Bitcoin, Pfizer, Uber, GM: what to watch for when the stock market opens today

Stock futures are advancing, suggesting that major indices will kick off Monday’s trading after a hectic week. Here is what we watch before the opening.

• Shares of Uber, Lyft, and DoorDash are all coming to the skate market. A California judge said the November ballot measure that allowed companies to continue to treat their drivers as independent contractors is unenforceable and unconstitutional. Uber lost 3%, Lyft lost 4.6%, and DoorDash lost 2.5%.

• General Motors shares fell 1.6% pre-market. The automaker is extending its safety recall of the all-electric Chevy Bolt to include newer models.
• Madison Square Garden Entertainment reported a loss for the last quarter, but also noted a pickup in activity at its sites as Covid-19 measures were relaxed. Its shares gained 1.9% before marketing.
• Coinbase shares jumped 3.4% ahead of the bell, and the price of bitcoin rose 3.3% from its 5 p.m. ET level on Friday. The rise in cryptocurrency brought it back above $ 50,000 for the first time since May.
• Pfizer gained 3.1% pre-market. The FDA is expected to grant full approval this week for the Covid-19 vaccine from Pfizer and its partner BioNTech, according to people familiar with the planning. Covid-19 mRNA vaccine maker Moderna also rose 2.4%.
• And Pfizer is also making waves in the pre-market: It acquires Trillium Therapeutics for $ 18.50 a share in cash, or an implied net worth of $ 2.26 billion. Shares of Trillium closed on Friday at $ 6.09 per share. Before commercialization, they climbed 190%.
• Crude prices have risen by more than 3%, and shares of major energy producers are in the game. Occidental Petroleum rose 3.9%, Devon Energy 3.5%, Diamondback Energy 3.7% and Exxon Mobil 2.3%.
• Palo Alto Networks will provide an update on results after the close.

Card of the day

• Wall Street companies are re-packaging and selling mortgages that government-backed companies can’t or won’t support.

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