Stock futures fell in early morning trade Thursday, putting Wall Street on track to give back some of sharp gains seen in the previous session after the Federal Reserve raised rates by half a point.
Market Snapshot
At 08:03 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were down 168 points, or 0.49%, S&P 500 e-minis were down 27.75 points, or 0.65%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 109 points, or 0.81%.
Pre-Market Movers
Twitter(TWTR) – Twitter rose 1.5% in premarket action after Elon Musk detailed $7.2 billion in financing commitments for his deal to buy the company. An SEC filing shows Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and investor Ron Baron are among those committing funds.
SeaWorld(SEAS) – The theme park operator’s stock rose 1% in the premarket after it reported a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss and saw revenue exceed estimates as attendance topped pre-pandemic levels
Spirit Airlines(SAVE) – Spirit reported an adjusted quarterly loss of $1.60 per share, wider than the 58-cent loss Wall Street had anticipated, with revenue also below forecasts. Spirit shares lost 1.4% in premarket trading.
Kontoor Brands(KTB) – The company behind the Wrangler and Lee apparel brands beat estimates by 20 cents with adjusted quarterly earnings of $1.43 per share, and revenue also above estimates. Kontoor raised its full-year forecast, although it cut its current-quarter outlook due to Covid lockdowns in China.
Shopify(SHOP) – Shopify plummeted 14.1% in premarket trading after it reported adjusted quarterly earnings of 20 cents per share, well below the 64-cent consensus estimate. The e-commerce platform also gave a cautious outlook as lockdown-inspired growth slows amid the absence of new consumer stimulus money.
Wayfair(W) – The online home goods retailer’s shares tumbled 6.4% in the premarket after it reported an adjusted quarterly loss of $1.96 per share, 40 cents wider than expected, although revenue matched forecasts. Active customer numbers were down 23.4% compared to a year earlier.
Booking Holdings(BKNG) – Booking Holdings surged 10.1% in premarket trading after reporting better-than-expected quarterly profit and revenue driven by a jump in demand for the travel services company. The parent of Priceline and other services earned an adjusted $3.90 per share, well above the 90-cent consensus estimate.
Twilio(TWLO) – Twilio shares added 2.4% in the premarket with the cloud communications company reporting a breakeven quarter, on an adjusted basis. Analysts had expected a loss of 22 cents per share, and revenue also exceeded Wall Street forecasts.
Etsy(ETSY) – Etsy tumbled 12.5% in premarket action despite earnings that matched expectations and better-than-expected revenue for the online marketplace operator. The stock came under pressure after Etsy’s current-quarter guidance was weaker than expected amid a drop in disposable income for consumers.
EBay(EBAY) – eBay shares fell 7.8% in premarket trading on a weaker-than-expected revenue forecast, even as the e-commerce company beat profit and revenue predictions for its most recent quarter. Inflation and a return to pre-pandemic shopping habits are among the factors weighing on forecasts from eBay and other e-commerce companies.
Sunrun(RUN) – Sunrun rallied 12.8% in premarket trading after the solar company reported first-quarter revenue that was much better than expected, even though its quarterly loss was wider than expected. Sunrun said it had implemented “meaningful” price hikes to offset higher costs and demand for solar equipment remained strong.
Market News
Berkshire Holds 15.2% of Occidental Petroleum After $350 Million of Buys This Week
Berkshire Hathaway bought about $350 million of stock in Occidental Petroleum on Monday and Tuesday, lifting its stake in the energy company to $8.8 billion, according to a regulatory filing Wednesday evening.
Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A, BRK.B) purchased 5.9 million shares of Occidental Petroleum $(OXY)$ on Monday and Tuesday, with nearly all the purchases occurring on Monday. Berkshire now holds 142.3 million shares of Occidental, a 15.2% interest.
Bill Gates Says Elon Musk’s Approach to Misinformation Could Make Twitter Worse
Bill Gates said that he isn’t sure of Elon Musk’s motives in buying Twitter Inc. and that social media must play a role in curbing the spread of misinformation.
“He actually could make it worse,” Gates said of Musk’s potential impact on the platform, speaking Wednesday at The Wall Street Journal’s CEO Council Summit. But, he said, “That’s not his track record.”
Shell Posts Record Profit on High Energy Prices and Trading Boost
Shell reported on Thursday a profit of $9.13 billion in the first quarter, its highest ever, boosted by higher oil and gas prices and a strong performance of its trading division.
Shell joins sector rivals, including BP and TotalEnergies, which also saw a sharp rise in profits driven by energy prices and strong trading. Norway's Equinor, a major seller of gas in Europe, reported record earnings on Wednesday.
Twilio Rises After Q1 Results Top Estimates
Twilio shares rose after the customer engagement software company posted first-quarter results that beat expectations but said growth would slow in the second-quarter.
For the period ending March 31, the Jeff Lawson-led company said it broke even on $875.4 million in revenue, up 48% year-over-year.
A consensus of Wall Street analysts estimated the company would lose 21 cents per share and generate $863.81 million in revenue for the period.
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