Pre-Market Sentiment Climbs as Key Inflation Gauge Cools

Stock futures are firmly higher this morning, after the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge came in cooler than expected. Core personal consumption expenditures (PCE), which excludes food and energy, rose 3% year over year in August, below the 3.3% estimate, while headline PCE slowed to 3.4% from 3.7% in July. Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) are up triple digits, while the S&P 500 Index (SPX) and Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) are comfortably higher as well.

Adding to the busy morning, ADP data showed the private sector added 90,000 jobs in September, topping estimates of 68,000. Treasury yields are easing following yesterday's surge, with the 10-year yield pulling back from its highest level since 2007. Today also marks the final trading day of September and the third quarter.

Continue reading for more on today's market, including:

• S&P 500 has 2 historically bullish quarters ahead, per Schaeffer's Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White. 
• Duolingo stock has pulled back to a key trendline. 
• Plus, HOOD announces in-app AI agent; MRNA downgraded after three-year highs; and CALM slips on Q1 loss. 

5 Things You Need to Know Today

1. The Cboe Option Exchange saw roughly 2.6 million call contracts and 1.1 million put contracts traded on Tuesday. The single-session equity put/call ratio fell to 0.38, while the 21-day moving average remained at 0.59. 
2. Robinhood Markets Inc (NASDAQ:HOOD) is up 3.5% premarket, after the company announced an in-app AI agent for its traders, as well as plans to let users trade some U.S. stocks round-the-clock during ‌weekends. Coming into today, HOOD is sporting a 2.7% year-to-date lead. 
3. Moderna Inc (NASDAQ:MRNA) is down 8% before the bell, looking to drop from last session's three-year highs after a downgrade from Citigroup to "sell" from "neutral," though it raised its price target to $80 from $60. The firm cited valuation concerns after the stock's massive run, with the shares up 589.9% since the start of the year. 
4. Cal-Maine Foods Inc (NASDAQ:CALM) is down 7.9% in electronic trading, after the egg producer posted wider-than-expected fiscal first-quarter losses per share amid lower egg prices. Year to date, the equity is down 13.8%.  
5. Plenty more economic data coming up this week, including Friday's jobs report. 

Economic Data to Unpack Overseas

Asian stocks finished mostly higher today, as investors monitor oil prices and economic data. In China. The manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) climbed to 50.1 from 49.8 last month, matching estimates and suggesting a slight expansion. For the session, Japan’s Nikkei added 1.9%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.4%, and China’s Shanghai Composite tacked on 0.3%. South Korea’s Kospi was the region’s only loser, shedding 0.5%.

European markets are trading flat or lower. Investors are unpacking U.K. gross domestic product (GDP) for the quarter through June rising 0.5%, while the year-over-year expansion for Q2 came in at 1.4%, beating analyst estimates of 1.2%. In Germany, unemployment remained stable at 6.4% from August, matching expectations. At last glance, London’s FTSE 100 is inching 0.07% higher, while France’s CAC 40 and Germany’s DAX sport losses of 0.6% and 0.3%, respectively.