S&P 500 futures are little changed as investors await inflation data and end of second quarter: Live updates

27/06/2024

Spencer Platt | Getty Images News | Getty Images

S&P 500 futures are near flat Thursday night as traders await closely followed inflation data. They are also counting down to the end of what has been a strong first half of the year.

Futures tied to the broad market index ticked up 0.1%, while Nasdaq 100 futures added nearly 0.3%. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slipped 36 points, or 0.1%.

In after-hours action, Nike shares slipped more than 12% after the athletic retailer cut its full-year guidance. Foot Locker shares declined nearly than 5% in sympathy.

Those moves follow a muted day on Wall Street as investors brace for the release of May's core personal consumption expenditures price index, known as the PCE, Friday morning. The Dow and S&P 500 each inched higher by around 0.1%, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.3%.

Considered to be the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge, the headline PCE reading is expected to be flat from April and higher by 2.6% compared to a year ago. Excluding volatile food and energy prices, the core PCE is forecast to come in 0.1% higher on the month and 2.6% on an annualized basis.

Inflation stats have been considered paramount by markets participants as they try to guess when the Fed will begin cutting interest rates. Traders will also monitor releases on spending, personal income and consumer sentiment due throughout the morning.

Those are some of the final potential market catalysts for the first six months of 2024, which officially concludes with Friday's closing bell. It is a day full of noteworthy data, as it marks the end of the trading week, month, quarter and half year.

The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite has led the way over the first half, climbing around 19% as artificial intelligence craze captured investor excitement. The broad S&P 500 has jumped nearly 15%, while the blue-chip Dow has lagged with a gain of just under 4%.

The AI theme has "taken over this entire year and really propelled the concentration in the overall market," said Mike Dickson, head of research and quantitative strategies at Horizon Investments. "That's resulted in a really strong year."

Part of the reason for the Dow's underperformance stems from an idiosyncratic pullback in the second quarter. The Dow has slipped more than 1.6% during the period, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq have added more than 4% and 9%, respectively, during the same timeframe.

All three have gained ground in June. The Nasdaq once again led with a month-to-date rally of more than 6%. The S&P 500 and Dow gained more than 3% and 1%, respectively.

For this week alone, the Nasdaq has advanced nearly 1%. The S&P 500 has ticked up around 0.3%, while the Dow is near its flatline.

Stress test results show U.S. banks are in a ‘good’ place, Mike Mayo says

U.S. banks are doing well following Wednesday's results of the Federal Reserve's stress test, according to Wells Fargo's Mike Mayo.

"The Fed threw the kitchen sink at the banks," the top bank analyst told CNBC's "Closing Bell." He added that the hypothetical scenario was "worse" than the 2008 global financial crisis. "U.S. banks are in a very good, resilient place," he continued.

Mayo also said that the result of Citigroup, in particular, was "a surprise." Shares of the firm were marginally higher during Thursday's trading session and are up about 19.7% this year.

— Sean Conlon

Accolade, American Outdoor Brands diverge in extended trading

In addition to Nike, some lesser-known stocks were also moving after the bell on the back of financial releases.

Health technology stock Accolade fell more than 27%. Despite exceeding expectations of analysts polled by FactSet on adjusted EBITDA and revenue for the first fiscal quarter, the company issued softer-than-expected guidance for the current quarter.

The company said it should see a loss of between $8 million and $10 million in adjusted EBITDA during the quarter, wider than the FactSet consensus forecast of $5.9 million. Accolade also said to anticipate quarterly revenue in the range of $104 million and $106 million, under Wall Street's estimate of $113.2 million.

On the other hand, American Outdoor Brands climbed more than 8% on strong earnings in its fiscal fourth quarter. The outdoors-focused product maker saw $46.3 million in revenue, while analysts surveyed by FactSet penciled in revenue of just $43.1 million.

— Alex Harring

Most retail traders own financial stocks, survey says

Retail investors may not be quite as hungry for highly volatile stocks as their reputation implies, according to a survey from eToro.

The brokerage firm's second-quarter Retail Investor Beat report said that 54% of retail investors reported holding financial services stocks, compared to only 49% holding technology stocks. That has been true in the three previous quarterly surveys as well.

The survey was done in May, after a slight pullback for the market, and eToro US investment analyst Bret Kenwell told CNBC that the dip appeared to impact confidence among younger investors.

"Older investors are letting their experience kind of work in their favor, whereas the younger investors aren't necessarily scared off ... but they're less experienced in general, and because of it I think they get a little more rattled than the older, seasoned investor," Kenwell said.

— Jesse Pound

Nike shares sink on revenue worries

Despite a big earnings beat, Nike shares fell about 11% in extended trading after the company posted its third revenue miss in four quarters and cautionary guidance for its new fiscal year.

Accounting for the drop in after hours, Nike's stock is down nearly 23% year to date. Only Intel and Boeing have fared worse in the Dow this year.

The weaker consumer environment is weighing on sales, with North America and Asia/Latin America revenues missing Wall Street's expectations. Chief Financial Officer Matthew Friend remarked in the earnings release that "our fourth quarter results highlighted challenges that have led us to update our Fiscal '25 outlook."

— Robert Hum