spring? joining us now is our real estate correspondent, diana olick. thank you for being here this morning. >> well, thanks for having me. >> the march numbers, that was a bit of a setback. what happened to those existing home sales? >> we expected to see a bump up in march because we had blamed so much of the weakness on rough weather, so we thought when spring finally came, we'd see more people out. demand was just continued weak. we saw it flat month to month and down from a week ago. the raeal quicker was sales of newly built homes really plumeted. those numbers are based on size contracts. out in the spring locking to buy a home and the demand just

wasn't there. >> usually, you would see higher prices because there's so much more demand. this time around, with that demand dropping off, do you think high prices can still hang in there? >> well, the prices are quoing to start to moderate a bit. that has been a strange and unique recovery and it has to be becauseç this housing crash wa so unique. price were jacked up last year by investors on the low end of the market. it wasn't regular buyers in there pushing those prices higher, so now that investors are pulling back, you're getting sticker shock from a lot of buyers out there. now that we're starting to see the sales come down, you have fewer investors in the market. you're going to see those price gains have to moderate. the trouble again is for the builders. they have not been lowering prices at all. >> were you surprised to get those march numbers? >> i was surprised on the newly built homes because we've seen such low inventory in the market.

we expected the builders to pick up and see more demand and the fact we didn't really showed that it's not necessarily about the amount of homes on the market, but really again, that sticker shock. >> diana, thank you. diana olick. those rising home prices and low inventory, it could keep home buyers from moving in this spring, so is this a sign that homes are becoming less affordable for the typical buyer? joining us now, spencer rascoff. you heard what diana had to say. would you consider this a buyer's or seller's market? >> it certainly depends on where you're looking. certain parts>oóoóow÷÷ of theç are buyer and certain parts are seller. the thing missing from the conversation so far is the impact of limited inventory. 19% of americans are a mortgage are still upside down and 38% are basically in a negative equity position. they can't list their home

because they're upside down on their loans. therefore, there's just limited inventory and that inventory is not enough to satisfy buyer demand and that's why home prices have spiked and that's why then creates the sticker shock because home prices have spiked because there's limited inventory. >> sounds like a very circular argument. what breaks that cycle and gets people to actually start putting their homes on the market? >> as prices increase, more people get brought out of negative equity. so, it's already starting to break, but those people need time to get out of negative equity and then have time to list and be confident there will be some other home they can afford to move into. there is a bit of a cycle that needs to be broken and in the meantime, what usually creates extra supply is homebuilders that bring on newç supplies in the market and as diana points out, that didn't happening as

quickly as we would like. what limited supply is coming from builders is coming in at a very high price point. too high to satisfy demand because of the sticker shock. >> you know, the lead story in "the wall street journal" on friday was all about these higher mortgage costs and what that's doik. they saw mortgage lending decline to the lowest level in 14 years as mortgage rates started coming up. does that mean owning a home is becoming less affordable? >> the mortgage data, it was all about refis going away. because everyone who has equity has already refied. and purchase loans are actually okay year over year. the question though of you know, has the american dream changed, are people no longer going to buy homes, i don't agree with that. so, home ownership rates went from 67% to 62% and are picking back up. i don't think anything has changed about the importance of owning a home.

what probably has changed is that people no longer buy a home for the potential appreciation. or at least they ought not to. they know are hopefully buying a home because they think it's the best placeç for them to live f the next five or ten years. if there's appreciation, that's great, but i think people's perceptions have changed. at least i hope they have because what got us into the last bubble, people buying homes they shouldn't have in the first place. >> you think it's still a great investment, only if it's something you living in, not as a flip it proposition. >> absolutely. it depends on how long you're going to live in the home. the nationwide break even is three years. if you're going to live in the home for three years, it makes more sense to buy than rent. >> one other thing we have coming up next week is the jobs number. we're getting a look at how things have been going across the nation and i wonder how important is that in the. >> howard: market and rvrry.

>> very important. certainly, the economy is so much stronger today in terms of consumer confidence and confidence in unemployment numbers than it was two or three years ago, but there's obviously some uncertainty in the economy and that impacts people's propensity to buy a home. >> we'll talk to you again soon. >> thank you. >> up next, we are "on the money" and doesn't it sound great? inside one of the music industries mostç beloved brand which has writte ♪

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it's a 181-year-old brand that's held america's journey through one product line, martin guitars. we're looking at this company with a long legacy and how their business stays to today. it's something we're calling american remade. people who love martin guitars, you guys are a cult almost. >> they're pretty fanatical. willie nelson has a martin guitar that you would say amazingly, is still in one piece. he's worn a big hole through the top. johnny cash, eric clapton. crosby stills nash and young. >> martin guitars are the instruments of grammys, gold records and sold out arenas. home is the pennsylvania headquarters where design, detail and craft have made music for generations.

>> no matter what you're doing. >> mostly handmade since 1833, martin built and rebuilt a signature american sound and one of the music industry's most enduring brands. >> the craftsmanship is impeccableç and i think that's what's carried the brand. >> it got tough back in the 1980s i know. >> it's been tough in the 1880s. >> in the 1880s. we had to deal with things like civil war. we are affected by economic and political instability. >> chris martin is the sixth ceo since his great american ball park grandfather took his skills to a factory. >> you should stick with your father. he's got a good reputation as a captain. the guitar's a fad. it's a focus trend. i think that was the imptous for him to go, i'm out of here. >> in his first 25 years in the united states, the immigrant

business man designed nine new mod ols of guitar, all of them recognizable today with variations of size, shape and strength. >> martin literally wrote the book for the designs of acoustic, steal stringy tars. >> matt has sold martin guitars since the 1960s. >> it's the one and you can't beat the original. martin could be like the bmw or mercedes. >> with a price point from $2,000 to more than 10,000, martin shares 3% of the nearly $1 billion american guitar sfri industry, but changing musical and economic pace threatened the brand in the 1980s. mtv came out with unplugged and eric clapton came out playing a martin guitar. what happened then? >> the phones started to ring. >> an 8,000 limited series in

collaboration with clapton sold out in hours. >> we don't call someone up and say, you're famous, would you play a martin? we recognize that they're famous and they're playing a martin and we call them up and they're like, wow, yeah, let's talk. let's do an artist model together. >> how many of these do you make every year? >> a lot. my ancestors would be amazed. our peak year in the '70s was about 23,000 guitars. that's a lot of guitars. last year, we made 140,000 guitars. i think it has to do with the fact that right now, there's something very exciting going on with popular music that embraces acoustic musical instruments and that's what drives our business. mumford and sons, avettç brothers, the lumineers. someone recognized it's time to

reintroduce that sound to the consumers. right now, it's on an upswing. we're very fortunate that i meet young people that, they get excited about guitars, guitar mus music. they'll read an interview. john mayer. somewhere in the interview, he'll say, when i was young, i went to find more about my guitar hero, john lennon. woody guthrie. all along the way, you find those heroes holding martin guitars. >> martin says its legacy with the demands of running a modern lifestyle brands. ambassadors like 23-year-old ed sheerhan or danny davis want to reach a broader consumer. how do you get your brand out there? >> it's been a great relationship. we have a partnership with lucky

jeans because the folks that run lucky are martin fans, so they do some martin shirts in their shop. >> who are you selling these to? >> folks that want aç fine guitar. it's not usually the case, although i would love it to be, that a ginger starts with a martin. >> up next, a look at the news for the week ahead and a makeover for a familiar face under the golden arches. is it fashion or just clowning around?

look for "on the money" on facebook and for more, you can follow us on twitter. a story is coming up that may move the markets this week, lots of economic data. first, on tuesday, the fomc will kick off its two-day meeting on monetary policy. on wednesday, the first estimate for first quarter in gross domestic product is out. wednesday's also the deadline for victims of bernie madoff to submit their claim. activity in the sector and on friday, the big number of the week. the jobs report. one celebrity's new look caught twirt by storm this week. 51-year-old ronald mcdonald is ditching the jump suit for a blazer and bow tie. he's also got a second outfit for casual occasions. mcdonald'sç is redoing the efft

to boost weak sales. the plans are to include him on social media. already trending on twitter, not loving it, pu tell us what you think. that's the show for today. i'm becky quick. thank you so much for joining me. next week, we'll be bringing you the show from omaha, nebraska, where families gather for their meeting which is hosted by warren buffett and charlie monger. i'll see you next weekend. really... so our business can be on at&t's network for $175 dollars a month? yup. all five of you for $175. our clients need a lot of attention. there's unlimited talk and text. we're working deals all day. you get 10 gigabytes of data to share. what about expansion potential? add a line anytime for 15 bucks a month. low dues& great terms& let's close. our best ever value plans for business

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>> the people have spoken and it is lieu peta. hi everybody. welcome to "access hollywood". weekend edition. people magazine has named their 50 most beautiful and top of the list may going the cover is lupita nyong'o and this cap off the year that brought the relatively unknown to oscar winner and now to most beautiful. >> i never dreamed that i would be considered one of the most beautiful people by just about anyone. i was happy for all the girls who would see me on the cover and feel a little