US pre-open: Futures mixed after Wall Street's solid start to the month

(Sharecast News) - Wall Street futures were mixed ahead of the bell on Tuesday after major indices started off the new month with solid gains in the previous session. As of 1230 GMT, Dow Jones futures were down 0.08%, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 futures had the indices opening 0.15% and 0.40% firmer, respectively.

The Dow closed 515.19 points higher on Monday as investors shrugged off a weekend rout in bitcoin and precious metals.

Software firm Palantir Technologies was in focus prior to the open after posting stronger‑than‑expected fourth‑quarter numbers after the close on Monday, with results buoyed by robust demand from the Trump administration and US firms. Palantir said revenues had jumped 70% year‑on‑year to $1.4bn, topping the $1.3bn pencilled in by analysts, while adjusted earnings per share rose to $0.25 from $0.14 a year earlier, ahead of forecasts for $0.23.

In terms of Tuesday's earnings, snacks and beverage giant PepsiCo delivered fourth-quarter results that topped market expectations on Tuesday and announced that it will cut the prices of core brands such as Lay's and Doritos in the US by as much as 15% as consecutive quarters of price hikes turned away some consumers, while drugmaker Pfizer revealed it had swung to a net loss of $1.6bn in Q4, down from the net income of $410m reported at the same time a year earlier.

Still to come, AMD and Amgen will report earnings after the close.

No major data points were scheduled for release on Tuesday.



Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com