Stock Market Futures See Turnaround After Volatile Trading Week
U.S. stock futures are in the green heading towards the tail end of this trading week. Overall, it seems like widespread concerns over the state of the economy is a persisting trend in markets. With the latest economic prints out this week, this is not all that surprising. After all, both of April’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Producer Price Index (PPI) figures came in above the consensus economist forecast. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the CPI and PPI are up by 8.3% and 11% year-over-year respectively. With both of these figures in mind, inflation-related fears among investors would persist.
Commenting on this further is the managing director and portfolio manager at Pimco, Sonali Pier. She highlights, “Inflation has certainly become not only topical, but a real issue for the broader market, as the Fed has also increased its outlook for the number of [interest rate] hikes needed.” Pier continues, “In terms of the effect of inflation, it’s really at this point, we’re going to see if the Fed raising rates, unwinding some of the balance sheet, can take off some of that inflation froth. Because it’s quite high, and it’s starting to impact companies — from their ability to push through from a pricing power perspective, as well as consumers, whether that’s at the gas pump or as a result of food increases and the like.”
All in all, it seems like markets will continue to mull over the Fed and its strategy for inflation. On that note, here’s how the stock index futures are doing alongside notable stock market news today. As of 4:04 a.m. ET, the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq futures are trading higher by 0.78%, 1.12%, and 1.78% respectively.
Robinhood Gains Ground After Rosy Analyst Commentary And News Of FTX CEO’s 7.6% Stake In Firm
Robinhood Markets (NASDAQ: HOOD) seems to be coming into focus at today’s market open. By and large, this could be thanks to two key pieces of news from yesterday. For starters, the online trading firm received a positive update from analysts over at Citi (NYSE: C). According to Citi analyst Jason Bazinet, Robinhood could be worth about $15 per share in the case of a takeover. After considering HOOD stock’s post-IPO losses, mentions of a takeover would not be all too surprising. This comes at a time when deceleration in the crypto industry continues to weigh in on Robinhood’s crypto trading solutions. Nevertheless, a per-share price of $15 would suggest a potential upside of about 75.2% from HOOD stock’s closing price of $8.56 yesterday.
Secondly, another possible reason behind the current uptrend in Robinhood’s stock would be a new SEC filing. Through a 13D filing, it was revealed that Emergent Fidelity Technologies, a company owned by FTX founder Samuel Bankman-Fried, now owns a 7.6% stake in Robinhood. This adds up to a whopping 56 million shares of HOOD stock and makes Emergent the third-largest shareholder. Because of all this, it would not surprise me to see HOOD stock gaining attention at today’s stock market open.
[Read More] Is Now A Good Time To Buy Stocks? 3 E-Commerce Stocks To Watch
Starbucks Stock In Focus Following Disclosure of $10 Million Share Purchase By Interim CEO Howard Schultz
Another company turning heads at today’s stock market open would be Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX). This follows a regulatory filing from the SEC involving interim CEO Howard Schultz. According to yesterday’s update, Schultz has purchased an additional $10 million worth of SBUX stock. In detail, the interim CEO’s purchase on Tuesday consists of 137,500 shares. These shares were bought via two transactions at per-share price points of $72.61 and $73.10. Ideally, such a move could serve to bolster investor confidence in the coffeehouse chain operator.
Not to mention, Starbucks is also hard at work addressing its labor shortage issues as well. As of last week, the company is planning to increase wages for its tenured workers. Furthermore, Starbucks is also doubling training efforts for new employees. To accomplish this while pushing for more store innovation, the company is investing nearly $1 billion throughout its fiscal 2022, according to its press release. As such, SBUX stock could be worth looking out for in the stock market now.
[Read More] 4 Artificial Intelligence Stocks To Watch Right Now
Bumble Sees Bump In Paying Users As Pandemic Conditions Persist
In other news, Bumble (NASDAQ: BMBL) is making a buzz among investors now as well. For the most part, this seems to be thanks to the dating-app operator’s latest quarterly financial update. Getting straight to it, the company’s press release indicates earnings of $0.13 per share on revenue of $211 million for the quarter. Additionally, Bumble is seeing steady momentum in terms of its paying user base. According to the company, its total Bumble app paying users is up by 31% year-over-year, totaling 1.8 million. As Covid-19 resurges in parts of the world, it appears that homebound individuals are turning to Bumble again. Even so, these results would be commendable seeing as Bumble removed its apps entirely from Russia as well.
Weighing in on all this is Bumble CEO, Whitney Wolfe Herd. She says that the “Bumble App drove substantial revenue growth across the U.S. and international markets and delivered a significant sequential increase in paying users by continuing to focus on a woman-first experience built upon trust, kindness, and safety. Our compelling brands, product leadership, and operational excellence position us well to capture a growing share of the global dating market.” Also, in its financial press release, Bumble states that it is anticipating revenue between $218 million and $221 million for the current quarter. As a result of all this, investors may be keen to keep an eye on BMBL stock now.
Applovin On The Rise After Revealing Plans To Possibly Split-Off Apps Business
At the same time, Applovin (NASDAQ: APP), a mobile tech firm is also making the rounds today. Before going into the details, Applovin offers software solutions relating to marketing, monetization, and business analytics. Similar to Bumble, the company’s latest announcement could be the reason for this. In essence, Applovin says that it is looking to streamline operations by focusing on its higher-margin software business. Moreover, it will also begin treating its smaller Apps segment as a standalone business while weighing a potential sale.
To quote the company, “We expect to grow our high-margin Software Platform revenue faster than Apps, and as such, we believe we can grow our Adjusted EBITDA and expand margins over the long-term.” Chiming in on all this is Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) analyst Matthew Cost. According to Cost, the firm is “fundamentally bullish on this development,” citing Applovin’s strategic move as likely appealing to investors. The analyst currently has an In-line rating and a $70 price target on APP stock. On the whole, all this could have APP stock making headlines in the stock market today.
If you enjoyed this article and you’re interested in learning how to trade so you can have the best chance to profit consistently then you need to checkout this YouTube channel. CLICK HERE RIGHT NOW!!
