U.S. stock futures were mixed on Thursday, with the S&P 500 looking to build on the previous day's gains as investors braced for another round of big bank earnings and new data on retail sales.
S&P 500 (ES=F) futures were up 0.2%, while futures for the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 (NQ=F) were up about 0.3%. But Dow Jones Industrial Average (YM=F) futures fell about 0.1%, dragged down by losses in UnitedHealth (UNH) shares.
Markets are still enjoying some relief after an unexpected slowdown in consumer inflation raised questions about whether this year's rate cuts were priced in too much. Stocks rose on Wednesday on data and stellar earnings from major U.S. banks.
Traders are now ramping up bets that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates by July, reversing a sell-off triggered by a stronger-than-expected jobs report in December.
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Markets are focused on a later December retail sales report for insight into economic growth, while weekly jobless claims data could test interest rate cut hopes.
Meanwhile, Bank of America Corp's (BAC) results showed fourth-quarter profit more than doubled as the lender benefited from a recovery in Wall Street trading that also boosted earnings at its rivals. Its shares rose slightly in premarket trading. Investors are now focused on Morgan Stanley's (MS) pre-market quarterly report.
In other earnings, UnitedHealth Group's fourth-quarter revenue fell short of expectations, hurt by weakness in its health insurance unit. The stock fell in premarket trading.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.'s (TSM, 2330.TW) upbeat sales outlook has boosted optimism about demand for artificial intelligence hardware this year. Major chip suppliers Nvidia (NVDA) and Apple (AAPL) saw net profit rise 57% on Thursday, setting a quarterly record. After the release of the financial report, TSMC's stock price rose more than 5% in pre-market trading, while Nvidia's stock price rose nearly 2%.
live 1 update Not sold in Target's pre-launch deal
Target (TGT) shares are up premarket this morning after reporting holiday sales results.
Not sure why Target didn't blow me away!
Sales barely grew, and the company reiterated its earnings-per-share forecast -- with the top estimate 20 cents below the current sell-side consensus.
Bottom line: This was another quarter in which Target Corp. showed it continues to lose market share to Walmart (WMT). Here's what Walmart CEO Doug McMillon told me when he accepted the 2024 Company of the Year award.
PS: I love Walmart’s new blue logo color, which ties in with founder Sam Walton’s iconic trucker hat.
