U.S. stock futures were mixed on Thursday as investors await data on international trade, initial jobless claims, non-farm productivity, and unit labor costs, to be released today. Furthermore, the Challenger Job-Cut October report is set to be released today, revealing where layoffs are taking place.
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S&P futures (SPX) and Nasdaq futures (NDX) were in the green at the time of writing, trading higher at 0.1% and 0.4%, respectively. Meanwhile, Dow futures (DJIA) were trading 0.1% lower, at the time of writing.
Companies that are expected to report earnings before the market opens include Moderna (MRNA), Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (REGN), and ViacomCBS Inc. (VIAC). Uber Technologies (UBER), Square (SQ), and Pinterest, Inc. (PINS) are expected to report after the market closes.
Artelo Biosciences, Inc. (ARTL) was the most actively traded stock in pre-market trading, as the stock jumped 35.92% at the time of writing. The pharmaceutical company has no fundamental news in support of the trading sentiment.
Evaxion Biotech (EVAX) was the biggest gainer in pre-market trading, as the stock popped 147.1% at the time of writing. The biotech company has no fundamental news explaining the trading frenzy.
Fat Brands (FAT) was the biggest laggard in pre-market trading, as the stock plunged more than 28% at the time of writing. There was no fundamental news explaining the downtrend for the global franchising company that acquires, markets, and develops fast-casual and casual dining restaurant concepts.
In the ongoing earnings season, Skillz Inc. (SKLZ), an online mobile video game platform, reported a larger-than-feared loss in the third quarter of 2021, impacted by elevated costs and expenses. Additionally, revenues missed analysts’ expectations.
The company incurred a loss of $0.16 per share in Q3, compared to the loss of $0.14 per share recorded in the prior-year quarter and estimated by analysts as well. Meanwhile, total revenue of $102.1 million surged 70% year-over-year but fell short of consensus estimates of $102.31 million.
Skillz CEO Andrew Paradise commented, “Skillz delivered strong revenue growth for the third quarter of 2021 marking our 23rd consecutive quarter of revenue outperformance. The company was able to increase User Acquisition (UA) marketing investment to acquire new users…We achieved this improvement without meaningful benefits from our acquisition of Aarki, which we closed in Q3, as the migration of our advertising spend from third parties to the Aarki platform is still underway.”
Meanwhile, Qualcomm Incorporated (QCOM) reported better-than-expected fiscal Q4 results. The semiconductor company also provided upbeat fiscal Q1 guidance on the back of elevated demand for chips.
Adjusted earnings rose 76% to $2.55 per share in Q4, easily beating Street estimates of $2.26 per share. Total adjusted revenues surged 43% year-over-year to $9.32 billion and surpassed the consensus estimate of $8.86 billion.
For first-quarter fiscal 2022, total revenue is forecast to be in the range of $10 billion to $10.8 billion versus consensus estimates of $9.7 billion. Adjusted EPS is projected to be between $2.90 and $3.10, versus the consensus estimate of $2.60.
During the earnings call, Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon said, “Going forward, our chipset business represents the largest growth engine for us as virtually all devices at the edge adopt mobile technologies. We have the relevant technologies required to continue to lead in mobile and the connected intelligent edge. And as the edge gains scale in connectivity and adopts own device artificial intelligence, we’re well positioned to become a leader in AI processing.”
Roku (ROKU) posted disappointing third-quarter 2021 revenues and lower-than-expected fourth-quarter revenue guidance, largely due to the persisting global supply chain disruptions.
The company reported Q3 revenues of $680 million, missing analysts’ expectations of $683.68 million. Meanwhile, revenues rose 51% on a year-over-year basis, reflecting average revenue per user (ARPU) growth of 49%.
For the fourth quarter of 2021, the company forecasts revenues to be between $885 million and $900 million, against the consensus estimate of $944.4 million.
Looking forward, the company said, “Our business fundamentals remain strong but we are mindful that the challenges created by the global supply chain disruptions will likely continue into 2022. These headwinds may have a broad impact on the holiday season in terms of consumer confidence, product pricing and availability, and advertising spend levels.”
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