Morning Brief

US stocks are mixed premarket after a solid jobs report and a stronger earnings season. Investors are weighing resilient growth against fewer Fed rate cuts. Value is outperforming growth early in the year as traders reassess positioning.

Software names like Salesforce (CRM), Workday (WDAY), and ServiceNow (NOW) are sliding, even as some argue the sell-off looks overdone. Meanwhile, Nvidia (NVDA) remains central to the AI trade, with expectations building into earnings.

Consumer staples are rotating higher, but McDonald's (MCD) is leaning on value menus to drive traffic while watching GLP-1 risk. In crypto, Robinhood (HOOD) and bitcoin face a catalyst vacuum amid investor debate over regulation and tokenization.

Trending Tickers: AB InBev (BUD) on steady profit growth; McDonald's (MCD) on value momentum; Nvidia (NVDA) into earnings.

Takeaways:


Retail is buying beaten-down software, institutions stay selective


Value and cyclicals are leading as growth lags


AI leaders remain core despite volatility


McDonald's sees value as a defense against consumer pressure


Bitcoin lacks a clear near-term catalyst

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Stock futures are higher after January payrolls rose 130,000 versus 65,000 expected, with unemployment ticking down to 4.3%. Dow futures are up 250 points as investors digest stronger labor data and push Fed rate cut odds to July. The key question now: does a resilient economy delay easing?

AI remains the market’s action verb. Investors are rotating within tech and services, reassessing middleman risk while favoring companies with strong balance sheets and positive momentum. Speculative names look mispriced after aggressive bids.

M&A and deregulation optimism could fuel a second-half melt-up. Credit markets remain open, and strategists see broader participation beyond last year’s narrow leadership.

Trending tickers: Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) hovers near competing bids from Paramount and Netflix; Kraft Heinz (KHC) drops after pausing its planned split; Moderna (MRNA) slides after the FDA declines to review its flu vaccine filing; Robinhood (HOOD) slips as crypto revenue misses despite broader product expansion.

Takeaways:


Strong jobs data lifts futures, delays rate cut expectations


AI-driven rotation favors quality over speculation


Broader market leadership emerging in 2026


M&A and deregulation seen as second-half catalysts


Earnings and deal headlines driving single-stock volatility

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US futures are mixed near record levels as investors weigh soft December retail sales against resilient earnings and rotation away from software. Attention turns to labor and inflation data for clarity on rates and growth.

Rotation is doing the work. Energy and industrials lead as AI demand boosts power and infrastructure, while uncertainty around long-term earnings keeps software volatile. Investors want a clearer terminal value before re-rating AI platforms.

The consumer picture is uneven. Retail sales were flat in December, with broad category weakness, reinforcing a K-shaped split in which higher-income spending holds up while value-seeking intensifies elsewhere.

Trending tickers: Spotify surged on stronger user growth; Paramount fell amid deal uncertainty; Harley‑Davidson slid after a shipment miss.

Takeaways:• Rotation supports the index without a tech surge• Software needs earnings visibility to stabilize• Retail data signals consumer strain• Luxury demand outpaces mass market• Selectivity matters in AI trades

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US futures are lower after Friday’s rebound, with tech struggling to regain its footing following last week’s sharp software sell-off. Investors are bracing for a rescheduled jobs report on Wednesday and CPI on Friday, both key tests for rate expectations and market direction.

Technically, the S&P 500 bounced off its 100-day moving average but remains stuck below the 7,000 level. A sustained breakout likely depends on software stabilizing after extreme oversold conditions.

Strategists are also pushing back on blind rotation away from AI. The sell-off has been indiscriminate, but balance sheet strength and the speed of monetization matter more than chasing anti-AI trades. Volatility is creating opportunity, but selectivity is critical.

Takeaways:• Futures point to a cautious open• Jobs and CPI data dominate the week• Tech leadership remains unresolved• AI rotation lacks a clear fundamental anchor

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US futures are modestly higher after a bruising week that saw nearly $1T wiped from software as AI disruption fears accelerated rotation. Investors are parsing hyperscaler spending, crypto volatility, and whether macro breadth can offset tech pressure.

Software ETFs posted their worst week since 2008 as concerns spread beyond SaaS to mega caps like Amazon (AMZN), which flagged $200B in 2026 AI capital expenditures even as AWS growth improved. The debate is shifting from growth to ROI as capital intensity rises.

Elsewhere, bitcoin steadied below $70K while the dollar slid roughly 9% over the past year, lifting non-US assets. Markets are watching Fed signals, PMI momentum, and whether rotation sticks.

Trending tickers: Amazon (AMZN) on capital expenditures shock; Strategy (MSTR) tracking bitcoin swings; Reddit (RDDT) jumping on earnings and buyback.

Takeaways:


AI fears are forcing valuation resets across software.


Hyperscaler capital expenditures keep rising, delaying ROI clarity.


Rotation favors energy, staples, and select non-US assets.


Crypto remains volatile, not a reliable hedge right now.


Dollar weakness reflects shifting risk perceptions.

Yahoo Finance's flagship show, Morning Brief, is your go-to source for smarter investing and market moves.

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