U.S. Stock futures took a little breather on Tuesday after all three major indices finished firmly in green territory on Monday.
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Dow futures were down 0.35%, S&P futures were 0.5% lower and Nasdaq futures were 0.6% weaker at the time of writing.
On the earnings calendar today, investors are anticipating results from Target (TGT), AutoZone (AZO) and Kohls (KSS) before the bell, with Ross Stores (ROST), Hewlett Packard (HP) and Nordstrom (JWN) expected to report later in the day.
ConforMIS (CFMS) was the most actively traded stock in the pre-market session after announcing on March 1 that its patient-specific, total knee replacement system has been cleared by the Australian Department of Health. CFMS stock was trading 65% higher at the time of writing.
The move made CFMS the top gainer in the pre-market followed by GEG (+48%) and RETO (+21%), while FGEN (-22%), INSG (-12%) and RDHL (-11%) looked set to open weakest.
In corporate earnings news, shares of Zoom (ZM) were trading 8% higher in Tuesday’s pre-market after reporting stellar Q4 earnings results as the shift towards a work-from-anywhere trend drove strong demand for its platform. Adjusted earnings of $1.22 per share jumped 713.3% year-over-year, beating analysts’ expectations of $0.79, while revenues popped 369% to $882.5 blowing past Wall Street estimates of $811 million. Additionally, Zoom issued better-than-expected Q1 and FY22 guidance, lifting the stock by almost 10% at the close of trading on Monday.
3D Systems (DDD) announced better-than-expected topline figures in Q4 but the stock fell 5% before the bell as its quarterly profit missed analysts’ estimates. Adjusted earnings of $0.09 per share increased 80% year-over-year, predominantly driven by the company’s focus on cost restructuring. Analysts were expecting earnings of $0.10 per share. Revenue rose 2.6% year-over-year and 26.8% sequentially to hit $172.7 million, topping the Street consensus by $0.91 million.
Lemonade (LMND) closed over 5% higher on Monday after releasing better-than-expected fourth quarter results and a positive 2021 revenue forecast. However, Q1 guidance failed to lift investor sentiment pushing shares of the insurance company down almost 8% in Tuesday’s pre-market trading. The company forecasts Q1 2021 revenues of between $21.5-$22.5 million, the mid-point of which ($22 million) is marginally lower than the consensus estimates of $22.1 million. Meanwhile, Q4 2020 revenues of $20.5 million surpassed analysts’ expectations of $19.1 million. Lemonade incurred a Q4 loss of $0.60 per share, which was smaller than analysts’ estimates of a loss of $0.65.
Shares of Chinese electric vehicle (EV) maker XPeng (XPEV) slipped more than 5% in the pre-market session after reporting that EV deliveries in February plunged to 2,223 due to the week-long Chinese New Year holiday. By comparison, XPeng delivered a record 6,015 EVs in January. Overall, deliveries in January and February increased 577% year-over-year. The company is focused on shoring up its cash coffers as it pursues its international strategy.
In M&A news, Roku (ROKU) looks set to start the day on the front foot after announcing that it has agreed to buy Nielsen’s Advanced Video Advertising (AVA) business for an undisclosed fee. Shares edged over 2% higher before the bell after closing 6% stronger on Monday. Roku intends to integrate Nielsen’s ad and content measurement product, Total Ad Ratings (TAR) into its platform. Commenting on the deal, Roku’s VP of Product Management, Louqman Parampath said, “Combining Nielsen’s AVA technology with Roku’s innovative ad tech and scale will enable us to deliver the benefits of TV streaming advertising to traditional TV.”
