Stock Market Today: S&P 500, Dow, Nasdaq Futures Gain Even as September Inflation Report Comes In Hotter Than Expected

U.S. stock futures were higher on Wednesday as the Dow Jones, S&P 500, and Nasdaq 100 indices rose following Tuesday's lower close. Investors await the inflation data ahead of the opening bell. Morningstar reports that economists estimate the September consumer price index will increase by 0.5% month-over-month and 3.6% year-over-year, while core CPI is projected to rise 0.2% monthly and hold steady at 2.4 percent annually. Boston Fed President Susan Collins said on Tuesday it would be appropriate to raise rates a bit further before year-end to return inflation to the Fed's 2 percent target, while adding that her view will depend on incoming data. Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury bond yielded 5.20 percent, and the two-year Treasury bond yielded 4.77 percent at the last check. The CME Group's FedWatch tool projections show markets pricing in a 21.6% likelihood of the Federal Reserve hiking interest rates after its October meeting. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF were higher in pre-market trading on Wednesday. The SPY was up 0.17% at $779.32, while the QQQ advanced 0.013% to $743.67. Stocks in focus for today are ASML Holding was 1.52% higher in pre-market trading on Wednesday after it reported third quarter 2026 earnings of $14.88 on revenue of $13.42 billion, compared with estimates of $12.47 and $13.18 billion, respectively. AZZ rose 2.43% in pre-market trading on Wednesday after it reported second-quarter 2027 earnings of $2 on revenue of $486.89 million, compared with estimates of $1.85 and $463.48 million, respectively. Liquidia was 46.03% higher in pre-market trading on Wednesday after it announced a global settlement with United Therapeutics Corporation that resolves all pending litigation. GameStop was 1.91% higher in pre-market trading on Wednesday as CEO Ryan Cohen continues his buying spree. Cohen has disclosed the purchase of 844,130 GameStop shares, bringing his total stake up to approximately 42.49 million shares. UnitedHealth Group was 0.31% higher as it beat third-quarter estimates and said 2027 consensus is conservative despite persistent medical costs. Thank you for watching, and make sure to subscribe.