Morning Briefing, October 27, 2026

S&P 500 futures point to a modestly higher open, with the SPY up 0.2%, as a packed earnings slate competes for attention against an escalating geopolitical backdrop spanning Ukraine and the Persian Gulf.

Russia hit Ukraine overnight with 16 ballistic missiles and more than 280 drones, according to President Zelenskiy, who said delays in Western air-defense supplies are helping Moscow. Putin held calls with Finland's Stubb and Norway's Stoere on the conflict, and the Kremlin says US-Russia-Ukraine talks will resume in Abu Dhabi in November. In the Gulf, Yemen's Houthis claimed an attack on Saudi Arabia's Ras Tanura refinery, Saudi authorities contained a resulting fire and later said they intercepted two ballistic missiles headed for Riyadh, with danger warnings also issued for Najran and Khamis Mushait. OPEC+ is still expected to hold output targets steady at its weekend meeting. In Europe, Mercedes-Benz cut its car-business margin outlook to 2-3%, dragging BMW, Volkswagen and Stellantis lower, while France's consumer confidence fell to its weakest since 2013. The Federal Reserve is expected to hold rates steady this week, though Principal Asset Management's Seema Shah flagged risk of a December hike given energy-driven inflation.

Among sectors, Industrials lead at +0.6% and Technology is up 0.5%, while Energy lags at -0.5% despite the Saudi attacks. Consumer Discretionary is mixed, with Royal Caribbean up 4.1% on raised guidance against a 4.7% slide in Hilton and a 2.3% drop in Marriott. Materials are roughly flat as Sherwin-Williams' earnings miss weighs.

Company News

UPS, Coca-Cola, PayPal, S&P Global and IQVIA all raised full-year guidance alongside their results; S&P Global is up 3.7% and IQVIA up 3.3%.
Johnson Controls beat estimates and issued strong fiscal 2027 guidance, with shares up 4.9%.
Centene dropped more than 7% despite beating estimates and raising its EPS guidance floor.
Xylem cut its full-year revenue and EPS outlook, sending shares down 7.5%.
Sherwin-Williams missed estimates and narrowed guidance, falling 3.7%.
Boeing posted a wider-than-expected loss, though it reaffirmed 737 production targets and a 2027 777X delivery timeline.
General Motors' board approved moving its stock listing from the NYSE to Nasdaq effective November 17.
Vertiv completed its roughly $1.45 billion acquisition of Utility Innovation Holdings.
Guidewire Software agreed to buy Hyperexponential for $1.7 billion in cash plus up to $400 million in contingent consideration.
Ares Capital agreed to acquire MidCap Financial Investment Corporation in a roughly $2.6 billion stock-and-cash deal.

Overseas Data

France's October consumer confidence fell to its lowest level since June 2013, and the France-Germany 10-year yield spread widened 6 basis points to 160.

Sweden's household lending growth came in at 3.4% year-on-year for September, up from 3.3% previously.