Stock market today: Live updates

Stock futures ticked higher on Wednesday, as investors looked toward a key earnings report from tech giant Nvidia.

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average ticked up 100 points, or 0.2%. S&P 500 futures advanced 0.2%, along with Nasdaq-100 futures.

All eyes are on Nvidia, set to report after the close. Given the chipmaker’s $3.6 trillion market capitalization, the results could hold more significance than some key economic reports and set the tone for the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite for the rest of the week and into year end. Investors will look for demand details on the company’s Blackwell AI chips, which CEO Jensen Huang last month characterized as “insane.”

Investors have eyed the report as a potential catalyst to reaccelerate the market for the rest of the year, following a fade in the big post-election rally that boosted benchmarks to new highs. Stocks struggled last week as Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled that the central bank isn’t in a hurry to cut rates. Mounting geopolitical tensions between Russia and Ukraine also spooked markets Tuesday.

“Like most investors, we’ll be closely watching NVIDIA’s earnings report today for any clues on how AI spending is coming in,” wrote Wolfe Research’s Chris Senyek in a Wednesday note. “We see any negative news flow or disappointing spending trends as one of the key risks that could delay or even reverse a melt-up into year end.”

In other news, retailer Target posted its biggest earnings miss in two years and cut its full-year guidance, sending shares down 20%.

Shares of Comcast rose 2.5% on news that its expected to announce a spin off of its cable networks, including MSNBC and CNBC, a source familiar told CNBC’s Julia Boorstin on Tuesday. The separation is expected to take roughly a year. The news was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.

Investors will also listen for commentary from Federal Reserve Governors Lisa Cook and Michelle Bowman, as well as Boston Fed President Susan Collins.

— Disclosure: Comcast owns NBCUniversal, the parent company of CNBC.