The Dow is up 253 points ahead of the open
It has been exactly two years today since Covid-19 was declared a pandemic, and stock futures are pointed confidently higher, with the market looking to close out this volatile week on a positive note. Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) and Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) futures are eyeing triple-digit pops before the bell, while futures on the S&P 500 Index (SPX) rise as well. The Senate passed a funding bill Thursday that included $13.6 billion in aid to Ukraine, as Russia continues its invasion. Meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate Crude (WTI) is inching higher, but is still on track for a weekly deficit after Wednesday's tumble.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- Sysco stock has pulled back to historically bullish trendline.
- A look at what could be next for the cannabis industry.
- Plus, DOCU plummets on weak forecast; UBER receives fresh bull note; and PSO soars on potential buyout.
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw over 1.1 million call contracts traded on Thursday, and 692,848 put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.60, and the 21-day moving average stayed at 0.57.
- DocuSign Inc (NASDAQ:DOCU) is down 17.3% premarket, after the company issued a weak revenue forecast alongside its better-than-expected fourth-quarter results. To follow, Oppenheimer downgraded the stock to "perform," and no fewer than four analysts slashed their price targets, including Wedbush to $80 from $200. Should these losses hold, DOCU will trade at its lowest since the pandemic started.
- Deutsche Bank initiated coverage on Uber Technologies Inc (NYSE:UBER) with a "buy" rating and $50 price target, noting an attractive entry point for the underperforming stock. UBER is down 27.5% year-to-date, and recently hit a March 8 18-month low of $28.27. Before the bell today, the stock is up 2.5%.
- Pearson PLC (NYSE:PSO) is up 20.5% in electronic trading, amid news that Apollo is considering a possible cash offer for the global education company. Year-over-year, PSO is down 23.8%.
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Today will bring the University of Michigan consumer sentiment index and five-year inflation expectations.
European Markets Rise Amid Data
Asian markets were mostly lower to close out the week, as investors continued to monitor the Russia-Ukraine crisis. Pacing the laggards was Japan’s Nikkei with a 2.1% drop, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng shed 1.6%, as tech stocks including Tencent Music Entertainment (TME) and Alibaba (BABA) struggled. Elsewhere, South Korea’s Kospi was 0.7% lower, while China’s Shanghai Composite added 0.4%.
European markets are higher, after new data showed the United Kingdom’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew a better-than-expected 0.8% in January, despite Covid-19 shutdowns. Meanwhile, German consumer prices rose 5.5% year-over-year. Investors are still digesting the European Central Bank’s (ECB) decision to end its bond-buying program in the third quarter, as they weigh news of failed cease-fire talks between Russia and Ukraine. At last check, the German DAX is 3% higher, France’s CAC 40 is up 1.9%, and London’s FTSE 100 is eyeing a 1.3% pop.