10 things you need to know before the opening bell
It's Fed day. According to Reuters, "The Federal Reserve is expected on Wednesday to point to a growing U.S. economy and stronger job market as it sets the stage for a possible interest rate hike in September." Today's meeting won't have an accompanying Janet Yellen press conference or staff economic projections. The rate decision is expected to cross the wires around 2 p.m. ET.
Twitter is crashing. The social media giant earned $0.07 per share, topping analyst estimates by $0.03. Revenue surged 60.8% versus a year ago to $502 million, easily surpassing the $481.1 million that was expected. The stock saw gains of more than 6% after the results crossed the wires, but things quickly deteriorated on the conference call. That's when CFO Anthony Noto suggested Twitter's user base would not see meaningful growth for a "considerable" amount of time. The stock was lower by more than 12% as the call ended.
Yelp is getting smoked after earnings. The business ratings and reviews platform announced adjusted earnings of $0.12 per share, missing the Wall Street estimate of $0.16. Revenue surged 50.8% to $133.9 million, which was just ahead of the $133.45 million that was anticipated. The bad news came in the form of Yelp slashing its full-year 2015 revenue forecast to $544 million-$550 million from $574 million-$579 million due to "slower sales headcount growth and the elimination of its brand advertising product." The stock was down as much as 16% in after hours trade.
Windows 10 is here. The operating system is receving rave reviews early on. Users are praising Windows 10 for the new start menu, its look and feel and its virtual assistant. "I'd suggest you wait six weeks. By then, Microsoft will have swatted most of the bugs, and many of your favorite software companies will have released Windows 10-compatible versions," wrote Yahoo's David Pogue.
Amazon wants airspace to use drones for delivery. The online retailer is trying to forge ahead with its use of drones for delivery within 30 minutes. According to AFP, Amazon Prime Air project vice president Gur Kimchi "proposed setting commercial drone zones between 200 and 400 feet (61 and 122 meters) above the ground, with a no-fly buffer of 100 feet above to keep them safely apart from other aircraft." Many believe the Federal Aviation Administration will miss the deadline for its long-awaited ruling on civilian drone use, which is supposed to come in September.
New York is preparing a dark pool settlement with Credit Suisse. New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is preparing a September settlement with the investment bank over its use of dark pools, according to the New York Post. A dark pool is a loosely regulated exchange that allows investors to trade anonymously. No dollar amount has yet to be given regarding the size of a potential settlement.
Russia suspended foreign currency purchases. The Bank of Russia announced it's freezing foreign currency purchases to rebuild it reserves. According to Reuters, back in May, the central bank said it would buy $100-200 million of foreign currency each day to rebuild its depleted reserves. Some speculate the move coincides with the central bank defending the 50-60 per dollar range, but the central bank denies targeting its currency. Russia's ruble is stronger by 0.9% at 59.4503.
Chinese stocks surged. A late-day rally led China's Shanghai Composite (+3.4%) to pace the gains in Asia as Japan's Nikkei (-0.1%) lagged. In Europe, Britain's FTSE (+0.5%) is out in front. S&P 500 futures are higher by 4.25 points at 2091.50.
US economic data is light. Pending home sales will be released at 10 a.m. ET and crude oil inventories are due out at 10:30 a.m. ET. Treasury will auction $35 billion 5-year notes at 1 p.m. ET. The US 10-year yield is up 2 basis points at 2.27%.
Earnings releases come fast and furiously. Anthem, International Paper, MasterCard and Northrop Grumman highlight the names scheduled to report ahead of the opening bell. Facebook, MetLife, Whole Foods and Wynn Resorts are among the companies who will announce their quarterly after the close.