US OPEN: Lower opening of Thursday's session on Wall Street, Delta dips after disappointing results

• Wall Street opens lower on Thursday.
• Delta Air Lines Inc. shares are lower after the carrier's fourth-quarter guidance disappointed investors.
• Pfizer Inc. faces a setback in its potential turnaround efforts as former CEO and ex-CFO announced they will not be involved with activist investors.

US equities are set for a lower open, with the Russell 2000 leading losses, down 0.53%. The S&P 500 is down by 0.27% with Nasdaq 100 0.43% lower.  In Europe, most indexes are in the red. Spanish SPA35 and Dutch NED25 are worst performing and lose 0.87% and 0.74% respectively. French CAC40 and British UK100 are lower 0.4%. Italian ITA40 and Austrian AUT20 are the only ones in green. German DAX 40 is losing 0.25% of its value. Delta Air Lines Inc. shares fell over 5% in premarket trading after the carrier's fourth-quarter guidance disappointed investors, despite projections of earnings growth. Pfizer Inc. faces a setback in its potential turnaround efforts as former CEO Ian Read and ex-CFO Frank D'Amelio announced they will not be involved with activist investor Starboard Value's initiatives. 10x Genomics Inc. shares plummeted nearly 24% in premarket trading after the biotechnology company reported preliminary Q3 2024 revenue of $151.7 million, falling short of analyst estimates of $162.2 million.

Current volatility observed on Wall Street. Source: xStation 

The Nasdaq-100 index, represented by the US100 contract, is trading above the mid-August highs at 19,917.81, a key level for both bulls and bears. Bulls have protected this level for 12 trading days, indicating strong demand. For upward momentum to continue, the support at the 78.6% Fibonacci retracement level must not be broken. The index has been in an uptrend since late July, forming higher highs and higher lows, but is now facing resistance near this Fibonacci level.

However, the uptrend appears to be forming a bearish wedge, with the 50% Fibonacci retracement level potentially confirming a trend reversal if broken. For bears to regain control, the mid-August highs of 19,917.81 must be breached, which could lead to a test of support at the 61.8% Fibonacci retracement level—previously strong resistance. A break of this support could quickly bring the 100-day and 50-day SMAs into play.

Currently, the RSI is showing bearish divergence, with lower lows and lower highs, but is still consolidating near the upper side of the neutral zone. The MACD has signaled a sell, and its tightness suggests potential for high volatility. Additionally, the 50-day SMA is approaching the 100-day SMA, and a bearish crossover could trigger further downside momentum. Source: xStation 5

News:

• Pfizer Inc. (PFE.US) faces a setback in its potential turnaround efforts as former CEO Ian Read and ex-CFO Frank D'Amelio announced they will not be involved with activist investor Starboard Value's initiatives. The executives expressed full support for current CEO Albert Bourla and the board, contradicting earlier reports of their interest in assisting Starboard. Pfizer's shares have fallen over 9% in the past year, trading at around half of their pandemic-era highs. The company is scheduled to hold talks with Starboard CEO Jeff Smith next week, as it grapples with shrinking COVID product sales and challenges in finding new revenue streams to offset the losses.
• Delta Air Lines Inc. (DAL.US) shares fell over 5% in premarket trading after the carrier's fourth-quarter guidance disappointed investors, despite projections of earnings growth. Currently they are trading 3% lower. Delta forecast Q4 adjusted earnings between $1.60 and $1.85 per share, compared to Wall Street estimates of $1.71. The airline expects revenue to rise 2% to 4% year-over-year, below analyst projections of 4.1% growth. CEO Ed Bastian warned of a potential 1-point revenue hit due to lower demand around the November 5 U.S. presidential election, noting, "We do anticipate seeing a little choppiness around the election." Delta's Q3 results were impacted by a CrowdStrike outage in July, which cost the company $380 million in revenue and reduced earnings by 45 cents per share. Despite these challenges, Delta maintained its full-year adjusted earnings forecast of $6 to $7 per share, excluding the cybersecurity incident's impact.
• GXO Logistics Inc. (GXO.US) shares surged 4.9% in premarket trading following reports that the company is exploring a potential sale after receiving takeover interest. Currently they are 10% higher. Sources familiar with the matter indicate that GXO is working with a financial adviser to field acquisition interest from suitors, including rival logistics providers. The company, which was spun off from XPO in 2021, has struggled as a publicly traded entity, losing more than a fifth of its market value since the spinoff. However, recent quarters have shown promise with new customer acquisitions and 19% revenue growth. Citigroup initiated coverage of GXO with a "buy" rating and a $60 price target, adding to the positive sentiment surrounding the potential sale.

• 10x Genomics Inc. (TXG.US) shares plummeted nearly 24% in premarket trading after the biotechnology company reported preliminary Q3 2024 revenue of $151.7 million, falling short of analyst estimates of $162.2 million. Currently they are trading 30% lower. The company cited disruptions from commercial process changes and cautious customer spending, particularly impacting instrument sales, which declined 46% year-over-year. While consumables revenue grew 10%, overall revenue decreased 1% compared to the same period last year. CEO Serge Saxonov acknowledged the disappointing results, and the company plans to provide full-year 2024 guidance during its earnings call on October 29, 2024.

Other news coming from individual S&P 500 index companies. Source: Bloomberg Financial LP