Published 2 hours ago
Small loss in S&P 500 Financials on Wednesday understates regional bank slump
The S&P 1500 Regional Bank Index fell almost 2% Wednesday, but you wouldn’t know it by looking at just the 0.10% loss in the S&P 500 Financials Index.
That’s because the S&P 500 Financials includes financial data and stock exchange companies such as S&P Global, credit servicing companies such as Visa, capital markets stocks such as Goldman Sachs, insurance, insurance brokers, and asset managers.
How weak were the regionals? Truist Financial led to the downside, falling 4.6%. Citizens Financial dropped 3.3%. Bank OZK lost 2.9%. M&T Bank shed 2.7%. Huntington Bancshares dropped 2.7%.
In fact, 90 of the 93 regional banks in the index retreated Wednesday.
—Scott Schnipper
Stocks making the biggest moves in extended trading
Check out the stocks making headlines in after-hours trading:
Avalo Therapeutics — Shares added nearly 11% a day after the company announced it planned to sell rights and assets related to its AVTX-800 series, which treats rare genetic diseases, to AUG Therapeutics.
Semtech Corporation — The chipmaker slipped nearly 4% after reporting weak guidance for its fiscal third quarter. Semtech anticipates an adjusted loss of 22 cents to 19 cents per share, compared to analysts’ forecast of 12 cents per share, according to FactSet. Revenue is expected to come in at $190 million to $210 million, while analysts called for $247.7 million.
Starbucks — Shares of the coffee giant were down 0.4% after former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz left the company’s board. Wei Zhang, a former Alibaba executive, will take the position.
— Brian Evans
Stock futures open little changed
Stock futures opened little changed in early trading on Thursday. Investors were cautious amid uncertainty over the economic impact of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and its potential to disrupt global markets.
Futures contracts tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500, and Nasdaq Composite were all marginally higher.
Market participants are closely monitoring economic data, central bank policies, and the progress of vaccination campaigns as they assess the outlook for the stock market.
Traders will also be watching for any updates on infrastructure spending plans and further stimulus measures from the US government, both of which could impact market sentiment.
Overall, market sentiment remains cautious as investors navigate the evolving landscape of the global economy in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.