Stock Futures Signal Volatile End to Worst Week in Years
Stock futures have swung wildly this morning, suggesting another volatile session could be in store. After falling into correction territory yesterday,Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) futures are trading above fair value, and the S&P 500 Index (SPX) and Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) are pointed higher. As of yesterday's close, the Dow is on track to post its worst weekly loss since October 2008, while the S&P 500 is pacing for its steepest weekly loss since 2011. In focus today, President Trump signed a spending bill to end the second government shutdown of 2018.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
2 stocks that spiraled lower after earnings.How to identify sentiment extremes with options. Behind Twitter stock's historic day.Plus... Amazon sinks FedEx; Qualcomm rejects Broadcom; and EXPE suffers a brutal earnings miss.
5 Things You Need to Know Today
The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 960,633 call contracts traded on Thursday, compared to 725,012 put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.75, while the 21-day moving average jumped to 0.59. FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX) stock is down 4.5% in electronic trading, amid reports that Amazon.com (AMZN) is preparing to launch a delivery service in the coming weeks. The news has FedEx stock set to trade near its 160-day moving average for the first time since May, and the shares could give up most or all of their year-to-date gains. Shares of QUALCOMM, Inc. (NASDAQ:QCOM) are up 0.7% ahead of the bell, after the chip company reportedly rejected a sweetened $121 billion takeover bid from rival Broadcom (AVGO). Qualcomm did propose a meeting to iron out any differences. QCOM stock has shed 10% since its annual high of $69.28 on Nov. 24, closing Thursday at $62.42. Shares of Expedia Inc (NASDAQ:EXPE) are getting crushed this morning, down 16% in electronic trading, after the travel company reported fourth-quarter earnings and revenue below analyst forecasts. As a result, Benchmark downgraded Expedia stock to "hold" from "buy," and no fewer than 10 brokerages chimed in with price-target cuts, including to $112 from $140 at Stifel. The news has EXPE stock poised to trade at its lowest point since June 2016.Earnings from Cboe Global Markets (CBOE) will close out the week. There is no economic data of note.
Asian Stocks Plummet As Sell-Off Spreads
Thursday's panic selling on Wall Street spread to Asian markets, with the major benchmarks ending the week with a thud. China's Shanghai Composite suffered the worst of its peers, shedding 4% after data showed consumer prices rose in line with expectations last month, while the producer price index grew at a slower-than-expected pace. Elsewhere in the region, Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 3.1% as bank and property stocks plummeted, Japan's Nikkei slumped 2.3% to close in correction territory amid a strengthening yen, and South Korea's Kospi dropped 1.8% following a sharp decline for Samsung Electronics.
European markets are swimming in red ink at midday -- pacing for their worst weekly losses in years. The German DAX is down 1.9% -- on track to close in correction territory -- and the French CAC 40 is 1.7% lower, even after industrial production grew at a quicker-than-expected pace last month. London's FTSE 100, meanwhile, is off 0.9%, following a report that showed industrial production fell more than forecast in January after the North Sea pipeline shutdown.