(Editor’s note: The lede, headline, ETFs and economic data have been updated.)
U.S. stock futures pared earlier losses to advance on Thursday, as the Dow Jones, Nasdaq 100, and S&P 500 indices rose, following Wednesday’s lower close.
Investors digested a cooler-than-expected labor market picture as June nonfarm payrolls increased by a mere 57,000, significantly missing the 100,000 FactSet estimate, while the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.2%.
Meanwhile, seasonally adjusted initial jobless claims for the week ending June 27 ticked down slightly to 215,000. Trading volume is expected to remain light as the market will be closed on Friday, July 3, in observance of Independence Day.
As U.S. stocks logged their strongest quarter since 2020, the market milestone was celebrated by President Donald Trump following positive developments in indirect U.S.-Iran negotiations in Qatar.
Easing global energy supply fears, Trump told reporters, "As far as things are going, the denuclearization of Iran is moving along well," adding, "They’ve had very good meetings and we’ll see."
Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.49%, and the two-year bond was at 4.17%. The CME Group’s FedWatch tool’s projections show markets pricing a 70.6% likelihood of the Federal Reserve leaving the current interest rates unchanged during July’s meeting.
| Index | Performance (+/-) |
| Dow Jones | 0.09% |
| S&P 500 | 0.01% |
| Nasdaq 100 | -0.26% |
| Russell 2000 | -0.05% |
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, respectively, were higher in premarket on Thursday. The SPY was up 016% at $746.95, while the QQQ advanced by 0.29% to $727.25.
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Stocks In Focus
Franklin Covey
- Franklin Covey Co. (NYSE: FC ) dropped 19.69% in premarket on Thursday after lowering its full-year revenue guidance, overshadowing stronger profit growth in its third quarter. The company cut revenue guidance to a range of $260 million to $267 million from prior guidance of $265 million to $275 million.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that FC maintains a strong price trend in the medium, short, and long terms, with a poor quality score.
Surgepays
- Surgepays Inc. (NASDAQ: SURG ) surged by 43.34% as it signed an agreement with AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T ) to eliminate the $50 million minimum spend commitment.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that SURG maintains a weak price trend in the long, short, and medium terms.
Culp
- Culp Inc. (NASDAQ: CULP ) was 1.62% higher after posting mixed results for the fourth quarter after the closing bell on Wednesday.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that CULP maintains a weak price trend in the long, short, and medium terms.
Micron Technology
- Micron Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MU ) tumbled by 2.10% as CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said AI-driven memory demand had exceeded customer expectations and that industry supply was likely to remain constrained beyond 2027, citing growing demand across data centers, smartphones, PCs, automotive and industrial markets.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that MU maintains a strong price trend in the medium, short, and long terms, with a poor value score.
CoreWeave and Nebius
- CoreWeave Inc. (NASDAQ: CRWV ) declined by 1.43%, and Nebius Group NV (NASDAQ: NBIS ) fell 0.21%, continuing its slide from Wednesday as Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ: META ) said that it is preparing to expand into the cloud infrastructure market.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that CRWV maintains a weak price trend in the long, short, and medium terms, with a poor value score.
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Cues From Last Session
Communication services, financial, and consumer discretionary stocks recorded the biggest gains on Wednesday, driving most S&P 500 sectors to a positive finish, while information technology and utilities underperformed.
| Index | Performance (+/-) | Value |
| Dow Jones | -0.027% | 52,305.24 |
| S&P 500 | -0.22% | 7,483.23 |
| Nasdaq Composite | -0.66% | 26,040.03 |
| Russell 2000 | -0.39% | 3,012.59 |
Insights From Analysts
Senior Global Market Strategist Scott Wren outlines an optimistic outlook for the U.S. equity landscape despite recent index pressures. He notes that while heavyweights in Tech and Communication Services have temporarily held the S&P 500 Index below its record high, underlying market breadth is expanding encouragingly.
Wren emphasizes that price participation is diversifying, adding, “More companies participating on the upside is, in our view, a signal that the underlying health of the market is better than some investors might assume.”
Looking forward, he anticipates that technological innovation will remain a primary economic driver, stating, “we continue to believe that the artificial intelligence (AI) theme will continue to be the main equity earnings and price driver.”
Consequently, Wells Fargo Investment Institute projects a robust 25% earnings growth rate for the S&P 500 this year, followed by an additional 13% gain in 2027, maintaining a long-term year-end 2027 index target of 8,600–8,800.
Beyond Tech, Wren sees strong AI-adjacent opportunities in the Industrials, Utilities, and Materials sectors, alongside a highly rated Financials sector poised to benefit from accelerating M&A and IPO volumes.
Upcoming Economic Data
Here’s what investors will be keeping an eye on Thursday.
- Nonfarm Payrolls: Total nonfarm payroll employment changed little in June, adding only 57,000 jobs, which fell well below market estimates. The U.S. unemployment rate held steady at 4.2% for the month.
- Initial Jobless Claims: For the week ending June 27, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 215,000.
- May’s factory orders data will be out by 10:00 a.m. ET.
- On Friday, there are no economic events scheduled.
Commodities, Crypto, And Global Equity Markets
Crude oil futures were trading lower in the early New York session by 0.79% to hover around $68.04 per barrel.
Gold Spot US Dollar rose 1.10% to hover around $4,075.75 per ounce. The U.S. Dollar Index spot was 0.40% lower at the 100.9890 level.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) was trading 3.10% higher at $60,375.43 per coin over the last 24 hours.
Asian markets closed mixed on Thursday, as India’s Nifty 50, Australia’s ASX 200 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng indices rose, while South Korea’s Kospi, Japan’s Nikkei 225 and China’s CSI 300 indices fell. European markets were mostly higher in early trade.
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