U.S. stock index futures were slightly up on Tuesday ahead of key inflation data that is likely to seal the case for a 50 basis points interest rate hike in May by the Federal Reserve as it amps up its battle against surging prices.
Market Snapshot
At 8:10 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were up 34 points, or 0.10%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 8 points, or 0.18%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 45.75 points, or 0.33%.
Pre-Market Movers
PG&E – The California utility’s shares jumped 2.3% in the premarket after it reached legal settlements over two fires in Northern California. PG&E will pay $55 million and will not face any criminal prosecution over those fires.
Hewlett Packard Enterprise – The enterprise computing company’s stock slid 3.5% in premarket trading after Morgan Stanley downgraded it to “equal-weight” from “overweight” as part of an overall downgrade of the telecom and networking equipment industry. Morgan Stanley sees softening orders in the second half of 2022.
CarMax – The auto retailer’s shares fell 2.2% in the premarket after a bottom-line miss for its latest quarter. CarMax earned 98 cents per share, falling short of the $1.25 per share consensus estimate, though revenue topped Street forecasts. The earnings miss came as sales volumes slowed and average selling prices continued to rise.
Crowdstrike – Crowdstrike jumped 3.6% in premarket action following a Goldman Sachs upgrade to “buy” from “neutral.” Goldman thinks the cloud computing company has shown strong execution while demand continues to ramp higher.
Albertsons – The supermarket operator earned 75 cents per share for its latest quarter, 11 cents a share above estimates. Revenues also came in above analysts’ projections. Albertsons said it was able to effectively deal with increased supply chain and product costs.
Deutsche Bank – An undisclosed shareholder sold 5% stakes in both Deutsche Bank and rival German lender Commerzbank, generating a total of about $1.9 billion. Deutsche Bank lost 1.3% in premarket trading.
Chegg – Chegg slid 3.7% in the premarket after KeyBanc Capital Markets downgraded the stock to “sector weight” from “overweight.” KeyBanc is predicting a downtick in U.S. growth trends for the provider of educational products and services.
Cisco Systems – Citi downgraded Cisco to “sell” from “neutral,” saying that networking equipment competitorsJuniper Networks(JNPR) andArista Networks(ANET) are poised to gain market share from Cisco. The stock lost 2.6% in premarket trading.
Veru Inc. - Veru surged 14% in premarket trading. Veru's late-stage trial showed its oral COVID-19 treatment reduced deaths.
Market News
Apple Could Announce a New $80-90 Billion Stock Buyback Plan
Apple could announce an incremental stock buyback of $80-90 billion this month, according to Citi analyst Jim Suva.
Apple spent roughly $81 billion in the last 12 months on buying back its shares, Juva adds. Furthermore, the Cupertino-based titan could also raise its dividend by 5-10%, Citi analyst said.
Intel’s $3 Billion Factory Expansion Opens in Key Comeback Step
Intel Corp. announced the opening of a $3 billion extension to its D1X plant in Oregon, an investment aimed at speeding up technology development needed to regain leadership of the chip industry.
The biggest maker of computer processors reiterated its plan to have better production technology than rivals by 2025 and have its factories reach parity a year earlier than that.
Pfizer and Moderna Hire New CFOs to deploy cash they have generated during the Covid-19 pandemic
Vaccine makers Pfizer Inc. and Moderna Inc. named company outsiders as chief financial officers as they look to deploy some of the cash they have generated during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Nokia’s CEO Said the Company will pull out of the Russian market
Nokia is pulling out of the Russian market, its CEO told Reuters, going a step further than rival Ericsson, which said on Monday it was indefinitely suspending its business in the country.
Hundreds of foreign companies are cutting ties with Russia following its Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine and after Western sanctions against Moscow.
Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank Sink on Mystery $2 Billion Stake Sale
Deutsche Bank AG and Commerzbank AG shares dropped, after a major investor sold down its stake in Germany’s two largest publicly listed banks.
An unidentified investor is looking to raise 1.38 billion euros ($1.5 billion) by selling 116 million shares in Deutsche Bank, while Commerzbank shares worth 508 million euros ($555 million) are up for sale by an unnamed investor
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