U.S. stock futures traded near the flatline Thursday night after an attempt at extending Wednesday’s Federal Reserve-fueled rally failed.
Futures tied to the S&P 500 were little changed. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures lost 19 points, or 0.04%. Nasdaq 100 futures slipped 0.02%.
The action follows a losing session for the major averages. On Thursday, the S&P 500 slipped 0.2%, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.3%. The 30-stock Dow lost 11.31 points, or 0.03%.
On Wednesday, even as Fed policymakers kept their forecast for two rate cuts this year, they raised their inflation outlook and trimmed their economic growth expectations. The forecast raised the specter of stagflation – a scenario of rising inflation as the economy’s growth slows. Uncertainty around President Donald Trump’s tariff policies has rattled stocks in recent weeks, and Fed Chair Jerome Powell noted that tariffs may “delay” progress on inflation.
Tariff worries are also weighing on companies, according to Michael Green, chief strategist at Simplify Asset Management.
“Companies are increasingly citing confusion and uncertainty around their planning and capital spending and hiring decisions — and when they pause, it means that they’re slowing down,” he said. “There’s an element of that playing out in the markets.”
It has been an ugly month, with the Nasdaq still sitting in correction – that is, more than 10% off its most recent peak – and the S&P 500 briefly touching correction territory last week.
Nevertheless, the S&P 500 is on pace for a 0.4% advance week to date, and it’s about to break a four-week losing streak. The Dow is on track for a 1.1% gain, marking its best weekly performance since late January. The Nasdaq, however, is off about 0.4% in the period, heading for its fifth straight losing week and its longest stretch of weekly losses since May 2022.
Morgan Stanley lowers Tesla price target
Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas trimmed his price target on Tesla shares, citing weak auto deliveries.
Jonas reduced his target to $410 from $430 per share, which still implies shares climbing 73.5% from Thursday’s close. He remained overweight on the name and kept it a “top pick,” however.
The analyst cut his first-quarter delivery estimates to 351,000, down more than 9% on a year-over-year basis. That compares to his earlier call for 415,000 deliveries — which would’ve reflected an increase of more than 7% from the year-ago period.
The full story can be found here.
— Hakyung Kim
Stocks making the biggest moves after hours
Check out the companies making headlines in extended trading:
FedEx — Shares slipped more than 4% after the shipping company reported an earnings miss in the fiscal third quarter. FedEx posted adjusted earnings of $4.51 per share, while analysts polled by LSEG had called for $4.54 per share. Meanwhile, quarterly revenues of $22.16 billion came slightly above consensus forecasts for $21.89 billion.
Micron Technology — The provider of memory and storage solutions jumped 4%. Micron offered a rosy outlook for the fiscal third quarter, calling for adjusted earnings of $1.57 per share on $8.80 billion of revenue. That surpassed Wall Street’s forecast for earnings of $1.47 per share on revenue of $8.50 billion, per LSEG. Top- and bottom-line results for the second quarter also beat expectations.
Nike — The sports apparel giant advanced 2%. In the fiscal third quarter, Nike reported earnings of 54 cents per share and revenue of $11.27 billion, topping analysts’ call for 29 cents per share in earnings and $11.01 billion in revenue, per LSEG. Sales were down 9% from the year-ago period, however.
The full list can be found here.
— Hakyung Kim
Stock futures open little changed
U.S. stock futures opened near the flatline Thursday night.
Futures tied to the S&P 500 inched up 0.06%. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures inched up 0.02%, while Nasdaq 100 futures added 0.08%.
— Hakyung Kim