For Feb. 8, 2016, here's the top stock market news and stocks to watch...
Stock Futures Today
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average today (Monday) projected a 239-point decline as global growth concerns and falling oil prices once again rattled investor sentiment. Oil prices are now off more than 70% since July 2014. Central banks have taken unprecedented steps to boost global growth, including last week's attempts by the Bank of Japan to push its interest rates into negative territory. Our Capital Wave Strategist Shah Gilani explains that a global recession is more likely than most analysts realize.
On Friday, the Dow fell 211 points after the U.S. Labor Department released a mixed jobs report for January. Tech stocks sank after LinkedIn Corp. (NYSE: LNKD) announced weak guidance for Q1 2016, and biotech stocks dragged down the healthcare sector and the Nasdaq. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate fell to 4.9% in January, even though the country only created 151,000 jobs.
Top News in the Stock Market Today
- The Stock Market Today: On Monday, a light economic calendar is limited to the Labor Market Conditions Index and the TD Ameritrade IMX. Markets in China will be closed for the Chinese New Year.
- "FANG" Falters: Shares of Facebook Inc. (Nasdaq: FB), Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN), Netflix Inc. (Nasdaq: NFLX), and Alphabet Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOGL) - the so-called "FANG" stocks - are all down between 2.5% and 3.5% this morning. These stocks all led the global downturn on Friday and have been under increasing pressure in the last two weeks, as investors pull away from what were considered safe-haven tech stocks.
- Super Bowl 50: On Sunday night, the underdog Denver Broncos won Super Bowl 50 over the Carolina Panthers 24-10 in a low-scoring affair. Broncos linebacker Von Miller was the game's MVP, and quarterback Peyton Manning hoisted his second Lombardi Trophy. The commercials were dominated by advertising for automobiles, and Hyundai's "First Date" spot - featuring Kevin Hart - won USA Today's Ad Meter.
- Oil Watch: Crude oil prices slipped lower after Venezuela was unable to convince Saudi Arabia to take on production cuts in order to find a support level for commodity prices. WTI crude oil fell 3.6% to hit $29.76 per barrel. Brent crude dipped 2.6% to hit $33.12 per barrel.
Are we headed for a stock market crash, correction, or bear market? Here's everything you need to know about the markets today...
Earnings Outlook: YELP, HAS, CTSH, DO, LII, QLYS, OI
- Earnings Report No. 1, YELP: Shares of Yelp Inc. (NYSE: YELP) are in focus as the review site reports Q4 2015 earnings after the bell. Wall Street anticipates the firm will report earnings per share (EPS) losses of $0.04 on top of $152.45 million in revenue.
- Earnings Report No. 2, HAS: Shares of Hasbro Inc. (Nasdaq: HAS) are on the move this morning after the global toy company beat Q4 2015 earnings expectations. The company reported an EPS of $1.39, topping expectations by $0.09. It also beat revenue projections of $1.359 billion, reporting $1.47 billion. Investors will be interested to hear additional updates on how serious the firm's discussions were with Mattel Inc. (NYSE: MAT) about a potential merger. The firm cited strong demand for its toys linked to the "Jurassic Park" and "Star Wars" films for its stronger than expected quarterly figures.
- Additional companies reporting quarterly earnings include Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (Nasdaq: CTSH), Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc. (NYSE: DO), Lennox International Inc. (NYSE: LII), Qualys Inc. (Nasdaq: QLYS), and Owens-Illinois Inc. (NYSE: OI).
Stocks to Watch: GPRO, MSFT, TWTR, LF, BCRX, APOL
- Stocks to Watch No. 1, GPRO: Shares of GoPro Inc. (Nasdaq: GPRO) were up more than 4.4% this morning on news that the high-definition camera manufacturer has agreed to a patent licensing deal with Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT). The deal centers on file storage technology and has provided a boost to the embattled stock after it was hit by a brutal post-earnings sell-off last week.
- Stocks to Watch No. 2, TWTR: Shares of Twitter Inc. (NYSE: TWTR) were off more than 3.4% despite news that the company is shaking up its Timeline feature. The Timeline will be reportedly changed to display what it believes users want to read rather the sequential order of postings.
- Stocks to Watch No. 3, BCRX: Shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: BCRX) cratered more than 64% after the drug company announced that a drug trial for a rare genetic condition failed.
- Stocks to Watch No. 4, LF: Shares of toymaker LeapFrog Enterprises Inc. (NYSE: LF) surged more than 72% on news that it has been sold to VTech Holdings in an all-cash deal worth $72 million. In other deal news, shares of Apollo Education Group Inc. (Nasdaq: APOL) surged more than 28% on news that the firm is going private in a deal worth roughly $1.1 billion.
Today's U.S. Economic Calendar (all times EST)
- Labor Market Conditions Index at 10 a.m.
- 4-Week Bill Announcement at 11 a.m.
- 3-Month Bill Auction at 11:30 a.m.
- 6-Month Bill Auction at 11:30 a.m.
- TD Ameritrade IMX at 12:30 p.m.
What Investors Must Know This Week
- Where We'll Find Our Biggest Profits This Year
- What a Chinese Stock Market Crash Means for Investors
- Your "Buy List" to Profit from Volatility in 2016
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About the Author
Garrett Baldwin is a globally recognized research economist, financial writer, consultant, and political risk analyst with decades of trading experience and degrees in economics, cybersecurity, and business from Johns Hopkins, Purdue, Indiana University, and Northwestern.