The Federal Reserve's two-day policy meeting is underway
Following an upbeat start to the week, stock futures are moving lower Tuesday. Investors are preparing for a swath of megacap earnings, and the Federal Reserve is kicking off its two-day policy meeting. Also in focus is the employment cost index, which came in at a hotter-than-expected 1.2% for March. Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), S&P 500 Index (SPX), and Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) futures are all slightly lower, and the three indexes are on track to snap a five-month win streak.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- Schaeffer's Senior V.P. of Research Todd Salamone highlights key SPX support and resistance levels.
- Don't count out Tesla stock just yet.
- Plus, 3 earnings reports for investors to unpack.
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw more than 1.3 million call contracts and 809,271 put contracts exchanged Monday. The single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.61, while the 21-day moving average stayed at 0.71.
- Shares of Eli Lilly And Co (NYSE:LLY) stock sport a 7% premarket lead, after the drugmaker's first-quarter earnings bested expectations. The company also lifted its guidance for 2024, citing strong performance for its obesity drugs. Ahead of today, LLY boasted an 86.2% year-over-year lead.
- Chegg Inc (NYSE:CHGG) announced its President CEO Dan Roseweig is stepping down, pressuring shares 14.9% lower before the bell. The online education firm also announced a first-quarter earnings earnings beat and softer-than-expected guidance for the second quarter. In the last 12 months, CHGG has lost 60.1%.
- Blue-chip company 3M Co (NYSE:MMM) stock is 6.6% higher ahead of the open, looking to add to a slim 0.8% year-to-date lead after its first-quarter report. Results bested estimates, and the company said it will cut dividends due to the spinoff of healthcare business Solventum.
- A host of megacap earnings reports, key jobs data, and the Federal Reserve's interest rate decision are due out this week.
Questions Arise Regarding Japan's Currency
Asian stocks finished mostly in the black. Japan’s Nikkei added 1.2%, despite retail sales slowing in March and questions arising as to whether Japan’s finance ministry manipulated the yen to strengthen against the U.S. dollar. China’s Shanghai Composite shed 0.3%, as manufacturing activity slowed in April. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng added 0.1%, while South Korea’s Kospi climbed 0.2%.
Over in Europe, investors are unpacking regional data. Euro zone inflation stayed at 2.4% in April, on par with estimates. Gross domestic product (GDP) rose 0.3% for the first quarter, up from the contraction that closed out 2023. At last check, London’s FTSE 100 is up 0.5%, the French CAC 40 is off by 0.1%, and the German DAX is 0.4% lower.