U.S. stock futures declined on Thursday, as the Dow Jones, S&P 500, and Nasdaq 100 indices fell, following Wednesday’s mixed close.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Fox News that President Donald Trump‘s aviation restrictions are working, noting that 80% to 90% of Iran’s external flights have been shut down under “Operation Economic Outcast.” However, geopolitical tensions remain high as Iranian Security Chief Mohsen Rezaee warned neighboring countries against enforcing U.S. sanctions and reaffirmed that the Strait of Hormuz will not reopen without conditions being met.
Thursday’s earnings slate features reports from Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ:COST), Darden Restaurants Inc. (NYSE:DRI), TD Synnex Corp. (NYSE:SNX), and BlackBerry Ltd. (NYSE:BB).
Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury bond yielded 5.14%, and the 2-year Treasury bond yielded 4.9% at the last check. The CME Group’s FedWatch tool projections show markets pricing in a 70.9% likelihood of the Federal Reserve hiking interest rates after its October meeting.
| Index | Performance (+/-) |
| Dow Jones | -0.48% |
| S&P 500 | -0.65% |
| Nasdaq 100 | -1.06% |
| Russell 2000 | -0.38% |
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, fell in premarket on Thursday. The SPY was down 0.59% at $763.25, while the QQQ declined 0.92% to $734.40.
Stocks In Focus
Stitch Fix
- Stitch Fix Inc. (NASDAQ:SFIX) declined 18.44% in premarket on Thursday after reporting mixed fourth-quarter financial results and issued weak first-quarter sales guidance.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that SFIX maintains a weak price trend in the short, medium, and long terms.
H.B. Fuller
- H.B. Fuller Company (NYSE:FUL) was 0.58% higher in Thursday premarket after reporting mixed results for the third quarter.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that FUL maintains a weak price trend in the short, medium, and long terms, with a moderate quality score.
Costco Wholesale
- Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ:COST) was up 0.20% in premarket as analysts expect it to post quarterly earnings at $6.53 per share on revenue of $94.82 billion after the closing bell.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that COST maintains a weak price trend in the medium, short, and long term, with a moderate value score.
Airbnb
- Airbnb Inc. (NASDAQ:ABNB) recovered by 0.28% in premarket after a 7.56% fall on Wednesday as Meta Platforms Inc.’s (NASDAQ:META) Muse announced that it can make bookings itself, which is the transaction Airbnb charges for when a guest reserves a home.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that ABNB maintains a strong price trend in the long and medium terms but a weak trend in the short term, with a moderate quality score.
Oracle
- Oracle Corp. (NYSE:ORCL) was 1.56% lower in premarket as co-CEO Mike Sicilia sold $3.42 million worth of company shares this week, following its job cuts.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that ORCL maintains a weak price trend in the long and medium terms but a strong trend in the short term, with a good growth score.
Cues From Last Session
Communication services, utilities, and consumer discretionary stocks led losses on Wednesday as most S&P 500 sectors closed lower, though energy stocks bucked the broader trend to finish higher.
Insights From Analysts
Luis Alvarado, Co-Head of Global Fixed Income Strategy at Wells Fargo Investment Institute, highlights a key tension in the U.S. economy and stock market: “AI infrastructure buildout is racing ahead of broad adoption.” While heavy capital investment in semiconductors and data centers continues “supporting economic growth and corporate earnings,” broad corporate integration remains in its early stages.
Because many businesses are still evaluating whether AI adoption “can deliver measurable returns,” stock prices can periodically outrun near-term fundamentals. To navigate these valuation risks, Alvarado’s core advice to market participants is to “participate in the AI investment trend but do not overpay for it.”
Rather than concentrating capital in a few headline names, he expects market leadership to rotate across the broader supply chain. Alvarado currently maintains an overweight position in Information Technology alongside exposure to Communication Services and Materials.
Ultimately, he emphasizes favoring businesses that convert spending into “durable revenue, productivity gains, or essential infrastructure demand,” while disciplined investors should trim positions when market valuations assume “flawless execution.”
Upcoming Economic Data
Here’s what investors will be keeping an eye on Thursday.
- Weekly initial jobless claims for the week ending Sept. 19 and an Economic Club of Washington, DC event featuring Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond President Thomas Barkin will both take place at 8:30 a.m. ET.
- August’s new home sales data will be out by 10:00 a.m., and September’s Kansas City Fed manufacturing survey data will be released by 11:00 a.m. ET.
Commodities, Crypto, And Global Equity Markets
Crude Oil WTI futures were trading higher in the early New York session by 2.38% to hover around $94.35 per barrel.
Gold Spot US Dollar fell 0.51% to hover around $4,265.59 per ounce. The U.S. Dollar Index spot was 0.02% higher at the 101.1160 level.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) was trading 2.60% lower at $83,705.36 per coin over the last 24 hours.
Asian markets were lower on Thursday, except Japan’s Nikkei 225 and South Korea’s Kospi indices. China’s CSI 300, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng, India’s Nifty 50, and Australia’s ASX 200 indices fell. European markets were lower in early trading.
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