Meta stocks
S&P 500 futures advanced late Wednesday as investors looked past the latest interest rate hike and comments from the Federal Reserve.
Broad index futures added 0.4%. Nasdaq 100 futures gained 1%, helped by Meta stocks. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were down 9 points, almost flat.
Meta jumped more than 19% in extended trading after reporting a pace of fourth-quarter revenue growth and announcing a $40 billion stock buyback. This has helped investors look at past losses in the business unit overseeing the Metaverse.
The moves follow a positive day for all three major indices. The S&P 500 reversed losses to end the regular session with a 1.05% jump, while the Nasdaq Composite closed 2% higher. Meanwhile, the Dow edged up 0.02% after losing more than 500 points earlier in the day.
Investors closely watched Wednesday’s Fed meeting, in which an interest rate hike of 0.25 percentage points was announced. That marked a pullback from the 0.5 percentage point increase at the December meeting,
bolstering investor optimism that inflation is cooling enough for the central bank to notice. But the bank gave no indication of an upcoming pause in rate hikes.
“Traders think the Fed is behind the curve and the inflation threat is rapidly receding,” said Jamie Dutta, market analyst at Vantage. “The Fed is ready to change its mind and may have to if the economy loses momentum.”
Investors will watch earnings reports from household names such as Apple, Alphabet, Amazon, Ford Motor and Starbucks on Thursday. They will also look for data on unemployment insurance claims, productivity, labor costs and factory orders.
