Nasdaq Futures Dip as Amazon, Intel Stocks Tumble Post-Earnings

Futures tied to the Nasdaq-100 experienced a significant drop early Friday, mirroring a broader market sentiment affected by the sharp declines in Amazon and Intel shares following their latest quarterly earnings reports.

Market Snapshot

Nasdaq-100 futures shed 2%, while S&P 500 futures fell 0.9%. Dow futures remained flat.

Corporate Earnings Impact

Amazon (AMZN) shares plummeted 6% in extended trading after its third-quarter earnings and revenue fell short of Wall Street's expectations. The e-commerce giant also reported a negative free cash flow of $42.4 billion, while maintaining its 2026 capital expenditures forecast at $220 billion.

Intel (INTC) experienced a more dramatic fall, sliding 21% after issuing a weak outlook for the current quarter, signaling a slowdown in the PC market. Revenue in its client computing and physical artificial intelligence group declined by 5% year-over-year to $8.1 billion.

Sandisk (SNDK) also saw a dip of 3% in extended trading, despite its fiscal first-quarter results beating estimates. The data storage company announced an eight-for-one forward stock split.

Broader Market Trends and AI Scrutiny

The market's reaction underscores the ongoing investor scrutiny of the "AI trade." In regular trading on Thursday, Alphabet (GOOGL) shares dropped 12% after missing earnings and revenue expectations and posting negative free cash flow of $9.07 billion. This slide contributed to a 1.4% loss in the Nasdaq Composite, while the S&P 500 closed down 0.3%.

As October concludes, the AI sector has faced a rocky month. Investors are closely watching companies' spending on AI infrastructure. Hyperscalers like Alphabet and Microsoft have not raised their capital expenditure forecasts. Meanwhile, "neoclouds" — companies providing the infrastructure for AI data centers — are under pressure regarding their debt levels. CoreWeave (CRWV) has seen its bond yields surge, and its shares have cratered 30% in October. Nebius (NBIS) is on track for a 27% decline this month.

Sector-specific ETFs also reflect this trend: The Roundhill Memory ETF (DRAM), which includes AI memory plays Micron and Seagate Technology, is down 14% for October. The iShares A.I. Innovation and Tech Active ETF (BAI) has fallen 10%.

Looking ahead to the end of the month, the Nasdaq Composite is heading for a 2.5% monthly decline. The S&P 500 is on track for a 0.9% advance, and the Dow is expected to rise 2.8%.

Global Market Performance

In Asian markets on Friday:

• Japan's Nikkei 225 closed 2.12% lower.
• South Korea's Kospi declined 3.48%.
• Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.18%.
• Mainland China's CSI 300 closed 1.39% lower.

Company Updates

AstraZeneca (AZN) reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with revenue up 7% at constant exchange rates to $16.2 billion, surpassing estimates. Core earnings per share rose 19% year-on-year to $2.79, exceeding expectations.

BP posted an $8.5 billion third-quarter profit, nearly quadrupling year-on-year due to high oil prices and refining margins. Underlying replacement cost profit exceeded analyst forecasts.

The French economy unexpectedly shrank by 0.1% in the third quarter, a decline attributed partly to reduced foreign trade, particularly in transport equipment exports.

European markets are bracing for a mixed open, with Stoxx 50 and DAX futures lower, while FTSE 100 and CAC 40 futures showed modest gains.

In the cryptocurrency market, a significant security incident at Binance impacted an estimated $6.3 billion, with around $3 billion in assets frozen. This led to price drops for Bitcoin and Ether, and prompted firms like Circle and Tether to freeze funds.

The Bank of Japan noted that inflation is now "generally consistent" with its 2% target, the first time since 2013, while holding its key interest rate steady.