FINWIRES · TerminalLIVE
FINWIRES

Stocks Rise Pre-Bell Ahead of Latest Round of Earnings; Investors Gauge Uncertainty Over Potential US-Iran Deal

By
Stocks Rise Pre-Bell Ahead of Latest Round of Earnings; Investors Gauge Uncertainty Over Potential US-Iran Deal

US equity futures were tracking in the green on Tuesday as traders await the latest batch of corporate earnings and assess ongoing uncertainty over a potential resolution to the Middle East conflict.

The S&P 500 rose 0.2% in premarket activity, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Nasdaq gained 0.3% each. All three main indexes finished Monday trading up, with the Dow notching a record closing high.

Caterpillar (CAT), Merck (MRK), McDonald's (MCD), Pfizer (PFE), Spotify Technology (SPOT), Transdigm (TDG), Rockwell Automation (ROK), Archer-Daniels-Midland (ADM), Kimberly-Clark (KMB), BioNTech (BNTX) and DuPont de Nemours (DD) are all scheduled to report their latest financial results before the bell.

SpaceX (SPCX) shares were up 2% pre-bell with the rocket and satellite company expected to release its first quarterly results since going public after the markets close, along with Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Arista Networks (ANET), Amgen (AMGN) and Gilead Sciences (GILD).

Palantir Technologies' (PLTR) stock jumped 15% early Tuesday as the company lifted its full-year revenue guidance on the back of stronger-than-expected second-quarter results. Snap (SNAP) climbed 7.3% after the social media company announced second-quarter results above Wall Street's estimates.

President Donald Trump reportedly said Monday that the latest round of talks between the US and Iran is the "last chance" for Tehran to "sign a good document." Trump recently called off a planned attack on Iran.

However, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei reportedly ruled out an immediate plan to negotiate with Washington. Tehran was in talks with Oman regarding the Strait of Hormuz, the world's most important chokepoint for crude flows, Baghaei reportedly said.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil inclined 1.6% to $81.64 a barrel before the opening bell, while Brent advanced 2.3% to $85.66.

"Hopes of a peace deal in the Middle East weighed on crude prices," D.A. Davidson said in a Monday client note.

Treasury yields were trending higher in premarket action, with the two-year rate ticking up 1 basis point to 4.27% and the 10-year rate adding 2.2 basis points to 4.71%.

Tuesday's economic calendar has the international trade in goods and services report for June at 8:30 am ET, followed by the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey for the same month at 10 am.

Gold moved up 0.3% to $4,103 per troy ounce, while bitcoin declined 0.7% to $63,441.

Related Articles

India Seeks Up to 314 Billion Rupees From Life Insurance Corp. Stake Sale
US Markets

India Seeks Up to 314 Billion Rupees From Life Insurance Corp. Stake Sale

The Indian government opened an offer for sale of an up to 6.5% stake in Life Insurance Corp. (NSE:LICI, BOM:543526) in a deal that could fetch up to 314.1 billion rupees, according to an exchange filing.The government will divest an at least 2.5% stake in LIC, or 316 million shares, with an option to offload an additional 4%, or 506 million shares at a floor price of 382 rupees apiece.The offer price represents a 10% premium to LIC's closing price of 424.35 rupees on Monday.IIFL Capital Services, BNP Paribas, Goldman Sachs and Motilal Oswal Investment Advisors are serving as brokers of the share sale.The share sale will help the government meet minimum public shareholding requirements, the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) said in an X post on Monday.The stake sale is part of the government's minimum public shareholding goal, which requires all listed companies to maintain at least 25% public float.As of the end of the June quarter, the government held a 96.5% stake in LIC. Under new listing rules, LIC is required to maintain a public float of 25% within five years from its 2022 listing.In May 2022, India sold a 3.5% stake in LIC in what was the country's largest initial public offering at the time. The IPO raised 210 billion rupees.

BOM:543526NSE:LICI
Palantir Raises Sales Guidance as US Commercial Growth Drives Second-Quarter Beat
US Markets

Palantir Raises Sales Guidance as US Commercial Growth Drives Second-Quarter Beat

Palantir Technologies (PLTR) lifted its full-year revenue guidance on Monday after a surge in US commercial sales drove stronger-than-expected second-quarter results.The company raised its 2026 revenue outlook to between $8.150 billion and $8.158 billion from $7.650 billion and $7.662 billion. Analysts expect $7.73 billion.Palantir forecasts third-quarter sales of $2.160 billion to $2.164 billion, compared with Wall Street's $2 billion estimate.Palantir's software is used by both government and commercial enterprises, including the American defense sector.Adjusted earnings for the second quarter were $0.41 per share, compared with the FactSet-polled consensus of $0.34. Consolidated revenue soared 93% to $1.94 billion, ahead of the Street's view for $1.81 billion.US revenue more than doubled year over year at $1.57 billion, with commercial sales rallying 149% to $764 million, Palantir said. US government revenue climbed 90% to $809 million.Shares of Palantir were up 12% in after-hours trading, but had fallen 29% this year through Monday close.RBC Capital Markets said last week that Palantir's valuation was unattractive, with the risk/reward balance skewed to the downside.The Middle East conflict likely buoyed Palantir's government contract values in the second quarter, but its enterprise clients were understood to be considering leaving the platform amid intense competition, RBC said in a note on July 30."While shares have come down recently, (Palantir) remains the most expensive stock across our RBC All-(Software as a Service) universe," the brokerage said. "We struggle to underwrite a scenario that justifies current valuation levels."

$PLTR
Update: Dow Hits Record High as Oil Prices Slide on Iran Deal Hopes
US Markets

Update: Dow Hits Record High as Oil Prices Slide on Iran Deal Hopes

(Updates with market moves at the end of the day, and other changes, if any.)The Dow Jones Industrial Average hit an all-time high on Monday as Wall Street extended its rally into the third day, while hopes for a US-Iran deal sent oil prices lower.The Dow rose 1.3% to 53,178.41, notching a record closing high. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 2.1% to 25,913.90, while the S&P 500 climbed 1.5% to 7,600.50. Most sectors were in the green, led by communication services' 4.3% jump, while energy led the laggards.West Texas Intermediate crude oil tumbled 5.2% to $80.29 a barrel in Monday late-afternoon trade, while Brent dropped 4.7% to $83.80.President Donald Trump said Monday that the US is in talks with Iran. He previously called off a planned attack against Tehran."Hopes of a peace deal in the Middle East weighed on crude prices," D.A. Davidson said Monday in a note.However, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei on Monday ruled out an immediate plan to negotiate with Washington, according to news reports. Tehran was in talks with Oman regarding the Strait of Hormuz, the world's most important chokepoint for crude flows, Baghaei reportedly said.Treasury yields were lower, with the 10-year rate down 6.1 basis points at 4.68% and the two-year rate falling 3.7 basis points to 4.25%.In company news, Boeing (BA) shares jumped 8%, the best performer on the Dow. The planemaker has received the US Federal Aviation Administration's clearance for its 737 Max 7, paving the way for the model's launch after nearly a decade of regulatory review.Atkore (ATKR) jumped 28% after the electrical products manufacturer announced a $3.8 billion deal to be acquired by Italian cable maker Prysmian.Marriott International (MAR) was the worst performer on the S&P 500, down 7%. The hotel giant reported second-quarter revenue below Wall Street's estimates amid headwinds related to the Middle East conflict, while it provided a downbeat earnings outlook for the ongoing three-month period.Major companies including SpaceX (SPCX), Eli Lilly (LLY), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Caterpillar (CAT), Merck (MRK), McDonald's (MCD), Walt Disney (DIS), Shopify (SHOP) and Uber Technologies (UBER) are slated to release their quarterly results this week.In economic news, the US manufacturing sector continued to grow in July, with Institute for Supply Management data indicating the fastest expansion rate in more than four years and S&P Global (SPGI) signaling steady growth pace.Spot gold edged up 0.2% to $4,052.94 per troy ounce, while silver rose 1% to $58.34 per ounce.

Dow JonesNasdaq CompositeS&P 500$AMD$ATKR$BA$CAT$DIS$LLY$MAR$MCD$MRK$SHOP$SPCX$SPGI$UBER