U.S. stock futures edge up as earnings season builds, PayPal jumps on takeover reports

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Stock futures edge up, PayPal jumps

Highlights

PayPal Holdings surges 18.5% premarket after Stripe and Advent International jointly offer to acquire it for $60.50 per share, valuing it above $53 billion.
BlackRock's shares gain 1.9% premarket following stronger-than-expected Q2 results, with Morgan Stanley up 0.6% as investors await its earnings.
Softer-than-expected U.S. CPI reduces odds of imminent Fed rate hike to 17%; S&P 500 E-minis rise 0.18%, Nasdaq 100 E-minis up 0.46% amid chip-stock gains.

Earnings and deal activity drive premarket moves

As reported by Reuters, major U.S. banks started the second-quarter earnings season on Tuesday with stronger-than-expected results, helped by solid trading revenue and a rebound in dealmaking.

BlackRock says second-quarter profit rises as a stock market rally lifts the value of client assets, and its shares gain 1.9% in premarket trading. Investors are also awaiting Morgan Stanley's results for more signals on the condition of financial firms and capital markets activity, with its shares up 0.6%.

PayPal Holdings surges 18.5% before the bell after sources say Stripe and Advent International jointly offer to buy the payments company for $60.50 per share, valuing it at more than $53 billion. The broader earnings season is accelerating at a sensitive moment for equities, with the S&P 500 up more than 10% this year and sitting less than 1% below its early June record close as of Tuesday.

Inflation outlook and chip stocks support sentiment

Markets are also focused on the Producer Price Index report due later Wednesday for further evidence on inflation trends, after Tuesday's softer-than-expected Consumer Price Index reading reduces concern about an imminent Federal Reserve rate hike.

According to CME's FedWatch tool, markets are pricing in about a 17% chance of a quarter-point increase at the Fed's next policy meeting, down from about 41% before the CPI data. Wednesday also marks the second day of Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh's testimony before Congress, after he tells lawmakers on Tuesday that one data point is not enough to declare victory over inflation.

At 06:09 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis are up 108 points, or 0.2%, S&P 500 E-minis rise 13.5 points, or 0.18%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis add 136.75 points, or 0.46%. Chip stocks are mostly higher, helping lift Nasdaq futures, while U.S.-listed shares of ASML climb 3.8% after the Dutch semiconductor equipment maker raises its 2026 financial forecasts, reassuring investors on AI-driven demand.

On the geopolitical side, Iranian media report that Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps threatens to close other export corridors benefiting the U.S. and its allies, after Iran shuts the Strait of Hormuz and the U.S. reimposes a naval blockade of Iranian ports.

In our earlier article on Stripe and Advent International’s takeover approach for PayPal, we covered the $60.50-per-share proposal that would value PayPal at more than $53 billion and potentially reshape the digital payments landscape. We also noted the context behind the bid, including PayPal’s efforts to reset under CEO Enrique Lores amid intensifying competition, and the broader pickup in payments-sector deal activity as buyers seek scale.

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