Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., February 17, 2026.
Brendan McDermid | Reuters
Stock futures were little changed Tuesday night after a tepid session for U.S. equities.
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 18 points. S&P 500 futures fell 0.03%, while Nasdaq 100 futures slipped 0.06%.
In regular trading, the major averages posted slim gains, with the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite adding about 0.1%. The 30-stock Dow gained roughly 32 points, or nearly 0.1%.
The software sector, which has already been under pressure due to fears of disruption by artificial intelligence, fell on Tuesday. CrowdStrike and ServiceNow lost 3.6% and 1.1%, respectively.
“No one knows exactly how this is going to play out,” said Keith Lerner, chief market strategist at Truist Wealth, Tuesday on CNBC’s “Closing Bell.” “From our perspective, though, at least you have reset those expectations where if earnings do come through, a little bit of good news can go a long way,”
“As we look at the forward earning estimates among the sectors, tech, by far, is still the strongest, over the last four months, up about 20%. … We still think it deserves the benefit of the doubt,” he added.
Heading into Wednesday, traders will be watching for the Federal Reserve minutes from the policymakers’ January meeting. The next big catalyst this week, however, will likely be the personal consumption expenditure price index reading that’s due on Friday.
The PCE, the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, will give further insight into the state of the economy. Markets are “likely in a semi-holding pattern” ahead of the report, especially as the artificial intelligence trade becomes increasingly difficult to navigate, according to Ameriprise chief market strategist Anthony Saglimbene.
On the earnings front, Booking Holdings, Carvana and DoorDash are slated to report Wednesday.
