Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

Stock

Futures tumble as Meta, Microsoft cost warnings highlight AI trade risks

(Reuters) – Wall Street futures fell sharply on Thursday, as warnings from Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) about rising artificial intelligence-related costs dampened optimism around megacaps, which have been the market’s primary driver this year.

Shares of Facebook-owner slumped 4%, while Microsoft dropped 3.7% in premarket trading. Both companies beat earnings estimates in results reported after the bell on Wednesday.

Markets were on edge ahead of the release of the Personal Consumption Expenditures index, the U.S. Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation metric, for insight on how much the central bank could ease borrowing costs in the last two months of 2024. Nonfarm payrolls data is also due on Friday.

Meta warned of “significant acceleration” in AI infrastructure investments and Microsoft predicted slower growth in its Azure cloud business, signaling that the company’s already hefty AI investments were not enough to keep pace with capacity constraints.

Though betting on AI-driven tech stocks propelled Wall Street to record highs this year, investor exuberance has meant stocks are trading at incredibly expensive valuations. Meta and Microsoft’s warnings point to the challenges companies face in pleasing investors.

“The market is unforgiving of any AI-related company that fails to significantly outperform. Meta is the latest stock to feel the wrath of investors, despite extending its track record of doing better than analyst forecasts on key financial measures,” said Dan Coatsworth, investment analyst at AJ Bell.

The other so-called Magnificent Seven megacap stocks fell, with Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) losing 1.5% and Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) down 1.1%, giving up some gains after soaring in the previous session following upbeat results.

Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) lost 1.3% and Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) dipped 0.3% ahead of quarterly results from both, due after market close.

At 5:08 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were down 251 points, or 0.59%, S&P 500 E-minis were down 50.25 points, or 0.86% and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were down 229 points, or 1.12%.

The VIX, Wall Street’s “fear gauge”, rose to a more than three-week high as investors brace for more volatility from corporate results, the upcoming U.S. presidential election and the central bank’s November meeting in the next few weeks.

Ecommerce firm eBay (NASDAQ:EBAY) fell 9% following downbeat revenue forecasts, while trading platform Robinhood (NASDAQ:HOOD) slumped 10.3% after its third-quarter earnings missed expectations.

Monolithic Power (NASDAQ:MPWR) Systems dropped 9.7% after results, with other chip firms also sliding after a set of dour forecasts weighed on the sector’s outlook.

Earnings from companies including Uber Technologies (NYSE:UBER), Mastercard (NYSE:MA), Bristol-Meyers Squibb and ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) are due before markets open.

This post appeared first on investing.com






    You May Also Like

    Editor's Pick

    Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) will face off Tuesday night at a CBS News vice-presidential debate in New York....

    Latest News

    A North Korean defector who escaped to the South more than a decade ago was detained after attempting to cross back into North Korea...

    Economy

    A U.N. human rights group confirmed Hamas’ leader in Lebanon, who was recently killed by Israeli strikes, was their employee.  Fateh Sherif was killed...

    Investing

    Astron (ASX:ATR) and Energy Fuels (TSX:EFR,NYSEAMERICAN:UUUU) have completed the establishment of a joint venture to advance the Australia-based Donald rare earths and mineral sands...

    Disclaimer: balanceandcharge.com, its managers, its employees, and assigns (collectively “The Company”) do not make any guarantee or warranty about what is advertised above. Information provided by this website is for research purposes only and should not be considered as personalized financial advice. The Company is not affiliated with, nor does it receive compensation from, any specific security. The Company is not registered or licensed by any governing body in any jurisdiction to give investing advice or provide investment recommendation. Any investments recommended here should be taken into consideration only after consulting with your investment advisor and after reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the company.


    Copyright © 2024 balanceandcharge.com