U.S. stock futures were trending higher on Tuesday, well supported by the dovish nature of the Federal Reserve Chairman’s speech last week. The FED failing to provide a firm timetable for tapering is positive for the equity markets.
However, gains were limited as disappointing economic data out of China continues to evoke concerns about the economic recovery in the face of COVID-19.
Dow futures were up 0.18%, S&P futures were up 0.14%, and Nasdaq futures were up 0.15% at the time of writing.
Gaotu Techedu Inc. (GOTU), Hywin Holdings Ltd. (HYW), and NetEase Inc. (NTES) are set to report their quarterly earnings before the market opens. Crowdstrike Holdings Inc. (CRWD), Ambarella Inc. (AMBA), and Anaplan Inc. (PLAN) will report after the market close.
Sonnet BioTherapeutics Holdings (SONN) was the most active stock in pre-market trading, with 10.49 million shares exchanging hands at the time of writing. The stock was also up 46.69% after the biopharmaceutical company announced the completion of the Discovery Phase for Its Next Preclinical Pipeline Candidate (SON-1410).
Siyata Mobile (SYTA) was one of the biggest gainers in the pre-market session, jumping 37.57% at the time of writing. The spike comes after the company signed a reseller agreement with Silk Worldwide for the distribution of its Uniden cellular signal boosters.
Zoom Video Communications (ZM) was one of the biggest pre-market losers, falling 11.58% at the time of writing. The slide comes despite the company delivering its second quarter Fiscal 2022 results that showed a 54% year-over-year increase in revenue to $1.02 billion. Diluted EPS landed at $1.04 a share compared to $0.63 a share delivered in the same quarter last year.
In M&A news Apple Inc. (AAPL) has moved to strengthen its music portfolio with the acquisition of classical streaming service Primephonic. With the acquisition, the company will be able to offer a rich portfolio of classical music and an exclusive playlist on Apple Music. The two are yet to disclose the terms of the deal.
PayPal (PYPL) plans to offer its users the ability to trade stocks. Citing people familiar with the matter, CNBC reports that the company plans to roll out a stock trading platform to add to its crypto trading portfolio. The company has already held discussions with industry players as it looks to partner or buy an existing broker-dealer to support its stock trading ambition.
fuboTV Inc. (FUBO) is in the process of launching its free-to-play games and FanView live stats feature. The new feature will allow subscribers to stream South American Qatar World Cup 2022 qualifying matches starting September 2. Additionally, it will make it easier to monitor stats and scores.
Catalent (CTLT) delivered better-than-expected Fiscal Q4 and 2021 results. The company also confirmed it has reached an agreement to acquire Bettera Holdings for $1 billion. Fiscal Q4 2021 revenue came in at $1.19 billion, up 25% year-over-year and above consensus estimates of $1.14 billion. Earnings per share landed at $1.16, surpassing consensus estimates of $1.03.
Akoustis Technologies, Inc. (AKTS) shares fell by 8.7% after the company delivered disappointing fiscal fourth-quarter financial results. The company posted a net loss of $0.19 a share, worse than the expected net loss of $0.16 that analysts expected. While revenue was up 489% year-over-year to $2.2 million, it fell short of Street estimates of $2.5 million.
