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London open: Stocks edge up as investors mull Nvidia results
London stocks edged up in early trade on Thursday as investors mulled results from US chip maker Nvidia.
At 0910 BST, the FTSE 100 was up 0.2% at 8,361.37.
Commenting on Nvidia’s results, Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor, said: “Despite an update which forecast third-quarter revenues of $32.5 billion, which exceeded estimates, the shares fell by 2% during the session and by 3% in extended trade. The company is facing increasingly higher hurdles to please investors, following a stellar share price rise which includes a hike of more than 160% this year alone.
“Caution ahead of the group’s numbers inevitably washed through to the more tech-exposed S&P500 and Nasdaq indices, given Nvidia’s disproportionate weighting, with some weakness in fellow ‘Magnificent Seven’ constituents such as Apple, Amazon and Microsoft.
“Even so, fears of a major disappointment seem to have been averted following the update, with attention now turning to the latest GDP growth estimate today and the latest inflation reading in the form of the Personal Consumption Expenditures index tomorrow.
“This should inform investors as to whether the widely expected rate cut in September remains on track, with the likelihood of a 0.25% reduction remaining in the driving seat. Ahead of these numbers and notwithstanding yesterday’s nervous session, the main indices remain in rude health in the year to date, with rises of 9% for the Dow Jones and of 17% for both the S&P500 and Nasdaq.”
In equity markets, Premier Inn owner Whitbread was the top gainer on the FTSE 100 after an upgrade to ‘outperform’ by Bernstein.
Close Brothers surged after an upgrade to ‘outperform’ at RBC Capital Markets, while British Gas owner Centrica was boosted by an upgrade to ‘buy’ at Jefferies.
GSK rose as it said the European Commission has approved Arexvy, the first respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine, for adults aged 50 to 59 at increased risk due to underlying medical conditions.
Drax was in the black as Ofgem closed its probe into the company’s biomass profiling data after investigating whether or not the power station group failed to meet sustainability criteria of so-called Renewable Obligation Certificates (ROCs).
IG Group lost ground after Tom Sosnoff and Scott Sheridan sold 6.5m shares in the company in a placing to a limited number of institutional investors. The placing represents around 1.8% of the existing share capital in the company.
Sosnoff and Sheridan were co-founders of US online brokerage and trading education platform Tastytrade, which was acquired by IG in 2021 for $1bn.
Top 10 FTSE 100 Risers
| Sponsored by Plus500 |
|
| # | Name | Change Pct | Change | Cur Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  |
South32 Limited | +2.45% | +3.80 | 159.00 |
| 2 |  |
Croda International Plc | +1.96% | +80.00 | 4,159.00 |
| 3 |  |
Jd Sports Fashion Plc | +1.86% | +2.55 | 139.85 |
| 4 |  |
Gen.acc.8se.pf | +1.80% | +2.50 | 141.50 |
| 5 |  |
Spirax Group Plc | +1.75% | +130.00 | 7,540.00 |
| 6 |  |
Barclays Plc | +1.63% | +3.65 | 227.55 |
| 7 |  |
Melrose Industries Plc | +1.42% | +6.80 | 485.40 |
| 8 |  |
Standard Chartered Plc | +1.41% | +10.80 | 778.60 |
| 9 |  |
Carnival Plc | +1.37% | +15.50 | 1,147.00 |
| 10 |  |
Intertek Group Plc | +1.36% | +66.00 | 4,918.00 |
Top 10 FTSE 100 Fallers
| Sponsored by Plus500 |
|
| # | Name | Change Pct | Change | Cur Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  |
Diageo Plc | -1.39% | -35.00 | 2,484.50 |
| 2 |  |
Smith (ds) Plc | -0.88% | -4.20 | 474.60 |
| 3 |  |
Glencore Plc | -0.85% | -3.45 | 401.10 |
| 4 |  |
Gen.acc.7se.pf | -0.77% | -1.00 | 129.00 |
| 5 |  |
Wise Plc | -0.72% | -5.00 | 685.00 |
| 6 |  |
Coca-cola Hbc Ag | -0.71% | -20.00 | 2,806.00 |
| 7 |  |
Shell Plc | -0.45% | -12.00 | 2,684.00 |
| 8 |  |
Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc | -0.41% | -18.00 | 4,384.00 |
| 9 |  |
Bp Plc | -0.36% | -1.55 | 430.00 |
| 10 |  |
Rolls-royce Holdings Plc | -0.26% | -1.30 | 498.90 |
US close: Stocks lower as traders digest Nvidia earnings
Wall Street stocks closed lower on Wednesday as market participants awaited earnings from AI-darling Nvidia after the close.
At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.39% at 41,091.42, while the S&P 500 lost 0.60% to 5,592.18 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 1.12% weaker at 17,556.03.
The Dow closed 159.08 points lower on Wednesday, reversing modest gains recorded so far this week that helped the blue-chip index eke out yet another record high.
Wednesday’s primary focus was the latest batch of quarterly earnings from Nvidia, with traders hoping to gauge the sustainability of the broader tech and AI sector. The semiconductor giant reported earnings per share of $0.68 and quarterly revenues of $30.04bn, ahead of estimates of $0.64 per share and $28.7bn.
On the macro front, mortgage applications increased 0.5% week-on-week in the seven days ended 23 August, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association of America, a marked turnaround when compared to the prior week’s 10.1% drop. Applications to purchase a new home rose by 1%, while applications to refinance a mortgage slipped by 0.1%.
Elsewhere in the corporate space, retailer Nordstrom traded higher after posting Q2 adjusted earnings that came in ahead of expectations, while Calvin Klein owner PVH slumped on the back of disappointing guidance for the current quarter, and Salesforce beat earnings estimates and revealed that chief financial officer Amy Weaver will step down from the group.
Thursday newspaper round-up: Energy bills, Qantas, CrowdStrike
Ministers have committed to help households struggling with their gas and electricity bills this winter after energy industry bosses warned that consumer debt had climbed to more than £3bn. With Labour under fire for scrapping universal winter fuel payments to pensioners, ministers met energy industry bosses on Wednesday to discuss ways of supporting struggling households through the coming colder months. – Guardian
Qantas Airways has posted a $2.1bn annual underlying profit – down 16% from last year’s record result – amid a surge in demand for budget Jetstar fares and mounting public anger at its service and ticket policies. Australia’s biggest airline said bookings and travel demand remained stable across its flying brands, although moderating air fares had eroded profits, especially on international flights. – Guardian
A City whistleblower has been awarded more than half a million pounds after he was fired for exposing an alleged Chinese spy. An employment tribunal has awarded Bharat Bhagani, a former compliance officer at Goldenway Global Investments, nearly £565,000 in compensation, according to a ruling published earlier this week. – Telegraph
The Savoy hotel in central London is facing an increasingly competitive luxury hotel market on the back of a host of openings by rivals. According to the hotel’s accounts, filed this week, at least 15 new luxury hotels with a total of 2,677 rooms are opening across the capital over the 2023-2025 period. – The Times
CrowdStrike has cut its annual sales and profit forecast as demand for its cybersecurity products is hit by the global Windows outage caused by a faulty update from the company. The outage last month hit 8.5 million Microsoft Windows devices, interrupting internet services and leaving thousands of people stranded at airports after mass flight cancellations. – The Times
