Stock Market News: Pre-market Trading Update
Affirm
Affirm, the fintech provider of “buy now pay later” services, saw a 2% rise in premarket trading after an upgrade to hold at Jefferies on Tuesday. The upgrade was supported by “recent evidence of stabilizing cost of capital and capital markets activity, stabilizing (if not improving) credit performance, and ongoing momentum in adoption rates for BNPL.”
Boeing
Boeing, the maker of 737 Max jetliners, experienced a 2% increase in premarket trading after an upgrade to outperform at RBC Capital Markets. Analyst Ken Herber highlighted a more favorable 2024 outlook for Boeing, with sustainable growth in demand for both the company’s commercial and defense segments.
Crocs
The maker of iconic, soft footwear, Crocs, witnessed a rise of more than 2.3% on the back of an upgrade to strong buy at Raymond James on Tuesday. Analyst Rick Patel expressed confidence in Crocs’ business structure heading into 2024 and believed that the stock’s price-to-earnings ratio is “highly discounted given our expectation of moderate revenue growth.”
Carlyle Group
The private equity asset manager, Carlyle Group, with almost $400 billion under management, climbed more than 5% in premarket trading after being added to the S & P SmallCap 600 index effective premarket Thursday by S & P Dow Jones Indices.
nLIGHT
Shares of nLIGHT, the maker of semiconductor lasers, fiber lasers, and optical fibers, gained more than 4% after an upgrade to speculative buy at Benchmark. The firm highlighted a new army contract worth $35 million to produce a high energy laser, which “could result in orders which we estimate could be up to dozens of laser systems in 24-to-36 months time.”
Glaukos Corporation
Glaukos Corporation saw its shares climb by 2.4% after Truist initiated coverage of the medical device stock with a buy rating. Analyst Samuel Brodovsky said Glaukos could see revenue growth expand to 20% or more in 2025 alongside improved profit margins.
Shopify
Shares of the e-commerce platform, Shopify, fell nearly 3% in premarket trading after Piper Sandler lowered it to underweight from neutral. The Wall Street firm cited “an untenable valuation” due to overly aggressive consensus growth and profit expectations.
These updates in premarket trading reflect the shifting sentiments and expectations of investors and analysts towards these companies. CNBC’s Samantha Subin, Yun Li, and Jesse Pound contributed to the reporting.
