Futures trade cautiously in anticipation of Nvidia earnings

(Reuters) – U.S. stock index futures were little changed on Wednesday as investors awaited quarterly results from Nvidia, which are expected to be pivotal in sustaining the AI behemoth’s record rally this year.

Nvidia is scheduled to report results after the bell and its shares were down 0.1% in premarket trading after jumping nearly 5% in Tuesday’s session.

Options traders are primed for a nearly $300-billion swing in its market value after the results, with options implying an 8.5% swing for the shares in either direction.

“Markets are preparing for today’s Nvidia earnings release,” said Achilleas Georgolopoulos, market analyst at XM.

“There are strong expectations for another spectacular report, which means that a possible disappointment today could quickly shift the current fragile market sentiment to a negative stance.”

Nvidia, which has nearly tripled in value this year, accounted for about 20% of the S&P 500’s returns over the past year, according to BofA Global Research. The market’s reaction to its results is expected to be crucial in determining Wall Street’s trajectory heading into the year-end.

Meanwhile, Target rose 1.2% ahead of results due before the bell, which will also be scrutinized for clues on consumer spending patterns.

Other megacaps were mixed. Microsoft was up 0.2%, while Tesla and Apple fell 0.5% and 0.3%, respectively.

At 5:35 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis rose 60 points, or 0.14%, S&P 500 E-minis were up 3 points, or 0.05%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were down 4.25 points, or 0.02%.

Nvidia’s gains in Tuesday’s session helped the benchmark index and the tech-heavy Nasdaq end higher despite concerns about the escalating conflict between Russia and Ukraine hitting risk assets in early trading.

Some soothing of geopolitical worries also helped lift stock futures on the day, after Reuters reported Russian President Vladimir Putin was open to discussing a Ukraine ceasefire deal with Donald Trump.

Cryptocurrency stocks ticked higher as bitcoin briefly jumped above $94,000, with MicroStrategy and MARA Holdings up 2.8% and 2.1%, respectively.

Several Federal Reserve officials are scheduled to speak, with comments expected from Lisa Cook, Michelle Bowman and Susan Collins, while Vice Chair for Supervision Michael Barr will testify before the House Financial Services Committee on the day.

Investors are also watching U.S. President-elect Trump’s cabinet picks keenly for clues on future policy stances.

Trump is expected to announce his pick for Treasury secretary soon. He said on Tuesday he would nominate Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick to lead his trade and tariff strategy as head of the Commerce Department.

(Reporting by Lisa Mattackal in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja Desai)