Several major companies made headlines before the bell, including Bank of America, Johnson & Johnson, Goldman Sachs, UnitedHealth Group, Walgreens Boots Alliance, Citigroup, PNC Financial, Etsy, Coty, Charles Schwab, and Enphase Energy. Bank of America saw its shares rise 1% after third-quarter earnings and revenue surpassed Wall Street analysts’ estimates, with earnings coming in at 81 cents per share and revenue reaching $25.5 billion. Johnson & Johnson also saw its shares rise slightly premarket after reporting strong sales of oncology drugs and raising forward financial guidance for full-year 2024 profit and sales.
Goldman Sachs experienced a more significant jump of over 2% after posting better-than-expected quarterly earnings, reporting earnings per share of $8.40 on $12.70 billion in revenue. The investment bank’s trading and investment banking segments were key drivers of the positive results. On the other hand, UnitedHealth Group saw its stock decline 3.2% despite beating earnings and revenue estimates in the third quarter. The company lowered its earnings guidance due to ongoing headwinds from a cyberattack earlier in the year, causing investors to react negatively.
Walgreens Boots Alliance, the retail drugstore chain, jumped 5% after exceeding analysts’ expectations for fiscal fourth-quarter sales and profit. The company announced plans to close roughly 1,200 stores over the next three years in an effort to increase adjusted earnings and free cash flow while cutting costs. Citigroup and PNC Financial also reported better-than-expected earnings and revenue, with Citigroup adding 1.7% and PNC Financial rising 0.8% premarket. Both banks outperformed consensus estimates, with Citigroup posting earnings per share of $1.51 on $20.32 billion in revenue and PNC Financial reporting earnings per share of $3.49 on revenue of $5.43 billion.
On the other side, Etsy saw its shares tumble more than 5% after Goldman Sachs downgraded the online marketplace to sell from neutral, citing the risk of compressed profit margins and continued market share losses. Coty, a beauty company, also faced a 4% drop in its stock after warning of a slower U.S. market in preliminary fiscal first-quarter results and lowering its comparable revenue growth forecast. Charles Schwab, the brokerage company, surged over 7% after reporting third-quarter results that beat analysts’ estimates, with 77 cents in earnings per share and $4.85 billion in revenue. The company’s wealth advisory division also reported record year-to-date inflows.
Enphase Energy, a maker of solar micro-inverters and EV charging stations, saw its shares fall 1.8% after RBC Capital Markets downgraded the company to sector perform from outperform, citing expectations of a slower pace of growth next year not reflected in current consensus estimates. Enphase, which also produces battery storage units, has experienced a more than 20% decline in its stock price this year. Overall, the premarket movements of these companies reflect a mix of positive earnings surprises, revised financial guidance, and concerns about future growth and market conditions. Investors will likely continue to monitor these developments closely as the trading day progresses.
