Futures point to a negative open for Wall Street
U.S. stock futures were trading lower on Tuesday as market participants worried that anti-virus measures re-imposed by some U.S. states and European nations could weigh on economic activity through the winter months.
By 4:50 a.m. ET, the blue-chip Dow futures were down 74.5 points, or 0.25% to 29,982.5. The S&P 500 futures dropped 12.37 points, or 0.34% to 3,678.88 while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 were little changed.
The U.S. reported 175,663 new coronavirus cases and 1,113 deaths on Monday, according Johns Hopkins University data. More than 30 million people in the state of California are now under stay-at-home orders in an effort to fight the virus.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, warned yesterday that the Christmas holiday “could be even more of a challenge than what we saw with Thanksgiving.”
In Europe, Denmark is planning to close middle and high schools, restaurants, cafes, and bars in half of the country, while German Chancellor Angela Merkel has urged regions with high virus rates to tighten curbs.
Meanwhile, United Kingdom has formally become the first Western nation to roll out coronavirus vaccinations, using the shot developed by Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) and BioNTech (NASDAQ: BNTX). A 90-year-old woman was the first person to get the newly approved vaccine early Tuesday.
Airbnb raises share price ahead of its hotly-anticipated IPO
Airbnb has increased the price range for its initial public offering to between $56 and $60 per share, up from the previous target of $44 to $50.
The home-rental company plans to sell 50 million shares through the IPO, according to its filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
At the top end of the new price range, the company would raise up to $3 billion and have a fully diluted valuation, which includes securities such as options and restricted stock units, of $42 billion.
Airbnb is set to become a public company on Thursday, Dec. 10. The stock will trade under the ticker symbol “ABNB” on the Nasdaq.
Stitch Fix jumps 33% on upbeat Q1 earnings and revenue
Shares in Stitch Fix (NASDAQ: SFIX) gained $11.97, or 33.41% to $47.80 in the pre-market trading session on Tuesday after the company posted stronger-than-anticipated first-quarter earnings and revenue.
The subscription-based apparel retailer had earnings of 9 cents per share and revenue of $490.40 million in the quarter. Analysts expected the company to report a loss of 15 cents per share on revenue of $490.42 million.
Stitch Fix also provided a higher revenue outlook for the current quarter and full year. The company has also hired former Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) executive Dan Jedda to serve as its chief financial officer, effective Dec. 9.
