5 things to know before the stock market opens Wednesday

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Here are five key things investors need to know to start the trading day:

Wall Street may be losing some of its excitement for artificial intelligence, but the battle among major technology companies for dominance in the field hasn’t cooled. After the bell today, investor attention will zero in on just one event: Nvidia‘s earnings report.

Here’s the latest on Nvidia and the sector:

• Nvidia has fallen more than 4% this week as investors await its third-quarter results. Shares are up more than 1% in premarket trading today.
• Nvidia and Microsoft yesterday announced a partnership with AI startup Anthropic. A source told CNBC that with the investments, Anthropic’s valuation now stands at around $350 billion — up from $183 billion in September.
• Microsoft also unveiled its own product that can automatically detect the use of AI agents developed by the tech company or some other tech firms.
• Google, meanwhile, announced its upgraded Gemini 3 model as it attempts to keep up with OpenAI’s ChatGPT.
• Intuit will pay OpenAI more than $100 million in a multiyear deal that will integrate ChatGPT in the company’s financial products, like TurboTax.
• The decline in Nvidia and other AI names yesterday dragged down the broader market, with the S&P 500 logging its longest losing streak since August.
• Follow live markets updates here.

Target posted third-quarter revenue that was slightly below Wall Street’s expectations this morning and cut the top end of its full-year profit outlook. Shares fell about 2% in premarket trading following the results.

Incoming CEO Michael Fiddelke said the retailer is focused on making investments and decisions that “get Target back to growth as quickly as possible.” But, as CNBC’s Melissa Repko notes, Fiddelke declined to say exactly when he thought the company would see positive sales again.

Lowe’s similarly lowered its full-year profit outlook before the bell. However, the home improvement retailer reported stronger-than-anticipated earnings per share for the third quarter, sending the stock up more than 6% in premarket trading.

Both chambers of Congress yesterday passed a bill that would release the Justice Department’s files tied to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The measure now heads to the desk of President Donald Trump, who has said he would sign it into law.

Meanwhile, former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers said this morning that he is resigning from OpenAI’s board. Two days ago, Summers said that he would step back from public commitments following the release of his emails with Epstein.

Meta emerged victorious in its antirust case against the Federal Trade Commission yesterday. Judge James Boasberg said that the Facebook parent does not currently have a monopoly in social media, writing in his decision that TikTok and YouTube are “competitive threats.”

At the heart of the case was Meta’s acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp in 2012 and 2014, respectively. Regulators argued that the company should be forced to sever off the two brands.

The decision comes seven months after the trial began and five years since the FTC filed the suit. CEO Mark Zuckerberg, former operating chief Sheryl Sandberg and Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom all testified in the trial.

After years of dominating the streaming world, Netflix is now betting on toys and in-person experiences.

The company has started jumping on product partnerships and marketing that traditional media firms have utilized for decades. As CNBC’s Sarah Whitten reports, Netflix’s push comes as the streamer’s original content library gains enough popular programming — think “KPop Demon Hunters” and “Bridgerton” — to justify retail investments.

Netflix has inked agreements with Hasbro, Mattel and Jazwares on merchandise tied to its media properties. The California-based company has also launched short- and long-term event spaces, including the new Netflix House Philadelphia.

Trump lashed out at ABC yesterday after a reporter with the Disney-owned company’s news division asked the president why he had not released the Epstein files.

— CNBC’s Ashley Capoot, MacKenzie Sigalos, Sean Conlon, Jordan Novet, Melissa Repko, Jonathan Vanian, Sarah Whitten and Kevin Breuninger contributed to this report. Josephine Rozzelle edited this edition.