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5 Things to Know Before the Stock Market Opens Friday

Johannes Eisele | AFP | Getty Images

Here are the most important news, trends and analysis that investors need to start their trading day:

1. Wall Street set to open lower as tech stocks sink in premarket

U.S. stock futures dropped Friday, with the Nasdaq heading for the biggest loss at the open, as shares of Amazon and Apple sank in the premarket on disappointing quarterly results. Microsoft could take the most valuable company crown from Apple if premarket trading holds into the regular session.

Ahead of the tech earnings, which came after the bell Thursday, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq closed at record highs and were tracking for solid weekly gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished just shy of Tuesday's record close and was only slightly positive for the week ahead of Friday's session.

In addition to following earnings Friday, investors got a key read on inflation that's closely watched by the Federal Reserve. The September core personal consumption expenditures price index, which excludes food and energy costs, rose 3.6% from last year, slightly lower than estimates but matching the August increase that was the biggest in more than 30 years.

2. Amazon, Apple both blame supply chain for disappointing revenues

Andy Jassy, chief executive officer of Amazon.Com Inc., speaks during the GeekWire Summit in Seattle, Washington, U.S., on Tuesday, Oct. 5, 2021.
David Ryder | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Andy Jassy, chief executive officer of Amazon.Com Inc., speaks during the GeekWire Summit in Seattle, Washington, U.S., on Tuesday, Oct. 5, 2021.

Shares Amazon sank 4% in Friday's premarket, the morning after the e-commerce and cloud giant badly missed estimates on both per-share adjusted earnings of $6.12 and revenue of $110.81 billion in the third quarter. Amazon also delivered lower guidance for the upcoming critical holiday period, with the company's CEO, Andy Jassy, citing labor shortages, higher employee costs, global supply chain constraints, and increased freight and shipping costs.

Tim Cook introduces iPhone 13
Source: Apple Inc.
Tim Cook introduces iPhone 13

Apple shares slid about 3.5% in premarket trading after the tech giant late Thursday matched forecasts with adjusted earnings of $1.24 per share in its fiscal fourth quarter but missed on revenue of $83.36 billion. Apple said supply chain issues impacted production of iPhones and its other products. The company hasn't provided official guidance since the start of the Covid pandemic, but CEO Tim Cook said Apple expects "solid year-over-year revenue growth" in the December quarter.

3. Facebook changes company name to Meta, set to change ticker Dec. 1

Facebook announced Thursday that it's changed its company name to Meta. The new name reflects the company's growing ambitions beyond social media. Facebook, now known as Meta, has adopted the new moniker, based on the sci-fi term metaverse, to describe its vision for working and playing in a virtual world. The company also said in announcing the new name that it will change its stock ticker from FB to MVRS, effective Dec. 1.

Meta shares, which have recently been under pressure, closed higher Thursday and rose again in Friday's premarket. The rebranding comes amid a barrage of news reports over the past month after Frances Haugen, a former employee turned whistleblower, released a trove of internal company documents to news outlets, lawmakers and regulators.

4. Surging commodities prices boost earnings at energy giants

Gas prices nearing $5.00 a gallon are displayed at Chevron and Shell stations on July 12, 2021 in San Francisco, California.
Justin Sullivan | Getty Images
Gas prices nearing $5.00 a gallon are displayed at Chevron and Shell stations on July 12, 2021 in San Francisco, California.

Shares of Chevron gained nearly 2% in the premarket after the company on Friday reported its the highest free cash flow on record during the third quarter as surging commodities prices and lower operational costs boosted operations. The oil giant beat top- and bottom-line estimates for the period, earning $2.96 per share on an adjusted basis. Revenue jumped more than 80% year over year to $44.71 billion.

Exxon Mobil shares rose roughly 1% in premarket trading after the energy giant Friday reported adjusted per-share earnings of $1.58 in the third quarter; the highest profit in years, beating estimates by 2 cents and reversing a year-ago loss. Revenue of $73.79 billion missed forecasts, but it was up nearly 60% year over year.

5. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says Biden spending not inflationary

Janet Yellen, U.S. Treasury secretary, speaks during an interview at the National Association of Business Economics (NABE) annual meeting in Arlington, Virginia, U.S., on Tuesday, Sept. 28, 2021.
Amanda Andrade-Rhoades | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Janet Yellen, U.S. Treasury secretary, speaks during an interview at the National Association of Business Economics (NABE) annual meeting in Arlington, Virginia, U.S., on Tuesday, Sept. 28, 2021.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen asserted Friday that the Biden administration's infrastructure spending proposal will lower inflation by reducing costs vital to households. Yellen also told CNBC that the $1.75 trillion framework for President Joe Biden's climate and social spending priorities is "fully paid for" in part by asking wealthy Americans to pay more taxes. The Treasury secretary is accompanying Biden on his overseas trip to the G-20 summit in Rome and the United Nations climate change conference in Glasgow, Scotland.

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