Nasdaq, S&P 500, Dow Futures Slip After Historic First-Half Rally As Investors Await Labor Data, Fed Signals: Why NKE, TSLA, NIO, MU, LUNR, CVKD Are In Focus

• After a blockbuster first six months for equities, markets are entering the second half with a more cautious tone. 
• Attention now shifts to key labor market data. Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh is scheduled to speak; traders are looking for fresh clues on the outlook for interest rates. 
• Nike shares fell after management acknowledged the turnaround is progressing more slowly than expected, even as analysts maintained confidence in the long-term recovery story. 

U.S. stock futures were under pressure early Wednesday as investors took a breather following one of Wall Street's strongest first-half performances in years. 

The Dow gained nearly 8.9%, its best first-half performance since 2021, while the S&P 500 advanced 9.6% and the Nasdaq climbed 12.8%. Small caps led the charge, with the Russell 2000 surging almost 22%, its strongest first half since 1991. 

Investors will be watching for crucial labor market updates, including today's ADP employment figures and Thursday’s June non-farm payrolls report, for clues about the Federal Reserve's trajectory. All eyes will be on Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh's upcoming speech at the European Central Bank Forum at 9:30 am ET. 

As of 4:00 a.m. ET, Nasdaq futures fell 0.5%, S&P 500, Dow and Russell 2000 futures declined 0.3%. 

On Stocktwits, retail sentiment for the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY), an exchange-traded fund that tracks the S&P 500 Index, has remained ‘bearish’, while the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) ETF, which tracks the Nasdaq-100 Index, has stayed ‘bullish’.

Trending Stocks To Watch

Nike (NKE): Stock fell 4% in early premarket trading following an earnings call in which the CEO admitted the brand was "not living up to its full potential" due to softening global sportswear traffic and weak margins in China. However, Morningstar analyst believe that the turnaround story remains intact despite short-term sales pressure.

Tesla (TSLA): Stock remained in focus ahead of Thursday's closely watched second-quarter delivery report. While Michael Burry disclosed a new short position, Wall Street is expecting deliveries of roughly 410,000 vehicles, exceeding consensus estimates. 

Nio (NIO): Fell 4% in early premarket trade after narrowly missing its Q2 delivery guidance range, which overshadowed the operational milestone of its new ES9 model crossing 10,000 cumulative deliveries within 30 days.

SpaceX (SPCX): Gained attention as Wedbush initiated coverage with an Outperform rating and a $190 price target, highlighting Starlink as a primary profit driver and framing the company as a future hyperscaler. 

AST SpaceMobile (ASTS): Surged over 20% this week following a new regulatory filing with the CIAJ in Japan, confirming its Rakuten-led selection for a nearly $1 billion low-Earth orbit satellite network push.

Intuitive Machines (LUNR) stock rose 8% in early premarket trade after announcing it has secured its sixth Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) award from NASA, a firm-fixed-price contract valued at up to $148.3 million. 

Micron Technology (MU): The stock fell 4% in early premarket trade. Michael Burry revealed a short position on the ticker, despite Micron multiplying four-fold in H1 and committing $250 million to Trump accounts national child savings programs. 

Microsoft (MSFT): Stock rose over 1% in early premarket trade. Reports suggest that it plans to cut roughly 2.5% of its workforce next week across its Xbox, consulting, and sales divisions to preserve capital for massive AI infrastructure expenditures.

Anthropic also remained on investors' radar after the U.S. lifted export restrictions on its Claude Fable 5 and Mythos 5 AI models.

Sellas Life Sciences (SLS): Logged a record 292% gain in the first half of the year as retail traders hold out ahead of the imminent Phase 3 REGAL trial readout for its acute myeloid leukemia treatment. 

Hims & Hers Health (HIMS): Remains on the retail radar after FDA scientists raised concerns over the safety of seven of the popular weight-loss peptides, though Needham analysts reiterate that an approval path remains viable.

Cadrenal Therapeutics (CVKD): Stock fell 16% in early premarket trade on news of an $8.8 million private placement priced at-the-market under strict Nasdaq rules. 

AeroVironment (AVAV), Kratos (KTOS): Wedbush initiated coverage with Outperform ratings, calling them long-term defense tech winners. The brokerage sees more than 50% upside for AeroVironment and around 70% upside for Kratos. 

Other tickers trending on Stocktwits at the time of writing included UiPath Inc (PATH), Circle (CRCL), Celsius Holdings (CELH), Ouster Inc (OUST), and Alcoa Corp (AA). 

Other Catalysts To Watch

On the economic front, investors will be tracking the release of the ADP employment report, ISM manufacturing PMI, construction spending, EIA petroleum data, and remarks from Federal Reserve Governor Kevin Warsh today.

On earnings radar, watch out for quarterly reports from General Mills (GIS), FactSet (FDS), MSC Industrial (MSM), UniFirst (UNF), Bassett Furniture (BSET), Franklin Covey (FC), Greenbrier (GBX), National Beverage (FIZZ), VCI Global (VCIG), among others.

U.S. stock and bond markets will be closed on Friday, July 3, in observance of Independence Day. 

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