US Stock Futures Rise as Earnings Roll In; Palantir and Caterpillar Jump
Key Takeaways
- •Caterpillar surpassed $20 billion in quarterly revenue for the first time, driven by demand from data center construction and large-scale energy projects tied to AI infrastructure growth.
- •Palantir's US government commercial revenue surged 90% year over year in the second quarter, reflecting accelerating federal adoption of AI-enabled defense and intelligence platforms.
- •SpaceX is set to release its first quarterly earnings report since going public, a key test after its stock has declined sharply since its June IPO.
- •President Trump called off a large-scale military attack on Iran to restart negotiations, but Iran denied that talks were taking place, creating uncertainty in energy markets.
- •The JOLTS labor market report arrives this week as the first major data point ahead of Friday's July jobs report, which the Federal Reserve monitors for signals on potential interest rate adjustments.
US stock futures advanced on Tuesday morning as investors weighed uncertainty surrounding Middle East diplomatic talks and absorbed a fresh wave of corporate earnings, with SpaceX's (SPCX) inaugural quarterly report after the bell drawing particular attention.
S&P 500 futures (ES=F) rose nearly 0.3%, while Nasdaq-100 contracts (NQ=F) led gains with a 0.9% advance. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures (YM=F) climbed 0.8%, building on the blue-chip index's record high reached on Monday.
A heavy slate of earnings updates helped drive the positive sentiment. Caterpillar (CAT) — the Dow's second-largest component by weight and an industrial beneficiary of the AI infrastructure build-out — surged 9% in premarket trading after reporting sales and revenue that surpassed $20 billion for the first time, a milestone that underscores the scale of demand driven by data center construction and large-scale energy projects tied to the artificial intelligence boom.
Palantir (PLTR) shares jumped 14% in extended trading following what CEO Alex Karp described as an "otherworldly" quarter. The company's US government commercial revenue surged 90% year over year in the second quarter, reflecting accelerating federal adoption of AI-enabled defense and intelligence analytics platforms.
Other major companies reporting earnings on Tuesday include Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), McDonald's Corporation (MCD), and Spotify (SPOT), making it one of the most concentrated stretches of the earnings season across semiconductors, consumer discretionary, and technology. The headline event, however, will be SpaceX's (SPCX) first quarterly earnings release since going public. The stock has been in sharp decline since its IPO in June, sending a cautionary signal to other megacap companies eyeing public market listings and testing investor appetite for newly debuted high-profile names.
Meanwhile, energy markets continued to grapple with mixed signals on Middle East diplomacy after President Trump called off a large-scale military attack on Iran in an effort to restart negotiations. Iran disputed the assertion that the two sides were engaged in talks, drawing frustration from Trump, who called the Islamic Republic "unbelievably duplicitous" in a post on Truth Social.
"This is the last chance for them to sign a good document," Trump said in the Oval Office on Monday, as oil prices edged higher.
On the economic data front, the latest Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) — the first key labor market release of the week — will provide insight ahead of Friday's closely watched July jobs report. JOLTS is monitored by the Federal Reserve as a gauge of labor demand and looseness in the job market, feeding into the central bank's assessment of whether conditions are cooling enough to support interest rate adjustments.
Ticker movements at a glance:
- ^DJI +1.32%
- ^GSPC +1.48%
- CAT +1.87%
- PLTR +2.10%
- SPCX +5.68%