U.S. stock futures were relatively unchanged on Thursday following a record day for stocks, while bitcoin also reached all-time highs.
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 6 points. On the other hand, S&P 500 futures slid 0.1%, along with Nasdaq-100 futures.
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Bitcoin traded more than 3% higher, breaking above $100,000 for the first time in late Wednesday trading. The move led crypto-related stocks such as MicroStrategy and Robinhood higher by 8% and 6%, respectively.
During Wednesday's trading session, the three major averages saw solid gains, with the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite scoring new closing records. The Dow Jones Industrial Average also closed above 45,000 for the first time.
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"I think there's still gas in the tank as we move through December and into 2025," Tony Pasquariello, global head of hedge fund coverage at Goldman Sachs, said Wednesday on CNBC's "Closing Bell." "I still think it is a bull market. I still think the primary trend is higher. If we're right on growth, if we're right on the Fed, if we're right on technology, the raw ingredients would argue for the rally to continue."
This comes as first-time filings for jobless benefits for the week ending Nov. 30 rose by 9,000 to 224,000, higher than the Dow Jones estimate for 215,000. On the other hand, the level of continuing claims, which run a week behind, edged lower by 25,000 to 1.871 million.
Investors are now awaiting November's nonfarm payrolls data, due out on Friday morning.
Money Report
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said on Wednesday during an onstage interview at The New York Times' DealBook Summit that the U.S. economy is strong enough for the Fed to move carefully on rate cuts.
"The labor market is better, and the downside risks appear to be less in the labor market," he said. "Growth is definitely stronger than we thought, and inflation is coming [out] a little higher. So, the good news is that we can afford to be a little more cautious as we try to find neutral."
Fed funds futures trading suggests a 78% likelihood that the central bank will trim rates by a quarter point at its Dec. 17-18 meeting, but they imply a nearly 64% probability that policymakers will hold steady in January, according to the CME FedWatch tool.
Weekly jobless claims higher than forecast
Initial filings for unemployment benefits rose more than expected last week, the Labor Department reported Thursday.
First-time claims for the week ending Nov. 30 totaled 224,000, up 9,000 from the previous period and higher than the Dow Jones estimate for 215,000.
Continuing claims, which run a week behind, edged lower after being mostly on the rise for the past two months. The new total is 1.87 million, a decrease of 25,000 and lower than the FactSet forecast for 1.91 million.
—Jeff Cox
Bitcoin could eventually replace gold, Bernstein says
Bitcoin could eventually replace the role of gold, according to Bernstein.
In a Thursday note, Bernstein analyst Gautam Chhugani wrote that bitcoin could eventually gold as the "new-age premier 'store of value' asset."
On Wednesday night, the price of bitcoin surged past the $100,000 level for the first time in history. Bernstein predicts that bitcoin could rise to $200,000 by late 2025.
CNBC Pro subscribers can read the full story here.
— Hakyung Kim, Lisa Kailai Han
Oppenheimer reiterates outperform rating on Broadcom
Oppenheimer sees chipmaker Broadcom posting a beat on its fiscal fourth quarter earnings report on Nov. 12.
The firm reiterated its outperform rating and $200 price target on shares ahead of the company's quarterly earnings release.
Analyst Rick Schafer believes Broadcom's semiconductor segment will have grown 10% from the previous quarter. Meanwhile, he estimates the software business will have grown 3% quarter-over-quarter.
Year to date, Broadcom shares have surged nearly 53%.
— Hakyung Kim
Crypto stocks jump as bitcoin tops $100,000
Crypto-related stocks jumped in premarket trading Thursday, as bitcoin traded above $100,000 for the first time.
MicroStrategy advanced more than 6%, while Robinhood and Riot Platforms advanced more than 4% each. Mara Holdings was up 5.5%, and Coinbase gained 3%.
— Fred Imbert
Europe stocks open mixed
European stock markets opened mixed on Thursday as investors assessed political uncertainty in France.
France's CAC 40 was up 0.13% at 8:11 a.m. in London, while Germany's DAX gained 0.06%. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 slipped 0.05%.
— Jenni Reid
Bitcoin tops $100,000 for the first time ever
The price of bitcoin soared past the long-awaited $100,000 benchmark for the first time ever late Wednesday evening.
The flagship cryptocurrency was last higher by more than 7% at $102,879.60, according to Coin Metrics. Earlier, it rose as high as $103,844.05.
The move came hours after President-elect Donald Trump announced plans to nominate Paul Atkins as chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission. The same day, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said bitcoin was "just like gold only it's virtual, it's digital," speaking at the DealBook conference.
For more on bitcoin's historic milestone read our full story here.
— Tanaya Macheel
American Eagle plummets after revenue miss
Shares of American Eagle Outfitters fell 13% in extended trading Wednesday on the heels of the retailer's third-quarter revenue missing Wall Street's expectations.
The company saw its revenue come in at $1.29 billion, while analysts surveyed by LSEG were expecting revenue of $1.30 billion. However, it did see earnings come in above expectations, posting adjusted earnings of 48 cents per share compared to the consensus estimate of 46 cents per share.
On top of that, American Eagle provided a weak holiday forecast and cut its full-year outlook. It now expects comparable sales to grow by 3% for the full year, which is below both its prior guidance of 4% growth and the consensus estimate of 4.1%, according to FactSet. Revenue growth for the full year is also expected to come in at 1%, below its prior guidance of 2% to 3%.
While the stock has gained more than 7% in the past month, it's been in the red this year, posting year-to-date losses of about 3%.
— Gabrielle Fonrouge, Sean Conlon
Stocks making the biggest moves after hours
Check out the stocks making headlines in extended trading:
Five Below – The discount retailer advanced about 11% after posting third-quarter revenue of $844 million, well above the $799 million analysts polled by LSEG had expected. Adjusted earnings also topped the Street's expectations. The company also guided for a fourth-quarter revenue range that encompassed the average consensus estimate.
Synopsys – The stock fell more than 6% after the company's fiscal first-quarter forecast came in lower than analysts were expecting. Synopsys expects earnings to come in between $2.77 and $2.82 per share, well below the $3.53 per share that analysts had penciled in, per LSEG. The company also guided for first-quarter revenues that were lower than consensus, forecasting between $1.435 billion and $1.465 billion in the quarter. Analysts surveyed by LSEG were looking for $1.631 billion.
Read here for the full list.
— Sean Conlon
Stock futures open little changed
U.S. stock futures hovered just below the flatline Wednesday night.
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 16 points, or 0.04%. Additionally, S&P 500 futures inched lower by 0.07%, while Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.1%.
— Sean Conlon