By Sam Boughedda
Investing.com – Stocks ended the day mixed on Wednesday as a 35% plunge in Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) shares weighed on tech stocks but strong earnings from other companies lifted the Dow.
More corporate earnings will come after the closing bell and on Thursday, when AT&T and Snap will report, among others.
Analysts are listening to corporate earnings for updates on how companies are positioning for higher interest rates amid red-hot inflation. Companies have had to pass pricing increases along to customers, but profit margins are coming under pressure.
Also on Thursday, we get the latest data on new unemployment claims for the prior week, with the recent trend putting the numbers near multi-decade lows.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will speak publicly twice on Thursday, notably participating in a panel discussion about the global economy at the IMF-World Bank spring meetings in Washington in the early afternoon.
Oil prices have been under pressure despite China easing some restrictions from Covid-19 shutdowns as it battles an outbreak in some key producing regions. U.S. Crude Oil WTI Futures traded around $103 a barrel on Wednesday.
President Joe Biden will travel to the West Coast later this week, marking Earth day in Seattle with a planned speech on clean energy initiatives supported by his administration. He is expected to outline how the infrastructure spending package enacted last year will help investments in electric vehicle charging stations, electric vehicle adoption by car buyers, and greater broadband access.
Here are three things that could affect markets tomorrow:
1. AT&T earnings
AT&T Inc (NYSE:T) will report earnings Thursday before the open. The company, which beat earnings and revenue expectations in its previous release, is expected to post earnings per share of 75 cents on revenue of $38.25 billion, according to analysts tracked by Investing.com.
AT&T recently completed the spinoff of its WarnerMedia entertainment and news division to Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) and has plans to double-down on its legacy telecommunications business as it invests heavily in the 5G buildout.
2. Snap earnings
Snap Inc (NYSE:SNAP) is reporting on its latest quarter after the close tomorrow, with analysts polled by Investing.com expecting the social media giant to report a loss per share of 17 cents on revenue of $1.07 billion. Analysts will be listening for details about average daily and monthly users and growth projections.
3. Powell speaks
There will be two speaking appearances by Fed Chair Powell on Thursday. The first will be at 11:00 AM ET in opening remarks for the Volcker Alliance and Penn Institute for Urban Research, with the second at 1:00 PM ET at the IMF-World Bank meeting, where he will take part in a panel discussion with European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde and other policymakers.