U.S. stock futures fell on Friday as the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average are on pace to post a losing week after the Federal Reserve's latest policy update.
At 8:05 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were down 153 points, or 0.45%, S&P 500 E-minis were down 14.75 points, or 0.35% and Nasdaq 100 E-minis fell 18.5 points, or 0.13%.
The blue-chip Dow has lost 1.9% week to date, on pace for its worst week since January. The S&P 500 has fallen 0.6%. But the Nasdaq has gained 0.65% on the week.
The decline in stocks came amid a drastic flattening of the so-called Treasury yield curve where the yields of shorter-duration Treasurys, like the 2-year note, rose, while longer duration yields, such as the benchmark 10-year fell. The retreat in long-dated bonds reflects less optimism toward the economic growth, while the jump in short-end yields shows the expectations of the Fed raising rates.
The central bank's hawkish pivot on Wednesday caused volatile stock and bond market moves. Fed officials added two rate hikes to their 2023 forecast and increased their inflation projection for the year, while Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said officials have discussed tapering bond buying and would at some point begin slowing the asset purchases.
Friday also coincides with the quarterly "quadruple witching" where options and futures on indexes and equities expire. Many expect trading to be more volatile in light of this event.
Stocks making the biggest moves in the premarket:
Adobe(ADBE) – Adobe reported quarterly profit of $3.03 per share, 21 cents a share above estimates. The software company's revenue also topped Wall Street forecasts and Adobe gave stronger-than-expected current-quarter guidance. Its shares rose 3.1% in premarket trading.
Smith & Wesson(SWBI) – Smith & Wesson reported better-than-expected profit and sales for its latest quarter, as the gun maker's sales surged 67% compared to the same quarter a year earlier. The company notes that its shipments jumped 70% compared to overall industry growth of 42%. Shares rallied 4.7% in premarket trading.
Orphazyme(ORPH) – Orphazyme plunged 52.6% in the premarket after the Food and Drug Administration rejected its experimental treatment for a genetic disorder known as Niemann-Pick disease type C. The Denmark-based biotech company had seen volatile trading in its shares in recent days after it picked up social media attention, falling 10.2% Thursday after a more than 61% surge Wednesday.
Delta Air Lines(DAL) – The stock added 1.1% in the premarket following a double upgrade at Wolfe Research to "outperform" from "underperform." Wolfe said it sees business travel benefiting from pent-up demand later this summer, although it doesn't think it will return to pre-Covid levels.
Manchester United(MANU) – Manchester United lost $30.2 million for the first three months of this year, due largely to the absence of fans at its games because of the coronavirus pandemic. All of the team's 2020-21 season games were played without spectators.
ArcelorMittal(MT) – ArcelorMittal sold its remaining 38.2 million shares of steel producerCleveland-Cliffs(CLF). The mining company will use the proceeds to fund a $750 million share buyback. Arcelor-Mittal rose 1% in premarket action, while Cleveland-Cliffs added 0.3%.
Carnival(CCL) – The cruise line operator disclosed a March data breach that may have exposed personal information of customers of its Carnival, Holland America and Princess brands. It did not disclose how many may have been affected.
Fox Corp.(FOXA) – Fox increased its stock repurchase program by $2 billion to a total of $4 billion, helping to send its shares higher by 2.8% in the premarket.
Pilgrim's Pride(PPC) – Pilgrim's Pride expanded its prepared foods and branded products business by purchasing Kerry Group's Meats and Meals business. The poultry producer will pay the Ireland-based company about $947 million for that unit.
Hasbro(HAS),Mattel(MAT) – The toymakers are on watch following a New York Post report warning of a potential toy shortage this coming holiday season. The paper said thousands of toys ready for shipment remain stockpiled in China due to the lack of shipping containers available for export.
Biogen(BIIB) – The drugmaker's stock was upgraded to "overweight" from "neutral" at Piper Sandler, which cites a number of factors including the likelihood that doctors will prescribe Biogen's newly approved Alzheimer's drug Aduhelm. Biogen shares rose 1.7% in the premarket.
Citigroup(C) – The bank's stock remains on watch after declining for the past 11 consecutive trading days, losing 14% over that time.
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