Stocks making the biggest moves premarket: Nvidia, E.l.f. Beauty, HP, Burlington Stores and more

Nvidia shares surged 6% following a strong fiscal first-quarter earnings report, with adjusted EPS of 96 cents and revenue of $44.06 billion exceeding analyst expectations, driving a rally in other chip stocks like Marvell, Broadcom, and AMD. Conversely, Best Buy declined 2% after lowering its full-year guidance due to tariffs and missed quarterly revenue expectations, while HP fell 10% after missing earnings estimates and providing weaker-than-expected guidance. Other notable movers included C3.ai and Veeva Systems, which both jumped 14% after exceeding earnings and revenue forecasts, and Burlington Stores, which increased 7% after a strong earnings report.

Analysis

The pre-market session revealed significant divergence based on corporate earnings and macroeconomic developments, particularly concerning tariffs. Nvidia (NVDA) demonstrated continued strength, surging 6% after its fiscal first-quarter adjusted earnings of 96 cents per share and revenue of $44.06 billion surpassed LSEG analyst expectations, triggering a sympathetic rally in other semiconductor stocks including Marvell Technology (MRVL, +5%), Broadcom (AVGO, +3%), and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD, +3%). Enterprise AI firm C3.ai (AI) and cloud-computing company Veeva Systems (VEEV) also posted substantial gains of 14% each, driven by earnings and revenue beats. Conversely, Best Buy (BBY) declined 2% after reducing its full-year guidance, citing tariffs, and missing quarterly revenue forecasts, while HP (HPQ) plummeted 10% due to an earnings miss and weaker-than-anticipated current-quarter guidance. SentinelOne (S) shares fell 13% on disappointing second-quarter and full-year revenue guidance. A U.S. Court of International Trade ruling blocking reciprocal tariffs provided a tailwind for tariff-exposed companies like Nike (NKE, +2%) and Synopsys (SNPS, +4%), though Synopsys had earlier faced pressure from reports of potential U.S. restrictions on sales to China. Other notable earnings-driven movements included E.l.f. Beauty (ELF, +9%) which beat estimates and announced a $1 billion acquisition of Rhode, despite withholding full-year guidance due to tariff uncertainty. Agilent Technologies (A, +6%) also beat estimates and raised its full-year revenue guidance. Retailers Burlington Stores (BURL, +7%) and Kohl's (KSS, +6%) saw shares rise on better-than-expected earnings, with Kohl's also beating revenue estimates while Burlington slightly missed on revenue.

Key Decisions for Investors

• Closely monitor the semiconductor sector for continued strength exemplified by Nvidia, while remaining aware of company-specific execution and geopolitical risks such as potential China sales restrictions.
• Adopt a selective approach to retail and consumer goods, prioritizing companies with strong earnings delivery like Burlington and Kohl's, and carefully scrutinize tariff impacts which affected Best Buy's outlook and E.l.f. Beauty's guidance.
• Assess enterprise AI and cloud computing for growth, noting strong results from C3.ai and Veeva Systems, but be cautious of guidance misses like SentinelOne's, emphasizing the critical nature of forward-looking statements.
• Consider the strategic implications of M&A, such as Salesforce's Informatica deal or E.l.f. Beauty's Rhode acquisition, and airline partnerships like United-JetBlue, for potential value creation and competitive shifts.
• Actively track tariff-related news and its direct influence on corporate performance and stock valuations, as highlighted by reactions in tariff-sensitive stocks and company disclosures.