Stock Market Futures Gain After Volatile Trading Day Saw Broad-Based Selling As Ukraine-Russia Tensions Rise
U.S. stock futures are on the rebound in early morning trading Friday. This could be a response to yesterday’s sell-offs amidst international diplomacy-related headwinds weighing down on the broader stock market. Explaining this is Clearnomics founder and CEO, James Liu. According to Liu, “Really, it’s about Russia and Ukraine, and it’s about the Fed. And on the geopolitical side, I think the challenge for investors is that geopolitical risk is just really hard to weigh.”
He continues, “Our view is that we’re not yet in a situation where it makes sense to make any real portfolio moves based on this. I mean, first of all, diplomatic channels are still open, so the situation is still evolving on a regular basis.” With this take in mind, investors may be playing things cautiously in the stock market today. As of 5:41 a.m. ET, the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq futures are trading higher by 0.39%, 0.53%, and 0.75% respectively.
Roku Dips On Lackluster Revenue And Disappointing Guidance
In other news, Roku (NASDAQ: ROKU) appears to be feeling the heat this earnings season. After reporting its latest quarterly results yesterday, the company’s shares are currently trading lower by 25% in pre-market trading today. For the most part, this would likely be due to Roku posting lower-than-expected revenue for the quarter. To begin with, the company raked in a total revenue of $865.3 million, below estimates of $894 million. This translates to a year-over-year increase of about 33%. Regarding revenue for the current quarter, Roku is expecting about $720 million, indicating a 25% year-over-year gain. For reference, consensus forecasts are currently at $748.5 million.
Despite the current revenue miss, some would argue that the sell-off in ROKU stock could be somewhat overdone. If anything, Roku did top earnings per share estimates substantially. In detail, it posted earnings of $0.17 per share, almost double consensus projections of $0.09. Additionally, the company also ended the quarter with 60.1 million active accounts. This would be above Wall Street’s expectations of 59.5 million. In the larger scheme of things, Roku’s slight deceleration would be due to the current return to normalcy. Even so, it continues to grow its audience amidst the cable cutting trends. This would be thanks to the Roku platform’s role as a streaming hub for other notable subscription services. With all this in mind, ROKU stock could be trading at an attractive value for long-term investors now.
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Nu Holdings In Focus After News Of Berkshire Hathaway Upping Stake In Company
Nubank (NYSE: NU), one of the largest digital banks in the world, is also in the news now. Notably, this is thanks to reports of Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A) disclosing a new position in the company. Now, the fund reportedly owns 107 million shares of Nubank as of the end of 2021. This news comes from its latest 13F filing. For investors, this could be a sign of the Oracle of Omaha’s continued trust in the upcoming bank. Namely, Buffet first invested in the company even before Nubank went public in December 2021.
At the same time, Tiger Global Management reportedly increased its position as well, to 265.98 million shares. Because of all this, NU stock appears to be bucking the overall trend in the stock market. After seeing this, investors could likely be keeping a close eye on the company now. Ideally, all of the current hype around NU stock could serve to further highlight Nubank’s comprehensive fintech solutions. Through a combination of proprietary tech and innovative business practices, Nubank aims to “create new financial solutions and experiences for individuals and SMEs.” As such, I could see NU stock becoming a top watch for some in the stock market today.
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Inspirato Skyrockets Over 600% Days After Completion Of SPAC Merger
Among the newcomers turning heads in the stock market now would be Inspirato (NASDAQ: ISPO). For starters, it primarily identifies as a luxury hospitality brand. Through Inspirato, travelers with the means have access to curated luxury holidays. The likes of which come in the form of a “managed and controlled portfolio of hand-selected vacation options,” according to Inspirato. In essence, the company’s offerings range from branded luxury vacation homestays to accommodations at five-star hotels alongside custom travel experiences. Additionally, it also provides personalized services such as pre-trip planning, onsite concierge, and daily housekeeping with every trip.
More importantly, since going public earlier this week via a SPAC merger, ISPO stock is gaining plenty of attention. During intraday trading yesterday, the company’s shares skyrocketed by as much as 650%. This comes just three days after Inspirato went public on February 14. Commenting on the nature of Inspirato’s business is CEO Brent Handler. He notes, “We have created a pretty big competitive moat for our business because nobody really plays in our sandbox directly.” In theory, a possible contributor to the hype around ISPO stock could be this. That is, Inspirato’s unique holiday offerings that would appeal to travel-hungry consumers that have been saving money amidst the pandemic. Regardless, it remains to be seen if the company can maintain its momentum on this front moving forward.
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Dropbox Posts Fourth-Quarter Beats On Earnings And Revenue Expectations
Elsewhere, cloud storage titan Dropbox (NASDAQ: DBX) could also be worth noting now. This would especially ring true given its latest fiscal quarter update after yesterday’s closing bell. All in all, the company reported an earnings per share of $0.41 per share, topping estimates of $0.36. On top of that, Dropbox also raked in a total revenue of $565.5 million for the quarter, up by 12.2% year-over-year. To compare, this is versus consensus projections of $558.39 million.
Speaking about the company’s performance for the fiscal year is CEO Drew Houston. Houston highlights, “2021 was a strong year for Dropbox. I’m proud of the progress our team made on evolving our core offerings and expanding our product portfolio to align to our customers’ growing needs, all during our first year as a Virtual First company.” Furthermore, the CEO also notes, “We improved our non-GAAP operating margin by nearly 9 points, grew free cash flow by over 40% year-over-year, and delivered our first full year of GAAP profitability. Looking ahead to 2022, I’m excited about the opportunity we have to help our customers organize their digital lives and deliver value to our shareholders.” Overall, it seems like the demand for Dropbox’s services is persisting in our increasingly tech-reliant world today.
Despite all of this, DBX stock is currently trading lower by over 6% in today’s pre-market trading. When you take the current geopolitical tension weighing in on markets now, this is not that surprising. More importantly, I could see some investors considering the company’s shares amidst its current weakness now.
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