Stocks Expected to Dip to Open After Record Dow Close, Nasdaq Fall

US equity futures fell slightly on Wednesday, a day after the Dow Jones closed at another record high. The 30-stock average rose nearly 0.6% after Monday’s advance. The S&P 500 edged down on Tuesday from the record close of the previous session. The Nasdaq lost 1.3% on Tuesday as growth-oriented tech stocks were knocked down by a high 10-year Treasury yield. (CNBC)

* Cramer’s 2022 outlook for the worst performing Nasdaq 100 stocks in 2021 (CNBC)

ADP’s December report on US business hiring, which was released on Wednesday before the bell, showed job growth of 807,000, more than double estimates. November’s total has been revised down from the 534,000 originally reported. The Labor Department is expected to release weekly unemployment claims data on Thursday and the December monthly employment report on Friday. (CNBC)

* Mortgage rates hit 9-month high and demand for loans continues to drop (CNBC)

The Federal Reserve will closely monitor these numbers ahead of its two-day January meeting later this month. At 2 p.m. ET on Wednesday, the Fed released the minutes of its December meeting when it unveiled plans to accelerate the reduction in bond purchases and signaled three interest rate hikes in 2022 (CNBC)

As the Fed begins to tighten its ultra-relaxed monetary policy, Wall Street expects a bumpier road for the stock market this year. The median year-end target for the S&P 500 now stands at 5,050, a gain of just 5% from Tuesday’s close of 4,793.54, according to CNBC’s Strategist survey.

Beyond Meat (BYND) jumped 9% in pre-market trading following the announcement that Yum Brands (YUM) KFC will roll out Beyond’s fried chicken substitute nationwide from Monday, after tests in a number of markets.

The Daily Journal Corporation has nearly doubled its stake in Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba (BABA), according to a regulatory filing. Charlie Munger of Berkshire Hathaway is Chairman of The Daily Journal. Alibaba fell 1% in pre-release.

Nikola (NKLA) gained 2% on the pre-market after logistics company USA Truck (USAK) announced an agreement to buy 10 Nikola electric trucks. Separately, Nikola has dropped a $ 2 billion lawsuit against Tesla (TSLA), according to a case filed in federal court in San Francisco.

Sony (SONY) announced plans to create an electric vehicle unit and showcased a sports utility vehicle prototype at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Shares rose 4% pre-market.

MillerKnoll (MLKN) slipped 3% in pre-market following a weaker-than-expected quarterly report. Office Furniture Revenues Also Make Wrong Estimates Demand for orders was strong, but the business was hit by the supply chain and labor disruptions.

Garmin (GRMN) was outclassed to “buy” or “hold” at Deutsche Bank, with the company citing several factors including the valuation of the GPS device maker ‘s shares as well as the high quality of its finances and business environment favorable. Garmin added 1.2% in pre-market trading.

Adobe (ADBE) slipped 2.2% in pre-release after being demoted to “neutral” instead of “buying” from UBS after the company spoke with more than a dozen IT executives about their plans 2022 spending. UBS believes more spending has been deferred into 2020 and 2021 than is generally believed.

Pinterest (PINS) added 1.7% to pre-market trading after Piper Sandler moved it from “neutral” to “overweight”. Piper said the stock’s recent sell-off presents a good buying opportunity, with improving user trends and a stable mobile user base.