Thursday’s Pre-Market: Here’s What You Need To Know Before The Market Opens

U.S. stock futures were lower on Thursday after a mixed session on Wednesday that saw the Dow Jones Industrial Index hit all-time highs.

Dow futures were trading 0.25% lower, S&P futures were 0.4% weaker and Nasdaq futures had dropped 0.75% at the time of writing.

Walmart (WMT) will release its financial results before the market opens today together with SO, WM and NEM, while AMAT, CPRT and KEYS will report their earnings after the closing bell.

Avinger Inc. (AVGR) was the most actively traded stock before the bell, with around 10 million shares having already changed hands, followed by US Well Services (USWS) and once again, Sundial Growers (SNDL).

Top gainers in pre-market trading were Avinger Inc. (+78%), Heritage Global (+56%) and Rigel (+31%).

Biggest losers in the pre-market session were NXT-ID (-22%), ZW Data (-20%) and MMTEC (-18%).

Shares of Sleep Number Corp. (SNBR) were trading almost 13% higher in the pre-market session after reporting better-than-expected profits for the fourth quarter. Diluted EPS of $2.19 beat analysts’ estimates of $1.44, while revenues rose by 29% year-on-year to $568 million and came in ahead of consensus estimates of $551.5 million. The company expects earnings per diluted share of $6 in 2021, which would reflect a 30% increase year-over-year.

Meanwhile, Twilio (TWLO) also looked set for a strong start on Thursday, with its shares trading almost 11% higher before the bell. The cloud communications company surprised investors by reporting non-GAAP diluted EPS of $0.04 in Q4, while analysts were expecting a loss of $0.08 per share. Revenues rose 65% year-on-year to $548.1 million, beating consensus estimates of $454.7 million. Twilio’s CEO Jeff Lawson said, “These results reinforced that we are addressing a generational opportunity…we are building the leading customer engagement platform to improve every interaction that businesses have with their customers.”

Progressive Corp. (PGR) closed 1.3% higher on Wednesday after posting strong double-digit earnings growth for January. Earnings per share surged about 82% to $0.95 year-on-year. However, unfavorable prior-year developments resulted in a month-on-month sequential decline of 20.8%. Net premiums earned during the reported period rose 10% year-over-year, while net premiums written grew 14%.

Pan American Silver (PAAS) posted a mixed set of financials for the fourth quarter as the rise in precious metals prices helped mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on mining operations. Earnings per share came in at $0.57, topping analysts’ expectations of $0.44, while revenues increased about 6.4% year-on-year to $430.5 million but fell short of analysts’ estimates of $439.7 million. The company also announced a cash dividend of $0.07 per share.

Shopify’s (SHOP) Q4 adjusted earnings more than tripled on a year-over-year basis, driven by booming online sales growth as pandemic-led restrictions forced consumers to shop from home. Earnings of $1.58 per share beat analysts’ forecasts of $1.25, while revenues jumped 94% to $977.7 million, topping analysts’ expectations of $910.22 million. Shopify stated, “We will continue to grow revenue rapidly in 2021, albeit at a lower rate than in 2020.”