By Here are the most important news items that investors need to start their trading day:
1. Disney dominion
It’s Bob Iger’s Magic Kingdom, and we’re just living in it. Disney’s new/old CEO didn’t take long to put his stamp back on the company after he returned late last year following a relatively brief absence. During the company’s earnings call Wednesday, Iger unveiled a new corporate structure that makes ESPN its own unit, $5.5 billion in planned cost cuts and 7,000 layoffs. Disney
Tune in: Iger will sit down for an exclusive interview with CNBC’s David Faber at 9 a.m. ET Thursday.
2. Looking for a rebound
Stocks are aiming for a bounceback Thursday following a down session that saw the Dow, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq all slide. Beyond Disney, earnings keep rolling in. MattelMGMAffirmPepsiCobefore the open Thursday. Investors are still in a holding pattern, otherwise, as they await the Federal Reserve’s next policy moves, especially now that Chairman Jerome Powell is talking about “disinflationary” factors in the economy. Weekly jobless claims are due out at 8:30 a.m. ET, as well. Read live markets updates.
3. Bard’s bad day
Investors didn’t appear to like Google’s event Wednesday to show off its Bard artificial intelligence chatbot. Shares of parent company AlphabetMicrosoft
4. Southwest showdown at the Senate
Southwest Airlinesappear before senators on Capitol Hill to take heat on behalf of the company. “In hindsight, we did not have enough winter operational resilience,” Chief Operating Officer Andrew Watterson said in written testimony, which was reviewed by CNBC, ahead of the Senate Commerce Committee’s hearing. The hearing is scheduled to start at 10 a.m. ET. Despite all the controversy, however, shares of Southwest are still up more than 4% this year headed into Thursday, as persistent demand and high fares buoy airlines’ results.
5. Mattel’s scary earnings
Santa Claus didn’t deliver for toy makers. Mattelthey weren’t pretty. The Barbie and Hot Wheels maker delivered top and bottom line numbers that fell well below Wall Street’s expectations as inflation weighed on consumer spending during the holiday quarter. Sales of dolls, action figures and Fisher Price toddler toys all dragged down results. “Our fourth quarter results were below our expectations, as the macro-economic environment was more challenging than anticipated,” CEO Ynon Kreiz said Wednesday. The lackluster Mattel results came about two weeks after rival Hasbroweak holiday quarter and said it would cut 15% of its workforce.
– CNBC’s Sarah Whitten, Lillian Rizzo, Tanaya Macheel, Ashley Capoot, Leslie Josephs and Rebecca Picciotto contributed to this report.
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