Premarket Movers: Humana Surges on Medicare Star Ratings, T-Mobile Falls on SpaceX Spectrum Deal
US stock futures pushed higher before Friday's open, with Nasdaq 100 E-minis up 0.81%, S&P 500 futures up 0.4%, and Dow futures up 0.17%. Oil eased after President Donald Trump said the US wouldn't strike Iran ahead of November's midterm elections, giving stocks some relief as investors continued debating OpenAI's revenue outlook.
Humana surged 15.7% in premarket trading, leading S&P 500 gainers. The insurer benefited more than its peers from the latest Medicare Advantage ratings for 2027, making the government update a major catalyst for its shares.
CVS Health slipped 3% before the bell as investors reacted to the same ratings update from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Delta Air Lines fell around 3.3% premarket after cutting its full-year profit outlook by nearly a quarter at the midpoint. Strong travel demand wasn't enough to offset rising fuel costs, putting pressure on the airline's earnings expectations.
Lumentum climbed in premarket trading after Chief Executive Michael Hurlston told Bloomberg Television in Tokyo that demand for its optical components had effectively booked out manufacturing capacity through early 2029.
Coherent rose 4.7% before the bell as investors continued buying into the optical-component demand story.
Apple dropped 2.4% premarket following reports that component production was being cut.
Spectrum deal splits telecom
T-Mobile US fell 7.6% in premarket trading as SpaceX's latest spectrum acquisition rattled wireless carriers. The agreement gives SpaceX access to a nationwide portfolio of low-band frequencies, raising concerns about tougher competition in the US telecom market.
AT&T slid 7.5%, while Verizon dropped 7% as investors weighed what SpaceX's expanded spectrum holdings could mean for established wireless carriers.
Tower operators moved in the opposite direction. Crown Castle climbed 8.1%, SBA Communications rose 7.6%, and American Tower ($AMT) gained 7.1%, as investors considered the potential for additional tower demand.
EchoStar also rose 5% premarket amid renewed attention on US spectrum assets.
Tech finds buyers again
Technology stocks showed signs of recovering before Friday's open as Nasdaq futures outpaced the broader market. But the rebound came with a familiar question hanging over AI stocks: Can the industry's revenue growth keep pace with investors' expectations?
Much of that debate centers on OpenAI, which expects annualized revenue to reach or exceed $70B by year-end, compared with roughly $50B at the end of September. Investors are weighing those growth expectations against concerns about how much future AI revenue is already reflected in valuations.
The cancellation of Nvidia-backed Firmus Grid's planned Australian IPO added to those concerns, suggesting investors are becoming more cautious about lofty AI valuations.
Meanwhile, Delta's results have put corporate earnings back in focus. With another round of company reports approaching next week, investors will be looking for evidence that businesses can protect profits despite higher costs and an uncertain economic outlook.
