US OPEN: Wall Street with strong rebound, Nike in the spotlight among investors 📈

• Wall Street gains at the start of the session
• Attention shifts towards Nike shares
• BofA with a "buy" rating on shares of Anheuser-Busch InBev (BUD.US)

This week's final session on Wall Street begins with strong gains in Wall Street's stock market benchmarks. At the time of writing, the US100 index is gaining 1%, and the US500 is up almost 0.5%. The improved market sentiment today is primarily a rebound in the TNOTE market, which has endured a downward trend in technology company listings this week. Moreover, markets reacted well to the lower-than-expected monthly PCE inflation reading.

The money market is now pricing in that the US interest rate hike cycle is over. Source: Bloomberg Finance LP

U.S. companies categorized by sector and industry. Size indicates market capitalization. Source: xStation5

The US100 index is gaining more than 1% at the start of today's session and is trading above the 15,000-point zone.  Source: xStation 5

News

Investors' attention during today's trading session turns to Nike (NKE.US), which is gaining more than 10% following the release of its results.

The sportswear leader reported first-quarter earnings per share that topped the average estimates of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg, and kept its full-year outlook unchanged. Source: Bloomberg Finance LP

Investors were particularly pleased with EPS growth (driven by higher consumer spending, higher gross margins, relatively low cost of sales and lower tax expense). The outlook for the future is optimistic, with the company having noticeably reduced its inventory levels. Source: Bloomberg Finance LP

The company's stock rebound has been helped by its relatively weak momentum against the S&P500 index over the course of this year. Source: Bloomberg Finance LP 

Anheuser-Busch InBev (BUD.US) shares are also up nearly 4% today. Bank of America communicated that the company is approaching a turning point for margin levels. Analysts upgraded the stock to a "buy" rating, and added that the company now appears to be a defensive pick given the current macro environment. 

ANALYSTS' RECOMMENDATION

- American Express Co (AXP.US): Piper Sandler raised its target price for the company's shares to $150 versus $149 in the face of higher consumer spending in the third quarter of this year.