U.S. stock index futures were mixed during morning trading Wednesday after the major averages pulled back from record highs, snapping a five-day winning streak.
Futures contracts tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 45 points, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures traded in slightly positive territory.
Investors digested a host of quarterly results from megacap tech names. Google-parent Alphabet jumped more than 4% in premarket trading after the tech giant posted quarterly results, registering a 69% jump in advertising revenue. Apple shares dipped 1.4% even after the company beat top- and bottom-line estimates and said iPhone sales jumped 50% year over year. Microsoft rose 1.2% after reporting an earnings beat despite a dip in revenue from its Windows division.
The busiest week of earnings continues on Wednesday with Pfizer, McDonald’s, Qualcomm, Facebook, Ford and PayPal among the names on deck. Of the S&P 500 companies that have reported quarterly results thus far, 89% have topped earnings estimates, while 86% have exceeded revenue expectations, according to data from Refinitiv.
The Federal Reserve will conclude its two-day meeting on monetary policy Wednesday. The Federal Open Market Committee is set to release a statement at 2 p.m. ET followed by a press conference with Chairman Jerome Powell.
“We’re not expecting fireworks at this Fed meeting,” noted LPL Financial Fixed Income Strategist Lawrence Gillum. “But we are expecting the committee to go further down the road in discussing the when and how to start removing the emergency level monetary accommodation it has been providing markets.”
The meeting follows comments from the International Monetary Fund on Tuesday that inflation could wind up being more than just transitory.
“We expect Jay Powell to reiterate that the tapering discussion is underway, but that it’s too soon to reveal a specific date on when the initial curtailment of asset purchases will begin,” added Danielle DiMartino Booth, CEO and chief strategist at Quill Intelligence.
The major averages are still on track to end the month higher. The S&P is up 2.4% for July, while the Nasdaq Composite and Dow have gained 1.1% and 1.6%, respectively.
“While the delta variant has the potential to spark renewed short-term volatility, we do not think it will pose a major threat to the bull market,” UBS wrote in a note to clients. “Overall, we remain optimistic about the outlook for the economy.”
Become a smarter investor with CNBC Pro.
Get stock picks, analyst calls, exclusive interviews and access to CNBC TV.
Sign up to start a free trial today
U.S. stock index futures were muted during premarket trading on Wednesday.