Dow futures slide lower as investors digest earnings

By Noreen Burke 

Investing.com -- U.S. stock futures pointed to a lower open on Wall Street on Wednesday as investors weighed mixed earnings reports from some major companies, while persistent concerns over the Federal Reserve’s rate hike path also weighed.

At 06:08 ET (10:08 GMT), the Dow futures contract was 170 points or 0.5% lower, S&P 500 futures were down 25 points or 0.6%, and Nasdaq 100 futures shed 117 points or 0.9%.

The declines came after a choppy session on Tuesday which saw the S&P 500 eke out slender gains while the Dow and Nasdaq ended fractionally lower as strength in some big technology stocks offset disappointing results from Johnson&Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) and Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS).

Streaming giant Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) reported after the close on Tuesday and while earnings came in ahead of analysts' estimates guidance fell short of expectations even after the launch of its ad-supported tier.

Investors have been bracing for a gloomy first quarter earnings season amid worries over the prospect of an economic downturn.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) is set to report ahead of the open Wednesday and Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) is set to report after the close. Investors will also be turning their attention to the release of the Fed’s Beige Book later in the day as it could provide more insight into economic conditions around the country.

St. Louis Federal Reserve President James Bullard said Tuesday the U.S. central bank should continue hiking interest rates after recent economic data pointed to still persistent inflation while the broader economy seems poised to continue growing.

Shares in Fox Corp. (NASDAQ:FOXA), the owner of Fox News were down 1% in premarket trade after it settled a defamation lawsuit by Dominion Voting Systems for $787.5 million, the largest ever settlement struck by an American media company.

Dominion had sought $1.6 billion in damages in the lawsuit filed in 2021 over the media giant’s coverage of false vote-rigging claims in the 2020 U.S. election.