US stock futures tread water with top tech earnings on tap

Investing.com-- U.S. stock index futures moved little in evening deals on Monday, as a rebound on Wall Street stalled in anticipation of earnings from some of the country’s biggest technology firms later this week. 

More cues on U.S. interest rates were also on tap, specifically from key inflation data that is likely to factor into the Federal Reserve’s outlook on policy. Fears of higher-for-longer interest rates were a major factor in a recent rout on Wall Street. 

S&P 500 Futures steadied at 5,049.0 points, while Nasdaq 100 Futures were flat at 17,340.50 points by 19:07 ET (23:07 GMT). Dow Jones Futures rose slightly to 38,487.0 points. 

Tesla kicks off tech earnings parade 

Electric vehicle maker Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) will report its quarterly earnings after the bell on Tuesday. The EV maker is set for what analysts described as a “nightmare quarter,” after it clocked its first quarterly drop in deliveries in four years.

Tesla slid 3.4% on Monday to a 15-month low, and fell another 0.3% in aftermarket trade after it slashed the prices of its cars across several key regions- risking a new price war and presenting even more pressure on its margins. 

Including Tesla, four of the “Magnificent 7” stocks are set to report earnings this week. Facebook owner Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:META) will report earnings on Wednesday, followed by Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) and Google owner Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) on Thursday. 

Markets will be waiting to see whether the country’s biggest companies can justify a solid melt-up in their valuations through the first quarter. 

Other tech majors including Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM) and IBM (NYSE:IBM) are also set to report earnings on Wednesday.

Beyond tech, earnings from Visa Inc (NYSE:V), PepsiCo Inc (NASDAQ:PEP), General Electric Company (NYSE:GE) and AT&T Inc (NYSE:T) are also due on Tuesday and Wednesday. 

Wall St rebounds from 2-week rout, but earnings anticipation limits gains 

Wall Street indexes rebounded from two weeks of steep losses on Monday, led chiefly by the tech sector as substantially lower valuations attracted a measure of bargain hunting. 

Artificial intelligence darling NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) was a prime example of this trade, surging 4.4% during the session from a two-month low. But the stock fell 0.4% in after-hours trading. Meta, Microsoft and Alphabet also clocked some gains ahead of their earnings. 

Easing concerns over a broader conflict in the Middle East also aided Wall Street, amid no immediate escalation between Israel and Iran following a series of strikes over the past two weeks.

The S&P 500 rose 0.9% to 5,010.60 points on Monday, while the NASDAQ Composite surged 1.1% to 15,451.31 points. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.7% to 38,239.98 points. 

PCE inflation, Q1 GDP awaited this week 

PCE price index data- the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge- is due later this week, and is set to offer more cues on interest rates.

But before that, gross domestic product data is expected to show just how resilient U.S. economic growth remained in the first quarter of 2024.

Purchasing managers index data for April is also on tap.