U.S. stock futures were trending higher on Friday as investors try to assess the potential impact of surging Delta variant cases worldwide.
Dow futures were up 0.39%, S&P futures were up 0.44%, and Nasdaq futures were up 0.51% at the time of writing.
Ahead of the weekend, investors are fixated on next week’s Federal Reserve policy meeting, where discussions about tapering will be top of the agenda.
American Express Co. (AXP), Southside Bancshares, Inc. (SBSI), Civista Bancshares, Inc. (CIVB), and Roper Technologies, Inc. (ROP) are set to report their quarterly earnings before the market opens. Gentex Corp. (GNTX) and Cabral Gold, Inc. (CBGZF) will report after the market close.
New Oriental Education & Technology (EDU) was the most actively traded stock in the pre-market session, with about 13 million shares changing hands at the time of writing. The stock was down about 44% following a report by Bloomberg indicating that China is considering asking companies that offer tutoring on school curriculum to go non-profit.
Socket Mobile (SCKT) was the biggest gainer in pre-market trading, jumping 100.87% at the time of writing. The rally comes on the company delivering impressive second-quarter results with revenues jumping 119% and gross margin increasing to 55%.
GSX Techedu (GOTU) was the biggest loser in the pre-market session, falling 54.23% at the time of writing. The technology-driven company provides K-12 after-school tutoring services in China and would also be affected if pushed to become a non-profit organization.
In M&A news, Visa Inc. (V) has entered into an agreement to acquire foreign exchange solutions provider Currencycloud. The U.S. financial services company will pay $963.3 million as part of the transaction. The acquisition should strengthen the company’s foreign exchange capabilities by enhancing its offerings to customers.
Meanwhile, Uber Technologies, Inc. (UBER) has entered into an agreement to acquire logistics company Transplace through its subsidiary Uber Freight for $2.25 billion. The cash-and-stock deal comprises $750 million in Uber stock and cash. The acquisition should strengthen Uber’s prospects on the logistics front.
Snap (SNAP) shares jumped as much as 18% in pre-market trading after the company delivered impressive second-quarter results characterized by strong revenue growth and growth in daily active users. Revenues jumped 116% to $982 million, topping analyst estimates of $845 million. Earnings per share came in at $0.10 a share, beating consensus estimates of a loss of $0.01 a share.
Twitter (TWTR) shares also jumped before the open after the social media giant reported strong Q2 results that topped Wall Street expectations. Revenue was up 74% to $1.19 billion and came in above consensus estimates of $1.06 billion. Adjusted earnings increased 45.5% to $0.20 a share, higher than consensus estimates of $0.07 a share.
Summit Wireless Technologies, Inc. (WISA) jumped 13% on Thursday after announcing that its subsidiary WiSA LLC is setting up a custom-branded Amazon Storefront. The storefront is to host all WiSA Certified products on a single page. Some of the products it will host include TVs, wireless transmitters, and speakers.
