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Pre-market futures are up nicely this morning as “Peace in the Middle East” once again grabs headlines. The U.S. has paused its three-day blockade at the Gulf of Oman, allowing for safe passage of commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz. Peace talks are reportedly underway with a one-page “Memo of Understanding,” but without many details cited.
Based on the rhetoric from both sides over the past several weeks, a major breakthrough would seem to be a stretch of logic in the near-term. Nevertheless, hope springs eternal. WTI and Brent crude prices dipped below $100/bbl, while the Dow is up another +421 points at this hour, +0.87%, the S&P 500 is +53 points, +0.74%, the Nasdaq +321, +1.14% and the small-cap Russell 2000 — leading major indexes for a second-straight day — is currently +38 points, +1.35%.
Private-Sector Jobs from ADP Surprises Higher: +109K
It’s the first Wednesday of a new month, so we’re greeted ahead of the open with the latest private-sector jobs report from Automatic Data Processing (ADP). A higher-than-expected +109K new private-sector jobs filled in April is the strongest print we’ve seen since January of 2025, and above the +84K analysts were projecting. (The prior month was revised downward slightly to +61K.)
Goods-producing jobs gained +15K for the month, with Services positions +94K — more or less where the normal ratio breaks down. Small firms (sub-50 employees) and large businesses (500+ workers) led the way with +65K and +42K, respectively, while medium-sized companies grew by only +2K. Those who changed their job in the month averaged +6.6% wage gain; job stayers averaged +4.4%.
In terms of industry, Education/Healthcare led the way again, unsurprisingly: +61K. Trade/Transportation/Utilities was next at +25K, followed by Construction +10K and Leisure/Hospitality +4K. Professional/Business Services shed -8K positions in the private sector last month. The good news, looking past the obvious strength in Healthcare, was that we’re starting to see “green shoots” in industries that a year ago were seeing negative growth.
ADP Chief Economist Nela Richardson visited the set of CNBC’s “Squawk Box” this morning, and was able to shed some light on these numbers, like she usually does: “Hiring at small firms tend to be more part-time, lower paying jobs… (thus we’re) replac(ing) jobs with lower pay and fewer hours… Healthcare is (still) driving everything, including home healthcare,” which are not currently under threat of replacement by AI.
Earnings Reports at a Glance This Morning: DIS, CVS, NVO & More
The Walt Disney Company DIS reported its first quarterly earnings results under new CEO Josh D’Amaro, and results were solid. Earnings of $1.57 per share amounted to a +5.37% outperformance, while revenues of $25.17 billion outpaced estimates by +0.41%. Shares had been down -11.7% year to date, but are growing +5.4% on the fiscal Q2 earnings news. For more on DIS’ earnings, click here.
CVS Health CVS — the full-service healthcare firm that owns Aetna insurance, Oak Street Health clinics and CVS pharmacies — surpassed expectations on Q1 earnings by +16.29% to $2.57 per share this morning. Revenues of $100.43 billion bettered estimates by +6.41%. Shares are up +6% in early trading, adding to the stock’s +1.68% gains year to date. For more on CVS’ earnings, click here.
GLP-1 Wegovy manufacturer Novo NordiskNVO posted a +19.5% beat on its bottom line this morning, with earnings of $1.04 per share easily zipping past the $0.87 in the Zacks consensus. Shares are up +5.35% in today’s pre-market on the news, filling in roughly half of the stock’s -11.8% hole year to date.
Marriott MAR shares are flat on the hotelier’s +5.4% earnings beat in its Q1 report this morning, to $2.72 per share. Revenues of $6.65 billion in the quarter was +0.90% ahead of expectations. Shares had already gained +14% year to date. For more on MAR’s earnings, click here.
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Helen of Troy drives growth through Leadership Brands, global expansion, and its bold “Elevate for Growth” strategy. Efficiency, innovation, and agility fuel its path forward.
Cullen/Frost’s branch expansion efforts in the Texas region will drive deposit and loan growth. NII growth will aid the company’s top line. Also, its capital distributions seem sustainable.
NICE leads in Customer Engagement with CXone, expanding through acquisitions like LiveVox, and demonstrates strong performance in CX solutions & Financial Crime sector.
Brigit subscription growth, Acima digital partnerships, and steadier Rent-A-Center execution support diversified earnings and cash generation through 2026 for shareholders.
Omnicell strongly executes its long-term strategy to transform the pharmacy care delivery model. A prudent cost management approach will help shield macro headwinds.
Element Solutions is poised to benefit from several innovation-driven strategic initiatives. The company grows through acquisitions and restricted spending.
Expanding AI and enterprise exposure, strong embedded storage growth, and product innovation support sustained revenue growth and improving profitability outlook.
AI-driven data center buildouts, expanding capacity and services, disciplined pricing and productivity, and stronger finances support Vertiv’s long-term growth at scale.
Rising expenses due to higher net incurred claims and benefits and amortization of deferred acquisition costs are concerns. High debt level also bothers the company.
A challenging operating backdrop amid macroeconomic ambiguity is a headwind for Moelis & Company. Mounting expenses, mainly higher compensation costs, will likely hurt profitability to an extent.
Rising expenses due to higher net incurred claims and benefits and amortization of deferred acquisition costs are concerns. High debt level also bothers the company.
Persistent tariffs and chip costs, pronounced deceleration in the second half of the year and consumer fragility constraints limit full-year upside potential.
A challenging operating backdrop amid macroeconomic ambiguity is a headwind for Moelis & Company. Mounting expenses, mainly higher compensation costs, will likely hurt profitability to an extent.
Persistent tariffs and chip costs, pronounced deceleration in the second half of the year and consumer fragility constraints limit full-year upside potential.
Exposure to political instability, risk of restrictions on currency conversion, high debt and rising expenses are some of the headwinds faced by the company.
American Eagle is well placed on cost-reduction efforts and brand progress. In the second half, the company expects to cycle tariffs and advertising investments.
Robust loan growth and stabilizing funding costs will keep aiding Bank of America’s NII growth. Opening of new financial centers, along with digital upgrades, will aid cross-selling opportunities.
Strength in the Energy Generation/Storage business, balance sheet strength, and focus on autonomous driving, robotics and artificial intelligence are set to drive Tesla.
Strength across all product groups is a positive catalyst for Edwards Lifesciences. The company’s bullish long-term growth strategy buoys optimism on the stock.
Intel’s leading position in PC market, strength in servers, growing clout in software, IoT & ADAS domains and headway in process technology are positive indicators of future growth prospects.
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