Markets Await Consumer Sentiment Data

Group 1: Market Overview - The pre-market shows a mixed performance among major indexes, with the Nasdaq up by 100 points (+0.46%), S&P 500 up by 0.08%, and Russell 2000 up by 0.66%, while the Dow is down by 260 points (-0.61%) primarily due to UnitedHealthcare's decline [1] - UnitedHealthcare, the largest healthcare company with a market cap of $462 billion, is facing a civil case from the U.S. Department of Justice regarding its Medicare Advantage billing practices [2] Group 2: Impact on Healthcare Sector - The news about UnitedHealthcare has negatively affected other health insurers like Humana and Cigna, although they are not implicated in the case [3] - The current Zacks Rank for UnitedHealthcare is 3 (Hold), with a Value - Growth - Momentum score of C, raising questions about whether the sell-off presents a buying opportunity [3] Group 3: Economic Reports and Expectations - Upcoming economic reports include S&P flash Manufacturing and Services PMI for February, with services expected to decline slightly and manufacturing to increase, both remaining above the 50-threshold indicating expansion [4] - Final February Consumer Sentiment is anticipated to remain steady at 67.8, contrasting with a decline in Leading Economic Indicators [5] - Existing Home Sales for January are projected to decrease to 4.13 million annualized units, still better than the 12-month low of 3.83 million seen in September [6] Group 4: Earnings Season Insights - The final phase of Q4 earnings season will feature reports from major retailers like Macy's and Home Depot, as well as cloud-computing companies like Salesforce [7] - NVIDIA, a significant stock in the past two years, is expected to report strong fiscal Q4 results with +61.5% earnings growth and +70.7% revenue growth, and has not missed earnings estimates in over two years [8][9] - NVIDIA shares have increased by +107% over the past year and +1800% over the past five years, currently holding a Zacks Rank of 2 (Buy) [8][9]