Wall Street was mixed in light trading early Tuesday, according to the Associated Press. Futures for the S&P 500 inched up 0.1% before the bell, while futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average were off by 0.1%, and Nasdaq futures rose 0.3%.
Helping to lift the Nasdaq was Palantir Technologies, which soared 22% after it beat Wall Street’s fourth-quarter sales and profit targets. The Denver company also issued strong guidance for the coming year, well ahead of analysts’ projections.
PepsiCo fell more than 2% after it said North American demand for its snacks and drinks remained weak, leading to a second straight quarterly decline in sales. The company has raised prices repeatedly and did so again the most recent quarter, sending some customers in search of cheaper snack brands.
Shares of pharmaceutical giant Merck tumbled more than 8% after it beat sales and profit forecasts but issued a tepid outlook.
Benchmark U.S. crude declined $1.76 to $71.40 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, lost $1.16 to $74.80 per barrel.
The dollar edged up to 155.34 Japanese yen from 154.75.
