Pre-Market Report, Oct 29: Futures Slip as Alphabet Rattles AI Trade

Futures point to a lower open, with Nasdaq 100 futures down 1.19% and S&P 500 futures off 0.38% as Reuters linked the slide to Alphabet's results intensifying questions about AI spending. The VIX, a measure of expected market volatility, ticked up to 17.29. WTI crude slipped to $101.79 a barrel, gold eased to $4,040.20 an ounce, and bitcoin fell to $80,043.

The biggest S&P 500 moves

Norwegian Cruise Line led gainers after Business Insider reported the company posted third-quarter revenue of $2.9 billion and GAAP net income of $491 million, with earnings of $1.07 a share. Carvana rose after Reuters said its third-quarter revenue topped estimates, though Barron's noted that earnings came in short despite the sales milestone. Chipotle gained after CNBC reported same-store sales growth of 2.1%, ahead of the 1.5% analysts had expected, even though adjusted profit of $1 a share missed consensus. Lumentum climbed after Investor's Business Daily reported that Marvell Technology is reportedly working toward a deal to buy the optical parts maker, a move aimed at building a larger AI hardware business; DoorDash is also among the day's gainers.

On the downside, Fortinet tumbled after MarketWatch and Investor's Business Daily reported that product revenue growth slowed sharply from the prior quarter even though earnings beat estimates, a reaction that MarketWatch said also pressured other cybersecurity names. ServiceNow dropped after MarketWatch and Investor's Business Daily said third-quarter earnings missed consensus even as revenue and other metrics beat, with MarketWatch noting an earnings miss overshadowed an improved AI outlook. Marvell shares fell as reports of its talks to acquire Lumentum circulated, according to Investor's Business Daily. Caterpillar is lower despite reporting EPS of $7.20 against a $7.06 estimate. Alphabet is also among today's biggest decliners.

On the calendar today

Several high-importance economic reports have already been released this morning. Third-quarter GDP growth came in at 3.4%, above the 3.2% estimate. Core PCE inflation was 3.1% year over year, matching estimates, and 0.3% month over month, also matching estimates. Personal spending rose 0.5%, below the 0.6% estimate, while personal income rose 0.2%, below the 0.3% estimate. Initial jobless claims for the week came in at 194,000, below the 199,000 estimate, and continuing claims were 1,701,000, below the 1,720,000 estimate.

Of the 61 S&P 500 companies reporting earnings today, 35 have already posted results, including Caterpillar, Bristol Myers Squibb, D.R. Horton, Baxter International, Bunge Global, Carrier Global, Cognizant and others. Companies still due to report include Amazon, Coinbase, Gilead Sciences, Dexcom, First Solar, GoDaddy and Digital Realty, among others.

The latest graded results

In the latest graded recap, from names screened before the open on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, EAT gained further from the open to the close after an early move, while VRT and WING, which had jumped before the open, did not add to those gains by the close.