Dow Jones futures rose modestly Thursday morning, along with S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq futures, improving from overnight lows. Nvidia pared losses after initially tumbling despite beating views, guiding higher and announcing a $50 billion buyback.
Other AI stocks such as Broadcom, Nvidia chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor, Advanced Micro Devices, Arista Networks edged lower.
Meanwhile, Salesforce, CrowdStrike and Okta all beat views Wednesday night, as well as storage plays NetApp, Pure Storage and Nutanix. Salesforce and Nutanix were big winners but the others retreated.
The stock market rally retreated Wednesday heading into Nvidia earnings, but did come solidly off intraday lows. NVDA stock retreated, along with most AI plays, but also pared losses significantly.
Dow Jones Futures Today
Dow Jones futures rose 0.6% vs. fair value, with Salesforce stock a Dow component. S&P 500 futures climbed 0.2%. Nasdaq 100 futures were up 0.2%. All were much improved from Wednesday evening, when Nasdaq futures fell solidly. But S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures are also off their best levels of the morning.
NVDA stock is a major S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 member, with Broadcom, AMD and Arista also notable players, along with many other tech giants moving on Nvidia earnings.
The 10-year Treasury yield dipped to 3.83%.
Crude oil futures rose slightly.
Remember that overnight action in Dow futures and elsewhere doesn't necessarily translate into actual trading in the next regular stock market session.
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Stock Market Rally
The stock market rally retreated Wednesday, as Super Micro and Nvidia led techs lower heading into Nvidia's earnings report.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 0.4% in Wednesday's stock market trading. The S&P 500 index lost 0.6%, with SMCI stock easily the worst performer. The Nasdaq composite gave up 1.1%. The small-cap Russell 2000 fell 0.65%.
The Nasdaq closed below its 50-day line and briefly undercut the 21-day line. The Dow Jones and S&P 500 retreated more modestly, holding above key levels and near record highs.
Nvidia partner Super Micro Computer dived 19%, close to round-tripping a massive run from earlier this year. The AI server maker delayed a 10-K SEC filing a day after a short-sale report accused Super Micro of suspect accounting.
Foot Locker, Abercrombie & Fitch and Li Auto were among the big earnings losers. Neurocrine Biosciences plunged after its experimental schizophrenia drug lagged rivals' treatments.
U.S. crude oil prices fell 1.3% to $74.52 a barrel. The 10-year Treasury yield rose one basis point to 3.84%.
ETFs
Among growth ETFs, the iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF fell 1.2%, with Salesforce stock a big holding. The VanEck Vectors Semiconductor ETF lost 1.7%. Nvidia stock is the No. one position in SMH, with Taiwan Semiconductor, Broadcom and AMD all notable members.
Reflecting more-speculative story stocks, ARK Innovation ETF slumped 2.5% and ARK Genomics ETF retreated 1.6%.
SPDR S&P Metals & Mining ETF shed 1.9%. SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF declined 0.7%. The Energy Select SPDR ETF dropped 0.6% and the Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund edged up 0.1%.
The Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund lost a fraction. The Financial Select SPDR ETF rose 0.25%.
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Nvidia Earnings
Nvidia earnings and revenue soared 152% and 122%, respectively, triple-digit year-over-year growth for a fifth straight quarter. But the size of the beat was relatively modest compared to the company's blowout results of prior quarters.
The AI chip giant guided Q3 revenue slightly above consensus, and suggested a continued slowdown in growth, albeit to a still-hefty 79%.
Nvidia also announced a $50 billion additional buyback. The chip giant has $7.5 billion left on its existing authorization.
Amid reports that Blackwell processors would be delayed, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said on the earnings call that shipments of the next-generation AI chip would begin in volume in the fourth quarter.
Nvidia Stock, Other AI Hardware Plays
Nvidia stock fell nearly 4% in premarket action after being down more than 8% at Wednesday night's lows. But shares are off their early morning highs as well.
NVDA stock declined 2.1% to 125.61 Wednesday. Getting above a recent range would offer a quasi-handle early entry. The official Nvidia stock buy point is 140.76, with 136.15 as another early entry.
Broadcom stock, Taiwan Semiconductor, AMD and Arista edged lower. All but AMD stock have been relatively close to buying opportunities.
Inside Nvidia's Competitive AI Moat
Other Earnings
Salesforce earnings topped views with the software giant giving narrowly mixed guidance. CRM stock rose solidly early Thursday trade, signaling a move above the 200-day line.
CrowdStrike earnings beat views but the cybersecurity giant guided lower after triggering a global outage on July 18. CRWD stock fell slightly in overnight trade. Shares have bounced off their Aug. 5 lows somewhat but are still well below the 50-day and 200-day lines.
Okta earnings modestly topped Q2 views. Okta stock tumbled in extended action. Shares edged down 0.45% to 96.54 on Wednesday. Okta has a 114.50 buy point, but could use a clear move above 100 as an early entry.
NetApp earnings beat with sales eking past consensus. NTAP stock fell solidly overnight. The data storage giant dipped 0.9% to 131.91 on Wednesday. NetApp stock has a 134.37 handle buy point on a V-shaped consolidation.
Pure Storage earnings topped. PSTG stock dived in extended trade after hitting resistance recently at the 50-day line. Shares fell 2.2% to 59.76 on Wednesday. A decisive clearing of the 50-day would also top short-term highs and a trendline, offering an early entry into the storage play. The official Pure Storage stock buy point is 70.41.
Nutanix earnings topped fiscal Q4 views. NTNX stock soared early Thursday. Shares fell 1.7% Wednesday, stuck between their 200-day and 50-day lines after plunging following its fiscal Q3 results.
Birkenstock missed earnings views before the open. BIRK stock dived in premarket trading. The 2023 footwear IPO had fallen below a buy point on Wednesday.
What To Do Now
The stock market rally paused or pulled back heading into Nvidia earnings.
Investors may need to be active Thursday, ready to add exposure or cut back, depending on the reaction to Nvidia, Salesforce and more. So have your watchlists and exit strategies prepared.
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