US EQUITY OPEN: Dovish Waller helps push indices higher although AVGO guidance underwhelms

OPEN: US indices opened in the green with futures bolstered in the pre-market after dovish comments from the influential Fed Governor Waller; he is to support holding policy rate steady at September FOMC meeting if August inflation data shows continued progress, but he did caveat that if it came in hot, he would consider a September rate hike. Following his remarks, and his Q&A, Treasuries, spot gold, and US indices saw strength, while the Dollar weakened. In the FX space, all G10 peers are up vs. the Dollar with the Yen the clear gainer and extending on its strength seen on Wednesday; USD/JPY hit a low of 155.39 and currently sits at 155.65. WTI and Brent are firmer c. by USD 0.70/bbl in light geopolitical newsflow, for a change. On the US data footing, initial jobless claims were more-or-less unchanged, Challenger Layoffs rose, but saw the lowest August print since 2022, while S&P Global services PMI was revised to 56.5, shy of the expected 56.8, ahead of ISM Services at the top of the hour. Sectors are predominantly in the green with Communication Services and Consumer Discretionary outperforming, with only Health, Consumer Staples, and Materials in the red. In terms of stock specifics, Snowflake (+21%) surges post-results, while Broadcom (-6%) is hit after disappointing guidance. STOCK SPECIFICS: Microsoft (MSFT) will begin disclosing quarterly Azure sales Broadcom (AVGO): Next Q rev. & margin outlooks light, outweighing stronger Q results & raised longer-term AI rev. forecast Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE): Solid results & lifted outlook but a FY27 earnings growth view miss, and persistent supply constraints, particularly in memory & other components, weigh. Snowflake (SNOW): Strong Q metrics alongside raising FY rev. & margin outlook PVH (PVH): Top & bottom line surpassed Wall St. exp. Ciena (CIEN): EPS & rev. beat w/ solid FY top line outlook Victoria's Secret (VSXY): Rev. slightly missed Campbell's (CPB): Top & bottom line slightly short, cut Q div. & guided FY27 below est. Tyson Foods (TSN) cuts its FY26 revenue outlook to +1.5-2% (prev. +2.5-3.5%), citing additional pressure in its beef segment in Q4.