Futures tracking the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100 rose on Thursday as an upbeat forecast from Tesla kicked off megacap earnings on a positive note, following declines in major indexes in the previous session.
Market Snapshot
At 7:50 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were down 51 points, or 0.12%, S&P 500 E-minis were up 29.75 points, or 0.51% and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 191.5 points, or 0.95%.
Pre-Market Movers
Tesla - Tesla jumped 13.7% after the electric-vehicle maker reportedthird-quarter adjusted earningsof 72 cents a share, smashing analysts’ estimates of 60 cents, and operating profit margins jumped 3.2 percentage points year over year to 10.8%, better than Wall Street expectations of about 8%. Tesla expects to sell more vehicles in 2024 than it did the previous year, implying it will deliver at least 515,000 vehicles in the fourth quarter, which would be a record, and better than the 490,000 vehicles currently projected by Wall Street. The company also said a lower-priced vehicle will begin production in the first half of 2025.
Nvidia - Nvidia shares rallied 1.3% in premarket trading, trimming yesterday's losses. Nvidia will supply artificial intelligence processors to Indian companies such as Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries, the chip giant said on Thursday, as it deepens partnerships to exploit a growing market.
Boeing - Boeing was down 3.9% after theairplane maker’s largest union rejected a new labor contract, extending a six-week strike that has crippled production. The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Union, representing about 33,000 Boeing employees in the Pacific Northwest, said late Wednesday that 64% of voting members checked “no” to the new labor deal. A tentative deal, agreed to over the weekend, would have raised base wages by 35% over four years, along with other benefit and working condition enhancements.
UPS - UPS jumped 7.3% after the delivery giant reportedthird-quarter adjusted earningsof $1.76 a share, beating analysts’ estimates of $1.63. Revenue of $22.2 billion topped consensus of $22.1 billion. Full-year guidance was adjusted for the sale of Coyote Logistics. UPS said it now expects full-year sales of $91.1 billion and operating profit of about $8.7 billion.
IBM - IBM tumbled 4.5% after the tech giant reportedthird-quarter adjusted earningsof $2.30 a share, better than expectations of $2.22, but revenue of $15 billion that was just below forecasts of $15.1 billion. Revenue rose 1% from a year earlier but came in under the company’s long-term target for mid-single digit growth. The stock has rallied 42% this year, with investors growing more optimistic about the company’s artificial-intelligence efforts. “We continue to see great momentum in AI as our models are trusted, fit-for-purpose, and lower cost, with performance leadership,” said Arvind Krishna, IBM’s chairman and CEO.
Lam Research - Fiscal first-quarter earnings and revenue at Lam Research beat Wall Street estimates, sending shares of the semiconductor-equipment company up 6% in premarket trading. Lam Research said it expects fiscal second-quarter earnings of between 77 cents and 97 cents a share on revenue of $4 billion to $4.6 billion. Analysts expect earnings of 84 cents a share on revenue of $4.24 billion.
T-Mobile US - T-Mobile US was rising 2.4% after the telecommunications company reportedbetter-than-expected third-quarter earningsand revenue, and raised 2024 guidance. T-Mobile added 865,000 postpaid phone connections, up from 850,000 a year earlier, and better than expectations for gains of 727,500. The company said it anticipates postpaid net customer additions between 5.6 million and 5.8 million for the year, up from previous guidance of 5.4 million to $5.7 million.
Southwest Airlines - Southwest Airlines fell 1.2% although the carrier reported better-than-expected third-quarter profit and operating revenue jumped 5.3% to a record $6.87 billion.
American Airlines - American Airlines lifted its annual profit forecast on Thursday, on resilient travel demand and improved pricing power as airlines trim capacity, but its shares fell 2.6% before the bell.
Honeywell - Honeywell International was down 3.1% after the industrial company reportedthird-quarter earningsthat beat analysts’ estimates but sales that were shy of forecasts.
Newmont Mining - Newmont fell 4.8% after the precious metals company posted third-quarter adjusted earnings of 81 cents a share in the third quarter, below analysts’ forecasts of 86 cents. Revenue of $4.61 billion also missed expectations of $4.67 billion.
Mattel - Mattel reported adjusted earnings in the third quarter of $1.14 a share, beating estimates of 95 cents, but revenue in the period fell $1.84 billion and missed forecasts. The toy maker said it anticipates a “good” holiday season. The stock rose 4.4%.
Seadrill, Transocean - Seadrill was rising 9.4% after Bloomberg reported Transocean was intalks to merge with its rival offshore drilling contractor. Discussions are ongoing about the potential structure of a combination, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Transocean shares gained 2.9%.
Market News
Tesla Delivers Blowout Quarter, Lays Out Bold Ambitions for 2025
Elon Musk handily added $80 billion to Tesla Inc.’s market value on a blowout quarter for the EV maker, which notched its most profitable results in more than a year.
Third-quarter earnings were buoyed by sales of the Cybertruck, which turned a profit for the first time, its energy-storage business and a spike in regulatory tax credits that other automakers pay to meet emissions rules. But the stock was also bid up by hopes for the future: An ebullient Musk spent a long portion of Wednesday’s call on a monologue that promised to make Tesla the most valuable company in the world, starting with 20% to 30% delivery growth next year.
Musk, who is known for missing overly optimistic timelines, said Tesla aims to officially roll out ridesharing in Texas and California next year. Although driving on public roads would require regulatory approval, Musk’s comments sent shares in competitors Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Inc. lower.
Fed's Beige Book Shows Little Growth Across Most of US
Economic activity was flat in most parts of the US since early September, the Federal Reserve said in its Beige Book survey of regional business contacts.
More than half of the US central bank’s 12 districts reported “slight or modest” growth in employment, while most districts said prices rose at a “slight or modest pace,” according to the report published Wednesday in Washington. Multiple districts also noted slowing wage growth.
“On balance, economic activity was little changed in nearly all districts since early September, though two districts reported modest growth,” the report said. “Reports on consumer spending were mixed, with some districts noting shifts in the composition of purchases, mostly toward less expensive alternatives.”
