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As markets prepare to open for trading Friday, the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (NYSEMKT: VOO) looks mostly flat — maybe up a basis point or three depending on when you look. Investors it seems are still digesting the week’s economic news, which featured dueling inflation reports (the PPI suggests inflation is falling, while the CPI said it’s not only rising, but rising a bit faster than expected) as well as a weekly unemployment report confirming the job market’s weakness.
On balance, the consensus still seems to be that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates next week, probably by 0.25%.
In other, newer new, we learned of a possible media merger yesterday. Paramount Skydance (Nasdaq: PSKY | PSKY Price Prediction) may be preparing to bid to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery (Nasdaq: WBD) in a tie-up of TV streaming content giants. Details are in flux and the bid amount is uncertain, but investors bid up Paramount stock more than 15% yesterday, and the stock’s still rising this morning, up 2.4% premarket.
Warner Bros. stock gained nearly 29% yesterday on the news, and is up more than 8% again today.
Earnings
In earnings news today, S&P 500 component company Adobe (Nasdaq: ADBE) beat analyst forecasts by thirteen cents last night, reporting $5.31 per share in fiscal Q3 profit on just under $6 billion in sales.
Adobe also guided higher, forecasting Q4 earnings between $5.35 and $5.40 per share, with sales of roughly $6.1 billion. Its stock is up 3% premarket.
And in earnings-related news, S&P 500 component Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) told investors last night that it’s sticking with prior earnings guidance for this year, while also raising its sales outlook. Delta thinks 2025 revenue will end up growing 2% to 4%. Delta stock is up marginally premarket — 0.1%.
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