Sign InStocks, Bitcoin, Jobs Report: Key Market Moves and Trends on Friday
Alex Vellor
Stocks slipped Thursday after setting records the day before. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 248.33 points, or 0.55%. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.18%, and the S&P 500 slid 0.19%.
Premarket Movers:
| Company | Remarks |
|---|---|
| Ulta Beauty (ULTA) | Stock soared 11% after raising its annual profit forecast, signaling strong holiday demand for perfumes and makeup. |
| Lululemon Athletica (LULU) | Stock rose 9.3% after increasing full-year forecasts, citing resilient U.S. demand and international business strength. |
| Gitlab (GTLB) | Stock gained 11% after surpassing fiscal Q3 expectations and announcing a new CEO. |
| DocuSign (DOCU) | Stock soared 12% after raising its 2025 revenue forecast following a strong Q3 earnings report. |
| Boeing (BA) | Stock slipped 0.2% after a judge rejected its agreement to plead guilty to fraud related to 737 MAX crashes. |
| Robinhood (HOOD) | Stock rose 2.2% after receiving a ‘buy’ rating from Goldman Sachs, citing strong earnings growth potential. |
| Shopify (SHOP) | Stock rose 1.8% after an upgrade to ‘buy’ by Loop Capital, citing underestimated AI capabilities. |
| Rubrik (RBRK) | Stock soared 22% after reporting a narrower-than-expected Q3 loss and raising its guidance. |
All Eyes on the Labor Market
Investors are gearing up for the November jobs report, which will be released Friday. The report is expected to show a gain of 214,000 jobs. This would be a sharp rebound from October’s lackluster 12,000-job increase.
The data could give the Federal Reserve a better picture of the economy. With its next policy meeting around the corner, the central bank will likely use these figures to guide decisions. November’s job market faced hurdles, including strikes and severe weather, making this report particularly important.
Retail Earnings in Focus
Some retailers posted strong earnings, beating Wall Street’s forecasts.
Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA)
Ulta’s shares climbed after reporting earnings that exceeded expectations. The beauty retailer also raised its full-year outlook slightly. Fears of slowing demand and growing competition didn’t hold Ulta back.
Lululemon (NASDAQ:LULU)
Lululemon also impressed investors with its earnings report. The yoga apparel giant offered holiday guidance that matched analysts’ forecasts. However, the company expressed caution about its fourth-quarter outlook.
Victoria’s Secret (NYSE:VSCO)
Victoria’s Secret shares gained about 3%. The retailer posted better-than-expected third-quarter results. The company reported a loss of $0.50 per share on $1.35 billion in revenue. Analysts had predicted a loss of $0.63 per share on $1.29 billion in revenue. Victoria’s Secret also raised its full-year outlook, boosting investor confidence.
Oil on Track for Weekly Losses
Oil prices edged lower Friday amid concerns about slowing global demand. By 03:50 ET, U.S. crude futures (WTI) fell 0.4% to $68.02 a barrel. Brent crude, the global benchmark, also dropped 0.4% to $71.77 a barrel.
For the week, Brent was set to lose about 1.5%, while WTI clung to slight weekly gains.
OPEC+ announced it would delay the start of planned production increases by three months, pushing the schedule to April 2025. The group also extended its timeline to fully unwind supply cuts to the end of 2026, citing weaker global demand.
Demand forecasts for 2024 and 2025 were cut repeatedly, especially due to slower growth in China. OPEC+ initially planned to begin unwinding cuts in October but has postponed the move multiple times as demand weakened.
About The Author
Alex Vellor
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