Stock Market Today: S&P 500, Nasdaq, Dow Jones Futures Rise—Salesforce, Hewlett-Packard Enterprise, Charles Schwab In Focus (UPDATED)

Editor’s note: The future prices of benchmark tracking ETFs, the lede, and the latest economic releases were updated in the story.

U.S. stock futures rose on Thursday following Wednesday’s mixed moves. Futures of major benchmark indices were higher.

Manufacturing activity in the U.S. Mid-Atlantic region contracted sharply in October, reversing the prior month’s gains. The Philadelphia Fed’s general business activity index plunged 36 points into negative territory to settle at -12.8, its lowest reading since April. Despite the steep drop in the headline index, the report was mixed, as the new orders index actually rose and firms continued to report overall increases in employment.

Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve’s latest Beige Book report revealed that tariffs implemented by the Donald Trump administration are translating into higher costs for businesses, with the financial burden increasingly being passed on to consumers.

The 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.01% and the two-year bond was at 3.48%. The CME Group's FedWatch tool‘s projections show markets pricing a 97.8% likelihood of the Federal Reserve cutting the current interest rates in its October meeting.

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 index and Nasdaq 100 index, respectively, rose in premarket on Thursday. The SPY was up 0.45% at $668.13, while the QQQ advanced 0.66% to $606.19, according to Benzinga Pro data.

Stocks In Focus

Salesforce

• Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) jumped 6.72%, as it set a revenue goal of over $60 billion by fiscal year 2030, not including any contribution from Informatica. This target suggests an organic compounded annual growth rate of over 10% from FY26 to FY30.

• CRM maintained a stronger price trend over the short term but a weak trend in the medium and long terms, with a robust growth ranking, as per Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings. Additional performance details are available here.

Hewlett-Packard Enterprise

• Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co. (NYSE:HPE) tumbled 8.71% as its third-quarter results showed record revenue thanks to AI demand, while strategic restructuring costs compressed the company’s profit margins.

• Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that HPE had a stronger price trend over the short term but a weak trend in the medium and long terms, with a moderate quality ranking. Additional performance details are available here.

Charles Schwab

• Charles Schwab Corp. (NYSE:SCHW) Charles Schwab Corp. (NYSE:SCHW) was 3.29% higher as it reported revenue of $6.1 billion, beating the Benzinga Pro estimates of $5.99 billion. Whereas its earnings came in at $1.26 per share, slightly higher than the estimate of $1.25.

• SCHW maintained a stronger price trend over the short, medium, and long terms, with a good quality ranking. Additional performance details, as per Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings, are available here.

J B Hunt Transport Services

• J B Hunt Transport Services Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) gained 14.38% after reporting better-than-expected third-quarter earnings and sales results. Earnings of $1.76 per share beat the consensus estimate of $1.47, and revenue came in at $3.05 billion, which beat the Street estimate of $3.02 billion.

• Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that JBHT maintains a stronger price trend over the short, medium, and long terms, with a moderate value ranking. Additional performance details are available here.

US Bancorp

• US Bancorp (NYSE:USB) shares were 1.61% higher after reporting revenue of $7.15 billion, slightly below the estimated $7.16 billion. Meanwhile, it reported better-than-expected earnings at $1.13 per share, as compared to the Street’s expectation of $1.22 per share, according to Benzinga Pro.

• USB maintained a stronger price trend over the medium and long terms but a weak trend in the short term, with a moderate growth ranking. Additional performance details, as per Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings, are available here.

Cues From Last Session

Gains in real estate, utilities, and communication services stocks led most sectors on the S&P 500 to a positive close on Wednesday, while materials and industrials bucked the overall market trend and ended lower.

Insights From Analysts

BlackRock is maintaining its overweight stance on U.S. equities, asserting that this year’s weaker dollar is not a “statement on U.S. assets”. In its latest weekly commentary, the investment firm dismisses concerns that the dollar’s slide threatens its reserve currency status, instead attributing the decline to predictable market factors.

The firm’s analysis identifies two primary drivers for the dollar's depreciation: market expectations for Federal Reserve rate cuts and rising term premiums on bonds due to global fiscal concerns. “We think the dollar has moved in step with historical drivers – not broken with them,” the commentary states.

Rather than a negative sign, BlackRock views potential Fed easing as a tailwind for American companies. The firm believes “rate cuts amid a notable slowing of activity without recession should support U.S. stocks and the Al theme”.

This optimistic outlook is also backed by stronger corporate earnings and profitability in the U.S. relative to other developed markets. Within U.S. fixed income, the firm is overweight on agency mortgage-backed securities and short-term investment-grade credit.

See Also: How to Trade Futures

Upcoming Economic Data

Here's what investors will be keeping an eye on Thursday:

• The Philadelphia Fed’s general business activity index plunged 36 points into negative territory to settle at -12.8, its lowest reading since April in October 2025.
• Richmond Fed President Tom Barkin will speak at 8:00 a.m., 12:45 p.m., and 4:30 p.m. ET. September’s U.S. retail sales, initial jobless claims, August’s business inventories, and headline and core PPI data will be delayed because of the shutdown.
• October’s home builder confidence index data will be released at 10:00 a.m., Fed Governor Stephen Miran will speak at 9:00 a.m. and 4:15 p.m., Christopher Waller will speak at 9:00 a.m., and Michelle Bowman will speak at 10:00 a.m. ET.

Commodities, Gold, Crypto, And Global Equity Markets

Crude oil futures were trading higher in the early New York session by 0.45% to hover around $58.53 per barrel.

Gold Spot US Dollar rose 0.83% to hover around $4,243.14 per ounce. Its last record high stood at $4,251.12 per ounce. The U.S. Dollar Index spot was 0.17% lower at the 98.6280 level.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) was trading 0.22% lower at $111,549.60 per coin.

Asian markets closed higher on Thursday, except Hong Kong's Hang Seng index. Australia's ASX 200, South Korea's Kospi, India’s NIFTY 50, China’s CSI 300, and Japan's Nikkei 225 indices rose. European markets were mixed.

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