What to watch today: Nasdaq futures soar as stocks look to get back on track

BY THE NUMBERS

Nasdaq futures bounced nearly 2% on Thursday, boosted by a 14% pop in shares of Facebook parent Meta Platforms (FB) on better-than-expected earnings. Bond yields rose as data showed U.S. economic growth declined in the first quarter. After the bell Thursday, megatech continues to lead U.S. companies out with quarterly results as Apple (AAPL) and Amazon (AMZN) are scheduled to report. (CNBC)

The tech-heavy index, already in a bear market, closed Wednesday at its low for the year, one day after its worst single-session sell-off since September 2020. The Dow and the S&P 500 were both set to open higher Thursday after ending the prior session with modest gains. The S&P 500 was still in a correction. The Dow was just under the correction threshold of down 10% or more from recent highs. (CNBC)

The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield on Thursday rose, trading around 2.88%, after the government reported that the U.S. economy contracted 1.4% in the first quarter. The Federal Reserve will pay special attention the data as it looks for a sweet spot to aggressively hike interest rates further to fight inflation without shutting the door on economic growth. (CNBC)

IN THE NEWS TODAY

Meta Platforms (FB) reported mixed first-quarter results after the closing bell Wednesday. However, while revenue missed, key engagement metrics came in better than expected and so did earnings. Despite soaring to around $199 per share in the premarket, such a level would still keep Meta Platforms' down roughly 40% for the year. (CNBC)

* Investing Club: Facebook’s earnings beat shows our faith in Mark Zuckerberg was not misplaced

Twitter (TWTR) issued earnings for the first quarter before the opening bell Thursday, in what could be one of its last reports as a public company after the social media network's board agreed to sell to Elon Musk for $44 billion. Twitter shares rose roughly 1% to around $49 each in the premarket but that's below Musk's $54.20 per share cash cash offer. (CNBC)

* Judge knocks down Elon Musk’s bid to end SEC consent decree (CNBC)
* Comcast Q1 results beat across the board, lifted by media, parks revenue (CNBC)

Three Dow stocks reported earnings before the bell Thursday. McDonald's (MCD) was set to open 2% higher after delivering better-than-expected revenue. Caterpillar (CAT) was set to open 2% lower despite beating on earnings and revenue. Merck was set to open up around 2% after beating on the top and bottom lines, helped by its Covid oral antiviral Molnupiravir. (CNBC)

Eli Lilly shares jumped more than 3% in Thursday's premarket, shortly after releasing promising data from a 72-week trial of its obesity drug tirzepatide. Participants lost up to 22.5% of their body weight, or about 52 pounds. Also before the bell, Lilly reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue. The drugmaker lowered full-year earnings guidance but raised its outlook for revenue.

* Moderna asks FDA to authorize Covid vaccine for kids under 6 years old (CNBC)

Ford (F) posted first-quarter results Wednesday evening, slightly beating expectations with earnings and revenue. However, the automaker's net profit was dragged down by a stake in electric vehicle maker Rivian Automotive (RIVN) and reduced vehicle production. Ford shares rose 3% in the premarket. (CNBC)

* Ford cuts 580 U.S. salaried, contract employees as it focuses more on EVs (CNBC)
* Ford CEO says pricing offset rising commodity costs, sees improvement ahead (CNBC)
* Investing Club: Ford still manages to top estimates and maintains bright outlook

Southwest Airlines (LUV) rose more than 3% in premarket trading after the company delivered an optimistic outlook. Southwest said it expected its second quarter revenue to be up 8% to 12% from the same period in 2019, prior to the pandemic.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin warned the West of a "lightning fast" response to any country intervening in the Ukraine war and creating "strategic threats" for Moscow. Meanwhile, NATO's Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said there's a possibility that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine will last for years. (CNBC)

STOCKS TO WATCH

Teladoc (TDOC) cratered 43% after the telehealth company reported an earnings miss, as well as disappointing revenue guidance. Teladoc reported a loss of $41.58 per share and generated revenue of $565.4 million.

PayPal (PYPL) rose 3.4% in early trading after it beat revenue estimates for the first quarter and posted a slight increase in payments volume. The stock price got a lift despite issuing weak guidance for the second quarter and full year.

* Investing Club: PayPal’s quarter was OK, but guidance was the reset lower that we expected

Qualcomm (QCOM rallied roughly 7% premarket after a better-than-expected quarterly report. Qualcomm posted adjust earnings per share of $3.21 on revenue of $11.16 billion. Analysts were expected a profit of $2.95 per share on revenue of $10.63 billion, according to StreetAccount.

* Investing Club: Qualcomm’s plan to diversify into new markets pays off with blowout earnings

Pinterest (PINS) surged more than 8% on the back of better-than-expected earnings Wednesday. Pinterest reported adjusted earnings of 10 cents per share and revenues of $575 million. In comparison, analysts polled by Refinitiv expected earnings of 4 cents per share on revenues of $573 million.

ServiceNow (NOW) jumped more than 8% following the company's first-quarter earnings report. The platform-as-a-service provider earned $1.73 per share on an adjusted basis and posted $1.72 billion in revenue. Both beat estimates.