Stock Market Futures Continue Recovery As Investors Eye Omicron and Consumer Data
Stock market futures are rising as we begin another trading week. Continuing last week’s theme, investors are likely closely watching developments on two key fronts as of this week’s opening bell. Namely, updates on the spread of the Omicron Covid variant and its impact on the economic recovery would be in focus. After all, the broader stock market continues to see bouts of volatility as the virus news halted the recent momentum in stocks. So, the question now is, what should investors be expecting?
Well, to begin with, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), provided an Omicron update over the weekend. According to CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the new variant is already present in 15 U.S. states. Walensky also notes that new case numbers are likely to rise accordingly. Even so, Mona Mahajan, a senior investment strategist at Edward Jones Investments, does not seem to be concerned. Mahajan recently said, “We still think markets can move forward, can move higher, perhaps not as high as we saw in the last three years, but in line with earnings growth and perhaps [with] a little bit more volatility”. Additionally, she also notes that the firm sees “another kind of leg again for value cyclical trade.“
Overall, even with concerns over the latest coronavirus variant, analysts seem to see continued strength in consumer markets. For the most part, the prominence of e-commerce services could be a key factor in all of this. While these may be the general points of focus, there remains plenty of stock market news for investors to know about today. As of 6:50 a.m. ET, the Dow and S&P 500 futures are trading higher by 0.40% and 0.22% respectively. Meanwhile, Nasdaq futures are declining by 2.05%.
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Trump-related Social Media Venture Confirms $1 Billion Funding
Investors could be keeping an eye on former President Donald Trump’s social media venture, Digital World Acquisition Corporation (NASDAQ: DWAC) today. Over the weekend, the company reportedly finalized agreements to raise $953 million from a group of investors. Moreover, DWAC, which will be bringing the Trump Media & Technology Group public, is contributing an additional $293 million to the current deal. All of this brings the total proceeds of this transaction to a whopping $1.25 billion.
All in all, the former President seems to see this as a huge win for the company. He said, “$1 billion sends an important message to Big Tech that censorship and political discrimination must end”. He also added, “America is ready for TRUTH Social, a platform that will not discriminate on the basis of political ideology.” While the demand for this new social media platform remains to be seen, the news would turn some heads. Given the surge in DWAC stock back in October, investors could be eyeing it in the stock market today.
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Boot Barn CEO Sees Further Growth After Record Year
In other news, Boot Barn (NYSE: BOOT) appears to be looking towards newer heights on the operational front moving forward. Evidently, CEO Jim Conroy recently highlighted this in an interview with CNBC’s Jim Cramer. According to Conroy, the company is now raising its long-term store count target of 500 locations. He noted that solid performances across Boot Barn’s new stores are a major driving force for this decision. In fact, Conroy believes that the company will blow past the 500 locations figures by “a couple hundred stores”.
By and large, Boot Barn’s array of casual western apparel appears to be gaining attention. In its latest quarterly earnings report back in October, the company saw green across the board. Boot Barn reported a total revenue of $312 million for the quarter, marking a solid 69% year-over-year increase. Furthermore, the company also posted year-over-year gains of over 525% in both its net income and earnings per share. Also, BOOT stock is currently looking at year-to-date gains of over 180%. All things considered, the company’s shares could be in focus now as holiday shoppers come out in full force.
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Volatile Weekend For Bitcoin Among Other Cryptocurrencies
Over the weekend Bitcoin (BTC), among other cryptos, hit yet another snag in their supposed growth story. For crypto bears, this would come as no surprise given the history of volatility behind the cryptocurrency. On Saturday, Bitcoin prices dived to a low of almost $43,000. At the peak of the sell-off, Bitcoin was down by a fifth of its value. Since then, the digital currency appears to be holding just under the $50,000 mark going into the week. Accordingly, the current movement in cryptos could be due to the overall market volatility. This is understandable with Covid uncertainties and the Fed looking to tighten its easy-money policies.
Overall, this would serve to tone down recent predictions from bullish investors suggesting Bitcoin could hit the $100,000 by 2023. Now, both sides of the crypto trade do have their talking points. On one hand, with a Bitcoin futures ETF being approved by the SEC back in October, some are considering the possible growing legitimacy of the currency. On the other hand, volatile times such as this continue to rein in expectations for the industry. Admittedly, some may be revisiting the notion of crypto offering diversification from other asset classes. Regardless, with all this activity in the crypto world, cryptocurrencies and crypto stocks alike would be in the spotlight today.
Stock Market Earnings To Consider
Not forgetting, there are also several notable tech firms posting earnings today. In the pre-market, we have the Science Applications International Corporation (NYSE: SAIC) and DLH Holdings (NASDAQ: DLHC). For some context, both firms provide tech solutions to government agencies. Alternatively, those looking to jump on post-market earnings action have plenty to consider as well. Namely, Coupa Software (NASDAQ: COUP), MongoDB (NASDAQ: MDB), Sumo Logic (NASDAQ: SUMO), and GitLab (NASDAQ: GTLB) are on tap. Whether it is market volatility, news on Covid and the economy, or even companies making plays, one thing is apparent. There is no shortage of news to keep investors on their toes in the stock market today.
