Investors are unpacking plenty of data this morning
Stock futures are seeing volatile price action ahead of the bell. After initially pointing lower earlier in the morning, Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) futures are up over 100 points at last check, while S&P 500 Index (SPX) futures stay flat and Nasdaq-100 (NDX) futures move lower. There is plenty of economic data to unpack, including long-awaited inflation data, which shows U.S. consumer prices up 5% year-over-year -- its fastest pace since the 2008 -- and gaining 0.6% in May. Meanwhile, initial jobless claims came in at 376,000 for last week, which is higher than the expected 370,000 but still at a post-pandemic low.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- Fast food giant plummeted after its "meme stock" surge.
- This pot stock was a part of the recent Reddit rally.
- Plus, RH surges after earnings; BARK receives fresh analyst coverage; and cloud stock downgraded.
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw more than 2.2 million call contracts traded on Wednesday, and 800,221 put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.36 and the 21-day moving average fell to 0.49.
- RH (NYSE:RH) is up 8.9% in pre-market trading, after the home improvement name reported better-than-expected first-quarter earnings and revenue, and raised its full-year forecast. To follow, no fewer than eight analysts lifted their price targets.
- Jefferies initiated coverage on the Original Bark Company (NYSE:BARK) with a "buy" rating and $14 price target, citing the company's growth and its valuation compared to its sector peers. Looking to extend yesterday's 9.1% pop, BARK is up 2% before the bell.
- Fastly Inc (NYSE:FSLY) is down 2.6% in electronic trading, after Oppenheimer downgraded the stock to "perform" from outperform." Though the firm acknowledges that the cloud name reacted quickly to this week's internet outage, it also notes the low cost to customers switching providers.
- Today will also bring the Federal budget balance.
International Markets Watch Inflation Data
Asian markets were mostly higher on Thursday, with the exception of the Hong Kong Hang Seng, which shed 0.01%. At the time, investors were awaiting U.S. inflation data, which has been highly anticipated all week, globally. The Shanghai Composite in China rose 0.5%, the South Korean Kospi added 0.3%, and the Nikkei in Japan saw a 0.3% jump.
Meanwhile, in Europe, stocks are mixed, amid news that the European Central Bank (ECB) chose to hold interest rates steady, even after it overestimated its inflation target. The London FTSE 100 is up 0.2%, which investors also keeping an eye on U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden ahead of the Group of 7 (G-7) gathering, which begins Friday. Elsewhere in the region, the French CAC 40 is down 0.4%, and the German DAX is 0.08% lower.