Stock Market Today Mid-Morning Updates
On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up by 100 points. Today, the markets erased losses from Thursday’s session as investors continue to assess the risks coming from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. With a broader Russian invasion of Ukraine ongoing, with reports of ballistics and missiles raining down across Ukraine, there continues to be a lot of geopolitical and economic uncertainties.
Today, Coinbase (NASDAQ: COIN) reported quarterly earnings of $3.32 per share, well above the consensus estimate of $1.85. The company also reported a revenue that topped analysts expectations. This comes as cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are rebounding after a major sell-off on news of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The crypto markets saw around $150 billion wiped off the market on Thursday as Russia began its invasion on Ukraine. BTC is now reaching the $40,000 mark.
Among the Dow Jones leaders, shares of Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) are down 1.09% today while Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) is also down by 0.73%. Meanwhile, 3M (NYSE: MMM) and Nike (NYSE: NKE) are trading mixed on Friday. Among the Dow financial leaders, Visa (NYSE: V) is down by 1.21% while JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM) is gaining by 1.36%.
Shares of EV leader Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) are down by 1.82% on Friday. Likewise, rival EV companies like Rivian (NASDAQ: RIVN) are declining by 4.21%. Lucid Group (NASDAQ: LCID) is trading lower at 2.02%. Chinese EV leaders like Nio (NYSE: NIO) and Xpeng Motors (NYSE: XPEV) are trading lower today.
Dow Jones Today: 10-year Treasury Yield Hovers Near 2% And Oil Prices Retreats Below $98 Per Barrel
Following the stock market opening on Friday, the S&P 500 and Dow are trading higher by 0.15% and 0.46% respectively. The Nasdaq, however, is trading lower at 0.73%. Among exchange-traded funds, the Nasdaq 100 tracker Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ: QQQ) is trading lower at 0.54% while the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (NYSEARCA: SPY) is gaining by 0.20% today.
The 10-year Treasury yield continues to hover near the 2% mark, rising to 1.99% in the morning. Oil prices pulled back from $100 amid reports that Russian President Vladimir Putin is open to talks. The Brent dropped below $98 per barrel after spiking above $105 on Thursday. The president says that he is open to sending a delegation to Minsk for peace talks with Ukraine today. This also comes after the U.S. imposed its toughest-ever sanctions on Russia as tanks and troops moved closer to the Ukrainian capital.
Personal Consumption Expenditure Price Index Rises
A key inflation measure showed that prices have risen at their fastest level in nearly 40 years. The core personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, which is the Fed’s primary inflation gauge, rose 5.2% from a year ago and is at the highest level since April 1983. Including energy and food prices, headline PCE was up by 6.1%. This would put central bankers in a tough spot as they weigh the possible harmful economic effects of energy-rich Russia’s move into Ukraine. This is weighed against the risk of even higher inflation due to rising oil and natural gas prices.
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Block Shares Surge On Earnings Beats; Reports Continued Strength Across Its Fintech Portfolio
Shares of leading fintech firm Block (NYSE: SQ) are steadily rising in the stock market today. By and large, this is likely due to a variety of positive factors boosting the company now. To begin with, Block posted stellar figures in its fourth-quarter earnings call after yesterday’s closing bell. As it stands, it is looking at an earnings per share of $0.27 alongside revenue of $4.08 billion. This adds up to a respectable lead on Wall Street’s estimates of $0.22 and $4.06 billion respectively. Additionally, the company is also seeing robust growth in its key operational metric, gross payment volume (GPV). For the quarter, Block’s GPV is sitting at a whopping $46.3 billion. This beats consensus projections of $46 billion.
Secondly, another key industry tailwind putting Block in the spotlight now is the rise of Bitcoin. Overall, with growing worries about the developing Ukraine-Russia feuds, some are flocking to digital currencies such as Bitcoin. In line with this, Block highlights that its quarterly revenue from Bitcoin transactions adds up to nearly $2 billion. Given the timing of this update, investors could have yet another reason to watch SQ stock closely today. Not to mention, Block is also expecting this momentum to persist in the current quarter. The company is currently expecting its GPV to increase by 35% year-over-year. This would be a notable hike seeing as it is in comparison to a high-demand quarter courtesy of the pandemic. As a result of all this, SQ stock is currently gaining by over 15% today.
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Etsy Seeing Gains After Posting Solid Figures In Latest Quarterly Update
Another company making waves in the stock market now would be Etsy (NASDAQ: ETSY). For the uninitiated, it essentially operates as an online marketplace. Through the Etsy platform, consumers get access to a vast array of handmade or vintage items alongside craft supplies. The likes of which range from jewelry, bags, apparel, and furniture to toys and art. More importantly, similar to Block, Etsy is gaining attention in the stock market thanks to its latest fiscal quarter financial update. Diving in, the company raked in a total revenue of $717 million, topping consensus estimates of $685 million. Moreover, Etsy is also looking at quarterly earnings per share of $1.11, crushing Wall Street expectations of $0.79. Now, ETSY stock is gaining by over 6% as of today’s opening bell.
For one thing, investors could also be considering the company’s impressive gross merchandise sales (GMS) numbers as well. Namely, Etsy’s total GMS for the quarter stacks up to a record-high of $4.2 billion. This translates to a respectable 16.5% year-over-year increase. Explaining the company’s latest performance is CEO Josh Silverman. He says, “During the holiday season, our sellers — most businesses of one and insulated from widespread supply shortages or complex fulfillment processes — brought the benefits of shopping small to scale. Shoppers continue to love their experiences with Etsy and are coming back for more.”
While all this is great, Etsy is leaning towards the safer end in terms of guidance this quarter. This is evident as its outlook for both quarterly revenue and GMS are currently below analyst forecasts. Nevertheless, this does not seem to be deterring investors from jumping on ETSY stock today.
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