All three major U.S. stock indexes could hit new highs once again
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) is eyeing fresh record highs, with Dow futures pointing toward a third straight up day for the blue-chip index. It's another huge day for corporate earnings, with Verizon stock on the rise thanks to strong quarterly results. Traders are also digesting dramatically different post-earnings moves from Twitter and Facebook, though pre-market upside for the latter has futures on the S&P 500 Index (SPX) and Nasdaq Composite (COMP) on the risie, putting both on the verge of record highs once again. The action will continue after the close, too, with Amazon ready to report earnings.
On the economic front, durable goods jumped 6.5% in June, thanks to big orders for Boeing. Elsewhere, weekly jobless claims came in slightly higher than expected, with 244,000 Americans filing for unemployment benefits, compared to the 240,000 forecast.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- 13 small-cap stocks that could shine.
- Analysts are calling for fresh highs from this chip stock.
- Why options traders were pleased with Ford stock's post-earnings retreat.
- Plus, Twitter dives; record highs in store for PayPal; and the drug stock getting pummeled before the open.
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 982,399 call contracts traded on Wednesday, compared to 642,698 put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio moved up to 0.65, and the 21-day moving average remained at 0.62.
- Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR) is down 10.3% ahead of the open, after the company's user growth disappointed investors. This could have TWTR stock erasing the gains accumulated during its recent historic win streak. Adding insult to injury, social media rival Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) is set to jump 6.5% after earnings -- and open at an all-time peak -- despite widespread optimism ahead of the event.
- Also on the earnings front, PayPal Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:PYPL) is pushing higher in electronic trading, eyeing fresh record highs, thanks to impressive quarterly results, an upwardly revised full-year outlook, and round of bullish brokerage notes. PYPL stock closed yesterday at $58.79, up 49% year-to-date.
- AstraZeneca plc (ADR) (NYSE:AZN) is getting pounded in pre-market trading, shedding 15%, after a drug combination failed to produce the results for lung cancer patients the company was expecting. At $33.94, AZN stock was up more than 24% year-to-date coming into today.
- Electronic Arts (EA), Expedia (EXPE), MasterCard (MA), Mattel (MAT), Nokia (NOK), Raytheon (RTN), Sirius XM (SIRI), Southwest Airlines (LUV), and Starbucks (SBUX) are some other names reporting earnings today.
Overseas Trading
Stocks in Asia settled higher across the board, tracking Wall Street's positive Wednesday finish. On the earnings front, it was a mixed bag today; Samsung Electronics finished fractionally lower in Seoul following its quarterly release, while Nintendo popped more than 7% to help lead Tokyo higher. By the close, Hong Kong's Hang Seng was up 0.7%, South Korea's Kospi advanced 0.4%, Japan's Nikkei rose 0.2%, and China's Shanghai Composite tacked on 0.05%.
There's a slight downside bias in Europe at midday. The German DAX is under pressure, off 0.7%, even as the Gfk consumer confidence index unexpectedly surged to a record high. Traders in Frankfurt are focused instead on lending giant Deutsche Bank, which is down over 3% after tempering its full-year revenue forecast. Elsewhere, London's FTSE 100 is off 0.02%, and the French CAC 40 has crept 0.02% higher.