Stock futures drop after the first trading day in August

British oil giant BP It boosted its dividend on Tuesday as it posted bumper earnings in the second quarter, benefiting from higher commodity prices.

The base replacement cost profit in the second quarter, which was used as an indicator of net profit, was $8.5 billion. Higher earnings gave BP scope for a 10% increase in its quarterly dividend to shareholders, raising it to 6,006 cents per common share.

European markets pulled back a bit on Tuesday, tracking risk-off sentiment globally as investors assess whether last month’s rally will continue.

pan europe Stokes 600 It fell 0.7% in early trade, with core resources clearing 1.8% to lead losses as almost all major sectors and exchanges slipped into the red.

Earnings remain the main driver of individual stock price movement. BP, Ferrari, Maersk and Uniper were among the major European companies reporting before the bell on Tuesday.

Stock futures opened flat in overnight trading on Monday.

Futures related to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 0.06%, or 21 points. S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures are down 0.06% and 0.01%, respectively.

– Samantha Sobin

Keith Lerner, co-chief investment officer at Truist, says investors looking into stocks should consider using current market conditions to trim their positions because the upside in stocks is limited in the future.

According to Lerner, the upside of the market over the next few months is likely to be limited in the 3% to 5% range, but the downside may exceed this amount.

“The market has been very resilient, no doubt, and it may have stayed that way a little bit, but we don’t see the risk and reward being convincing here,” he said.

Lerner added that this is by no means an indication of a market top and stocks may rise, but it is an opportunity to reallocate exposure after the strong rally in the market last month.

–Samantha Sobin

Pinterest Shares are up more than 21%. After the company published stronger-than-expected user numbers and Elliott Management revealed it was the largest shareholder in the photo-sharing company.

Activist investor Elliott said in a statement that he was “convinced by the value creation opportunity” in Pinterest, describing the social media company as a “very strategic business with great potential for growth.”

“As the market-leading platform at the intersection of social media, search and commerce, Pinterest is uniquely positioned in the advertising and shopping ecosystem, and CEO Bill Reddy is the right leader to oversee the next phase of Pinterest’s growth,” Elliott wrote.

Despite the stock movement, Pinterest missed estimates for the second quarter on the top and bottom lines, its monthly active users for the period came in two million above estimates.

– Samantha Sobin