Data from Stocktwits indicated retail sentiment towards SPY and QQQ cooled to neutral.
- Investors weighed the divided Fed minutes and braced for Walmart’s earnings.
- President Trump’s afternoon economic speech and fresh labor data add to Thursday’s catalysts.
- Reports suggest Meta has revived smartwatch plans targeting a launch this year.
U.S. stock futures were edging higher early Thursday as investors digested the FOMC minutes and geared up for Walmart earnings before the bell and President Donald Trump’s speech later today.
President Trump is scheduled to speak on the economy at 4:00 p.m. ET in Georgia. The January Fed minutes were divided but showed policymakers broadly favor pausing rate cuts amid simmering inflation risks.
As of 3:00 a.m. ET on Thursday, Nasdaq futures rose 0.3%, S&P 500 futures rose 0.2%, Dow futures were up 0.1%, and Russell 2000 futures were flat with a positive bias.
Meanwhile, retail sentiment toward the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY), an exchange-traded fund that tracks the S&P 500 Index, has moderated to ‘neutral’ from ‘bullish’ a day ago, while the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) ETF, which tracks the Nasdaq 100 Index, has remained ‘neutral’ amid high message volumes.
In commodities, oil prices edged higher after Vice President JD Vance signalled potential military action against Iran if nuclear talks fail. Precious metals remained firm, with gold and silver seeing gains.
Trending Stocks To Watch
Walmart (WMT): The bellwether for retail reports earnings before the bell today. Investors will be tracking for commentary from the new CEO as well as insights into consumer health and demand.
Meta Platforms (META): Reports indicate the company has revived plans for a smartwatch, targeting a launch this year.
Microsoft (MSFT): The company disclosed that its director, John Stanton, purchased 5,000 shares worth $1.99 million.
Palantir (PLTR): The famed investor Michael Burry continues to criticize the company, flagging accounting concerns and executive spending.
Immunity Bio (IBRX): Garnering heavy retail attention following the regulatory wins for its flagship drug, Anktiva. Its founder has signalled expansion plans in a new post on X.
Watch out for pharmaceutical stocks, such as Eli Lilly (LLY), Merck (MRK), and Pfizer (PFE). A new policy published in the New England Journal of Medicine indicates the FDA will now typically require only one clinical trial for drug approvals instead of two.
eBay (EBAY), Etsy (ETSY): eBay shares trended higher in after-hours trade following its $1.2 billion acquisition of Depop from Etsy.
Compass Pathways (CMPS): It has priced a 17.5 million secondary share sale at $8 per share, below its last close of $8.45.
Boeing (BA): Received a mega order of upto 40 Dreamliner jets from a Vietnamese airline.
Kinetik Holdings (KNTK): It has reportedly received takeover interest from Occidental Petroleum-backed Western Midstream Partners.
Some earnings movers in the after-hours trade include DoorDash (DASH), Carvana (CVNA), Figma (FIG), and Booking Holdings (BKNG).
Other tickers trending on Stocktwits at the time of writing included Red Cat Holdings (RCAT) and Klarna (KLAR), among others.
Other Catalysts To Watch
On the economic front, investors will be monitoring the release of Initial Jobless Claims and the Philly Fed Business Index ( at 8:30 am ET), followed by Pending Home Sales at 10:00 am. Also keep an eye on commentary from multiple Fed speakers later in the day, including Michelle Bowman and Neel Kashkari.
On the earnings radar, investors will be watching for the quarterly reports from Deere (DE), Quanta Services (PWR), Wayfair (W), and Six Flags (FUN) before the bell. Meanwhile, Akamai (AKAM), Dropbox (DBX), Live Nation (LYV), and Newmont (NEM), among others, report earnings after market close today.
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