The U.S. stock futures rose on Friday morning despite the downward trend in equities for September and the third quarter. Historically, a bad September has often led to a good October. Bond yields slightly pulled back, with the 10-year Treasury hovering above 4.5%, while oil prices rose over 1%. A possible government shutdown could potentially slow the economy but help the inflation picture.
Nike’s quarterly revenue fell short of Wall Street’s expectations for the first time in two years, but the company beat on earnings and gross-margin estimates, resulting in the stock rising nearly 10% in premarket trading. Inventories are significantly down, and Nike’s business in China seems to be stable. Barclays unexpectedly lowered its price target on Constellation Brands, a beer maker, while maintaining an overweight rating on the stock.
Morgan Stanley raised its price target on cybersecurity firm Zscaler and mentioned that they prefer Palo Alto Networks. Canaccord spoke positively about Tesla, stating that demand for the electric vehicle maker remains relatively healthy despite a challenging auto market and price cuts. Manufacturing company Jabil delivered an earnings beat, leading Barclays to raise its price target on the stock. Bank of America lowered its price target on Accenture but maintained a buy rating, mentioning the company’s ability to help with digitization. Baird lowered its price target on used-vehicle retailer CarMax, citing weakness in the lower-end consumer market. Lastly, Bank of America lowered its price target on United Parcel Service, mentioning a challenging backdrop, especially in the small-package market.