Nasdaq, S&P 500, Dow Futures Rise Ahead Of Jobs Report: NKE, META, RKLB, MRNA, SLS, TSLA Stocks In Focus

On Stocktwits, retail sentiment toward SPY and QQQ remained ‘bullish’ ahead of jobs data.

• Investors awaited the September jobs report for fresh clues on the Federal Reserve’s rate path.
• The jobs data comes after softer-than-expected inflation readings earlier this week helped reduce expectations for another rate hike in October.
• Nike shares plunged in early premarket trading after the sportswear giant reported a revenue decline and issued a cautious full-year outlook. CEO Elliott Hill said the turnaround will take time as Nike works to overhaul operations, including its digital distribution strategy.

U.S. stock futures were higher early Friday as investors braced for the September nonfarm payrolls report, the first major labor-market test of the fourth quarter and a key input into the Federal Reserve’s next rate decision. 

This follows softer inflation data earlier this week, which reduced expectations for another immediate Fed hike, even as elevated Treasury yields continued to weigh on the markets. The probability of an October rate hike has fallen sharply in recent days, with CME FedWatch putting it around 28%. 

As of 4:00 a.m. ET, Nasdaq futures rose 0.6%, Dow and S&P 500 futures rose 0.3%, while Russell 2000 futures gained 0.5%.

On Stocktwits, retail sentiment for the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY), an exchange-traded fund that tracks the S&P 500 Index, moved to ‘bullish’ from ‘extremely bullish,’ and Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ), which tracks the Nasdaq-100 Index, improved to ‘extremely bullish’ from ‘bullish.’

Tech Radar 

Alphabet (GOOGL) is in the limelight after Google put its Tensor Processing Units (TPU) technology into orbit for the first time aboard a SpaceX rideshare mission.

Meta Platforms (META): Shares rose marginally in early premarket trading even as it faces a fresh legal overhang. New Mexico has reportedly asked for up to $40 billion in data privacy penalties stemming from the Cambridge Analytica case.

Amazon (AMZN): Reports suggest that it is exploring a structure to shift roughly $8 billion of Nvidia Grace Blackwell chips into a special-purpose vehicle and lease them back. 

Palantir (PLTR): Shares rose nearly 1% in early premarket trading after naming Armada its inaugural certified modular data center partner to build out U.S. and allied sovereign AI infrastructure.

Trending Stocks

Nike (NKE): Shares fell 9% in early premarket trade after reporting a revenue dip in Q1, a 26% drop in Greater China sales, along with a soft full-year forecast. CEO Elliot Hill said that the turnaround will take some time, announcing operational overhauls to clean up digital distribution and some future role reductions.

Tesla (TSLA) shares rose 1% in early premarket trade ahead of its third-quarter production and delivery data release.

Rocket Lab (RKLB): Cathie Wood’s ARK Investment bought shares worth $16.5 million, following its largest-ever Electron contract win. Citi has also initiated coverage with a $105 price target, adding that Rocket Lab’s launch cadence and growing backlog place it in a ‘unique’ position in commercial space. 

SpaceX (SPCX): CEO Elon Musk teased a ‘big deal’ Nvidia milestone for its ground and orbital AI hardware, potentially targeting close to 250kW average power for space systems.

Mattel (MAT): Reports of a takeover from Authentic Brands Group have sparked retail chatter, with traders seeing room for a potential offer of more than $20 per share for this toymaker.

Netflix (NFLX): Shares are heading for a fifth consecutive weekly decline after co-CEO Ted Sarandos said the company “is not growing as fast as I want us to.” Analysts are now assessing whether slower growth could become a bigger issue ahead of the company’s next earnings report later this month. 

First Solar (FSLR) has sued JA Solar and American Panel Solutions over alleged infringement of its TOPCon photovoltaic technology patents.

Meanwhile, Bloom Energy’s (BE) CEO pushed back on concerns around Oracle’s force majeure situation, saying that Bloom’s modular power systems can be redirected to locations where demand emerges. 

Corteva (CTVA): Shares remain in focus after the company completed its spin-off of seed business Vylor (VYLR) on Oct. 1. Vylor was added to the S&P 500, replacing Corteva, while Corteva is set to replace Olin (OLN) in the S&P MidCap 400 effective Oct. 6. 

Pharma Pulse 

Moderna (MRNA): Shares rose 2% in early premarket trade. Moderna will join the Nasdaq-100 before the Oct. 9 open, replacing Warner Bros. Discovery after a 2026 rally of more than 500%.

This has drawn retail attention to two of this year’s biggest biotech movers: Sellas Life Sciences (SLS) and Immunity Bio (IBRX). Traders are talking about the potential rerating opportunities for both as Sellas awaits its Phase 3 REGAL readout, while ImmunityBio heads toward a January FDA decision on a broader Anktiva indication.

Intellia Therapeutics (NTLA): Gaining attention after Cathie Wood’s ARK Investment bought 411,000 shares of the gene-editing company. ARK also picked up shares in Veracyte (VCTY) on Thursday. 

Other tickers trending on Stocktwits at the time of writing included AST Spacemobile (ASTS), Gorilla Technologies (GRRR), Ondas (ONDS), and Delta Airlines (DAL).

What Else To Watch Friday

On the economic front, investors will watch jobless claims data due at 8:30 am ET, followed by Factory orders at 10:00 am ET. The market consensus estimates 84,000 nonfarm jobs added in September, with unemployment remaining at 4.1%.

On the earnings front, Waldencast plc - Ordinary Shares - Class A (WALD) reports today. Next week, companies reporting include Constellation Brands (STZ), Levi Strauss (LEVI), PepsiCo (PEP), and Delta Air Lines (DAL).

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