U.S. stock futures were mostly higher, one day after Wall Street skidded on reports that President Joe Biden plans to propose an increase in the capital gains tax rate to 39.6% for those earning $1 million or more, up from 20% currently. The Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq finished off their lows, declining about 1% each. The three stock benchmarks were tracking for weekly drops of more than 1%. (CNBC)
* Today's biggest analyst calls of the day: Tesla, Schwab, Amazon, Microsoft (CNBC Pro)
Dow components American Express (AXP) and Honeywell (HON) delivered quarterly results Friday morning. Amex beat handily on profit but missed on revenue. Shares dropped nearly 4% in the premarket. Honeywell beat on both, though its stock was also lower. (CNBC)
Intel (INTC) late Thursday delivered essentially flat first-quarter sales and a drop in profit in the first earnings report under new CEO Pat Gelsinger. The Dow stock declined more than 2% in premarket trading, though Intel's per-share earnings and revenue did beat estimates. (CNBC)
Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies sank Friday as concern about Biden raising U.S. capital gains taxes on the rich led to a wave of selling. Bitcoin, which hit an all time high near $65,000 on April 14, sank 6.5% to under $50,000. That's a 23% plunge in a little more than a week. The crypto market value, half of which is bitcoin, dropped $200 billion in just a day. (CNBC)
IN THE NEWS TODAY
The CDC's immunization advisory panel is set to meet Friday on whether to lift the pause on Johnson & Johnson's (JNJ) one-shot Covid vaccine. In addition to six women who developed rare but severe blood clotting issues after getting the vaccine, the CDC is looking into two more possible cases: an Oregon woman who died and a Texas woman who was hospitalized. Of the original six, one died and one became critically ill. (CNBC)
* California's Cal State and UC to require Covid vaccinations for the fall semester (CNBC)
* U.S. drop in vaccine demand has some places turning down doses (AP)
* New variant detected at Texas A&M lab shows signs of antibody resistance (CNBC)
* India reports more than 330,000 new Covid cases, setting a fresh global record (CNBC)
SpaceX launched four astronauts into orbit Friday morning from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, using a recycled rocket and capsule. It's the third crewed flight in less than a year for Elon Musk's privately held commercial space company. The astronauts from the United States, Japan and France should reach the International Space Station early Saturday. (AP & CNBC)
Consumer Reports said it took a 2020 Tesla Model Y on a closed test track to see if the electric vehicle could operate on Autopilot, Tesla's (TSLA) automated driving system, with nobody in the driver's seat. The product-testing organization found it could "easily get the car to drive even with no one in the driver's seat." (CNBC)
* Tesla branded as 'arrogant' in China as pressure mounts on the electric carmaker (CNBC)
The head of Facebook's (FB) app, Fidji Simo, told CNBC that the social media giant has been working on audio for years as it prepares to launch its Clubhouse rival. Earlier this week, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said his company is building a product where users can engage in real-time conversations with others, like they can on Clubhouse.
It's making a "huge difference" to have the U.S. back in the fight for a more sustainable world, the EU's climate chief told CNBC on Friday as President Joe Biden gears up for the second day of his climate summit. Biden's stance on climate change has signaled a U-turn for American politics after the presidency of Donald Trump. (CNBC)
* Bill Gates, Mike Bloomberg to be featured on closing day of Biden climate summit (AP)
U.S. Gymnast Simone Biles is departing Nike (NKE) to partner with Gap's (GPS) Athleta brand. With Athleta, Biles is going to have her own performance wear line, which will include products for wearing to and from the gym. The value of the contract wasn't disclosed. (CNBC)
* Presumptive top NFL draft pick Trevor Lawrence announces first endorsement deal: Gatorade (CNBC)
STOCKS TO WATCH
Kimberly-Clark (KMB): The consumer products company's stock dropped 6.4% in premarket action after it reported weaker-than-expected profit and sales for its latest quarter and gave a full-year forecast that came in below Wall Street consensus.
Boston Beer (SAM): The Sam Adams brewer surged 7.6% in premarket action after beating top and bottom line estimates by a wide margin for its latest quarter. Boston Beer's results were helped by a jump in sales for its Truly hard seltzer brand.
Mattel (MAT): The toy maker's shares rallied 6.8% in premarket action after it reported record 47% sales growth for its latest quarter compared to a year ago. Mattel reported a much smaller-than-expected loss, but revenue beat forecasts on strong sales of toys like Barbie dolls and Hot Wheels cars.
Schlumberger (SLB): The oilfield services company's shares rose 1.4% in the premarket after it reported better-than-expected profit and revenue on improved international drilling activity. That follows upbeat reports earlier this week from rivals Halliburton (HAL) and Baker Hughes (BKR).
Snap (SNAP): The parent of Snapchat reported a breakeven quarter, compared to consensus forecasts for a 6 cents per share loss. Revenue also beat estimates, as did user growth for Snapchat, and the stock rallied 4.5% in the premarket.
Seagate Technology (STX): The hard disk drive maker's shares slipped 2% in the premarket despite better-than-expected profit and revenue for its latest quarter. Seagate forecast slightly better-than-expected profit for the full year, with its revenue projection roughly in line with Wall Street forecasts.
Skillz (SKLZ): The eSports platform surged 10.1% in premarket trading following news that Cathie Wood's ARK funds bought another 1.2 million shares following a 5 million share purchase on Wednesday.
Skechers (SKX): The footwear maker beat estimates on the top and bottom lines for its latest quarter, boosted by strong overseas demand for its shoes. Skechers shares soared 10.4% in premarket action.
World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE): The media and entertainment company's shares rose 2.9% in premarket action after it reported better-than-expected profit and revenue for the first quarter. Profit fell from a year ago, however, reflecting a decline in live events due to the pandemic.
Skyworks Solutions (SWKS): The chipmaker is buying the infrastructure and automotive business of Silicon Labs (SLAB) for $2.75 billion in cash. Skyworks rose 4.1% in the premarket, while Silicon Labs rallied 12.3% after saying it would return $2 billion of the deal's proceeds to shareholders.
WATERCOOLER
Disney's (DIS) advertising sales group said it's sold out of ad inventory for Sunday's telecast of the Oscars on ABC. The show, which typically airs in February or early March, was pushed back by organizers because of pandemic restrictions and safety concerns. (CNBC)
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