JPMorgan, Wells Fargo and Microsoft rise premarket; AT&T and Alcoa fall By Investing.com

Investing.com — U.S. edged higher Friday, ending a strong week on a positive note following healthy results from some of the country’s leading banks.

Here are some of the biggest premarket U.S. stock movers today:

• JPMorgan (NYSE:) stock rose 3.1% after the posted a 67% jump in profit for the second quarter on Friday as it earned more in interest from borrowers and benefited from the purchase of First Republic Bank.

• Wells Fargo (NYSE:) stock rose 2.8% after the lender a 57% jump in second-quarter profit as it earned more in interest payments from customers and raised its forecast for 2023 net interest income.

• BlackRock (NYSE:) stock fell 1.4% after the world’s largest asset manager only a 25% rise in its second-quarter profit, even as investors poured money into its various market funds.

• AT&T (NYSE:) stock fell 1.3% after JPMorgan downgraded the telecoms giant to ‘neutral’ from ‘overweight’, citing increased competition and the high-interest rate environment.

• Alcoa (NYSE:) stock fell 2.5% after JPMorgan downgraded its stance on the miner to ‘neutral’ from ‘overweight’, citing weaker aluminum fundamentals and mine permitting uncertainty.

• Microsoft (NASDAQ:) stock rose 1.8% after UBS upgraded its stance on the software giant to ‘buy’ from ‘neutral’, citing AI catalysts and cloud stabilization, calling the shares “too attractive” to not buy.

• Walt Disney (NYSE:) stock rose 0.2%, with the entertainment giant set to ask a Florida judge on Friday to dismiss a lawsuit by a state oversight board as part of its effort to pursue its case against Governor Ron DeSantis.

• Nokia (NYSE:) ADRs fell 9.2% after the Finnish telecom gear group lowered its full-year outlook, cutting its forecast for sales in 2023.