Morning in New York: chances for continued growth persist

Daily review and forecast of events on the U.S. stock market from Mikhail Denislamov, Deputy Director of Freedom Capital Markets Research.

In the center of attention of stock exchange players during the upcoming session will be macroeconomic data, primarily business activity indices (PMI) in the services sector for July from ISM and S&P Global. The consensus is for the former to rise from June's 50.8 points to 51.5 with the latter at 55.2 points. These releases will give a clearer picture of the state of the economy at the start of the second half of the year, but will be only clarifying and are unlikely to cause a strong market reaction. The trade balance statistics will also be released, and the deficit is expected to narrow from $71 bln to $62 bln.

Trading participants will continue to follow the development of trade and economic relations between the U.S. and its key partners. President Trump reiterated that he intends to "substantially increase" tariffs for India to force it to abandon purchases of Russian oil. Indian authorities have called this pressure "unjustified and unwarranted". Japan's trade minister initiates talks with Washington to seek a reduction in duties on automobiles.

According to White House Trade Representative Jamison Greer, there have been positive developments in the negotiations between the United States and China on the supply of rare-earth magnets, and the parties are "halfway to an agreement". Beijing is ready to accelerate exports in exchange for the suspension of duties, and the final decision on extending the trade truce until August 12 should be made by Trump.

Caterpillar (CAT) and Pfizer (PFE) will present their quarterly reports before the opening of trading. AMD (AMD), Super Micro Computer (SMCI), Arista Networks (ANET), Astera Labs (ALAB), Opendoor Tech (OPEN), Rivian Automotive (RIVN) will release their financial results at the postmarket.

Futures on American stock indices are trading in the plus. We assess the balance of risks for the upcoming session as neutral with an average level of volatility. We focus on S&P 500 movements in the range of 6270-6390 points (from -0.9% to +1% of the previous session's closing level).

- Palantir (PLTR) reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter on revenue of $1 billion (+48% YoY). These results, driven by strong U.S. sales, came in above forecasts and were a record high for the company. Against this backdrop, its shares were up 4% in the post-market. CEO Alex Karp expressed confidence in further business development in the US market, emphasizing high expectations for AI prospects.

- Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) generated EPS of $4.52 and revenue of $2.96 billion for the reported quarter. Its stock price reacted to the release by rising 2.2% in after-hours trading. The pharma company's revenues increased by 12% YoY thanks to sales growth in the US (+14%) and beyond (+8%) on the back of new drug launches and expansion in cystic fibrosis and pain management therapies.

- Shares of Hims and Hers Health (HIMS) fell 13% after the end of this Monday's main session amid the release of its financial report. The company's quarterly EPS came in at $0.17 with a consensus of $0.15, while revenue came in at $544.8 million versus expectations of $551.7 million. Revenue grew 73% YoY, while the number of subscribers reached 2.4 million (+31%).

August 4 trading on American stock exchanges ended in a steady plus. Indices managed to recoup most of Friday's losses. S&P 500 added 1.47%, Nasdaq 100 rose by 1.87%, Dow Jones rose by 1.34%, and Russell 2000 soared by 2.1%. All of the "Magnificent Seven" stocks closed in positive territory except Amazon (AMZN: -1.44%). Most sectors of the broad market were in the green. Only energy companies (XLE: -0.22%) showed a slight decline.

The news background was relatively calm, and the growing optimism about the upcoming monetary easing in the near term helped stabilize investor sentiment. December futures are pricing in at least two key rate cuts over the horizon of the next three Fed meetings. The yield on 10-year Treasuries fell to a three-month low of 4.2%.

According to Reuters, the European Union will suspend for six months the enactment of two packages of retaliatory measures to U.S. tariffs as part of agreements with the U.S. president. The current version of the agreement contains many unresolved issues, including tariffs on alcoholic beverages. In addition, the executive order signed by Trump last week, which imposes duties of 15% on most EU goods, does not contain previously agreed exceptions for cars and car parts.

The volume of industrial orders decreased by 4.8% mom in June, which was slightly better than expectations of 5% mom. The final estimate of the June number of applications for durable goods in line with the average forecasts recorded their decline by 9.4% mom.

- CommScope (COMM: +86.3%) shares soared after announcing the sale of its Connectivity and Cable Solutions segment to Amphenol (APH) for $10.5 billion. The deal, which is subject to CommScope shareholder approval, is expected to close in the first half of 2026.

- Shares of Tesla (TSLA: +2.2%) rose on the back of the board's approval of an interim compensation package of 96 million securities for Ilon Musk. This stake will be transferred to him in two years, provided that he remains CEO or takes another position in top management.

- Joby Aviation (JOBY: +18.8%) has agreed to buy Blade Air Mobility's passenger business for up to $125 million, giving it direct access to Blade's urban routes and infrastructure, particularly in New York City, and strengthening its position in medical logistics.

- Wayfair (W: +12.7%) reported quarterly EPS of $0.87 with consensus of $0.33 and revenue of $3.27 billion. Revenue was up 5% YoY (6% excluding the German exit), with U.S. sales up more than 5% and international sales up more than 3%.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor