Wall Street was mixed in premarket trading on Thursday as major U.S. airlines stumbled and health insurance companies soared, the Associated Press reports. Futures for the S&P 500 lost 0.1% before the opening bell, while futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average ticked up 0.1%.
Shares of most major U.S. airlines dipped after American Airlines posted strong profits but said it expected to lose money in the first quarter. Its shares were down 7.5% before markets opened. United Airlines, which reported strong results after markets closed on Wednesday, was down 2.2%. JetBlue fell 2.5% and Southwest dipped 1.6%. Both companies report their latest results next week.
Elevance Health led the insurance sector higher after it beat Wall Street’s sales and profit targets and raised its dividend. Elevance rose 5.5% before the bell, followed by Cigna, which rose 3.8%, and UnitedHealth Group, which gained 1.6%. CVS Health inched up 1.3%.
Video game maker Electronic Arts (EA) slumped more than 17% after it released preliminary results that disappointed investors. EA said an unexpected dropoff in bookings in its global football division was the main culprit.
GE Aerospace climbed 5.5% after it easily beat Wall Street’s sales and profit expectations.
In energy trading, U.S. benchmark crude oil added 17 cents to $75.61 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 20 cents to $79.20 per barrel.
The dollar declined to 156.38 Japanese yen from 156.43 yen.
