5 Things to Know Before the Stock Market Opens (2024)

President Joe Biden presents his State of the Union address, with his age and potential tax cuts in focus; Fed Chair Jerome Powell will testify before the Senate Banking Committee and will likely be questioned again on where interest rates are going; troubled lender New York Community Bank (NYCB) is getting a capital injection from a consortium led by former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin;ADT (ADT) shares fell sharply in premarket trading after the company announced a secondary public offering of its stock; and Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) is set to report quarterly results that are expected to show the retailer did well during the holiday season. U.S. equity futures are edging higher, bitcoin is slightly higher, and gold is little changed after hitting records. Here’s what investors need to know today.

1. Biden’s Economic Priorities in Focus in State of Union Address

President Joe Biden presents his third State of the Union address at9 p.m. ET with his views on the economy in investors' sights at a time when consumers remain gloomy—even as job gains continue to improve and inflation declines. Biden, 81, will have a chance to lay out his economic priorities for the coming year, ahead of a presidential campaign where his age has grabbed headlines. He is expected to extend 2017 tax cuts while proposing higher taxes on companies and high earners.

2. Fed Chair Set for Day Two in Congress after Reiterating No-Rush-to-Cut Stance

Fed Chair Jerome Powell has his final day before Congress today, after sticking to the script in his testimony to the House Financial Services Committee Wednesday and repeating his stance that the U.S. central bank isn’t in a rush to cut interest rates. Powell said with the economic outlook uncertain and progress toward its 2% inflation goal “not assured,” the Fed lacked confidence that price pressures won’t re-accelerate. Powell will testify before the Senate Banking Committee today.

3. NYCB Gets Mnuchin-Led $1B Equity Investment

Shares in New York Community Bank (NYCB) were little changed about two hours before the opening bell after rising 7.5% Wednesday on news that the troubled regional lender had secured a $1 billion equity investment from a consortium of firms led by former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin's Liberty Strategic Capital. The lender’s shares have taken a hammering since January, dragged down by investor fears of commercial real estate-losses, plans to cut its dividends, and a replacement of its longtime CEO as it addressed material weaknesses in its internal controls. NYCB shares whipsawed Wednesday, plunging more than 40% on a Wall Street Journal report of its plan to raise funds before rebounding on the equity investment news.

4.Costco Expected to Report Strong Results

Costco Wholesale Corp.'s (COST) fiscal second-quarter results, which are due after the closing bell today, are expected to show that the retailer's strong holiday-shopping season numbers spurred solid revenue and profit growth. Analysts expect earnings per share (EPS) of $3.62, compared with $3.30 last year, and expect the firm to report a 6.7% quarterly sales increase over the year-earlier period as the retailer benefits from catering to an increasingly price-conscious consumer.

5. ADT Stock Slides After Announcement of Secondary Public Offering

ADT (ADT) shares were down nearly 10% in premarket trading after the home security company announced a secondary public offering of its stock. Under the terms of the ADT secondary offering, 65 million shares of the company’scommon stockheld by entities managed byaffiliatesof Apollo Global Management (APO) will be priced to the public at $6.50 per share, representing a 13% discount to Wednesday’s $7.47 closing price. The company expects the offering to close on March 11. The secondary offering comes roughly a week after the company missed Wall Street’s 2024revenueforecast amid softness in its solar business.

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