U.S. stock futures traded below the flatline Wednesday morning as crude prices climbed above $100 a barrel, with investors looking ahead to inflation data that could shape the Federal Reserve's next rate decision. By 06:13 ET, the S&P 500 futures had fallen 19 points, the Nasdaq 100 futures were down 134 points, and Dow Jones futures slipped 206 points.
Among premarket movers, Meta Platforms rose 3.6% following Tuesday evening's launch of Muse, an autonomous AI personal agent built on the proprietary Muse Spark model. The tool performs tasks such as booking travel, sending emails, completing web forms and managing payments across iOS, Android and a dedicated web application. Meta introduced its first tiered AI subscription alongside the product, offering a free tier plus paid tiers at $20 and $100 per month.
NETGEAR surged 8.9% after the FCC formally banned the import of all new consumer routers manufactured outside the United States over national security and cybersecurity concerns. NETGEAR has secured a conditional FCC approval exemption that allows it to continue firmware updates and support for its existing router lineup. In its most recent quarter, the company reported enterprise business growth of 7.7% year-over-year and an all-time-high non-GAAP gross margin of 54.1%.
Braze dropped 11.5% after fiscal second-quarter results showed strong top-line growth but weak forward guidance. Adjusted EPS came in at $0.19, beating consensus of $0.15, and revenue climbed 26% to $227.2 million, above expectations. However, the company guided for fiscal third-quarter adjusted EPS of $0.13 to $0.14 — roughly 15% to 16% below the analyst consensus of $0.16. Revenue growth also decelerated to 26.2% from 30.2% a quarter earlier. Canaccord raised its price target to $37, maintaining a Buy rating.
Evommune fell 13.9% to $11.26 after its EVO756 drug candidate missed primary and secondary endpoints in a Phase 2b trial for moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis. The randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study involved 121 adults over a 12-week treatment period. The company will not pursue further development of EVO756 for atopic dermatitis but plans to continue Phase 2b work for migraine prevention.
