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Futures down: Dow 0.35%, S&P 0.54%, Nasdaq 0.86%

April 25 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures fell on

Thursday, as shares of most megacap growth stocks took a beating

after dour quarterly results from Meta Platforms ( META ), ahead of more

economic data in the week that could influence the Federal

Reserve's monetary policy.

Meta plunged 12.9% in premarket trading after the

Facebook-parent forecast higher expenses and

lighter-than-expected revenue and raising fears the surging cost

of AI is outpacing its benefits.

Social media firms like Snap and Pinterest ( PINS )

slid 4.8% and 4.3%, respectively.

Shares of some other growth stocks also fell, with Alphabet

, Amazon.com ( AMZN ) and Microsoft ( MSFT ) down

between 1.5% and 2.7%.

"These earnings were a test to see if big tech firms that

implement AI tech, rather than make the hardware, can generate

revenue from AI. On this front, Meta's earnings were a

disappointment," Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB, said

in a note.

Alphabet, Microsoft ( MSFT ) and Intel ( INTC ) are scheduled to

report their quarterly numbers on Thursday after markets close.

Downbeat results from other technology-linked stocks also

weighed on equities. International Business Machines ( IBM )

dropped 8.5% after the firm said it will buy HashiCorp ( HCP )

in a deal valued at $6.4 billion, and as its first-quarter

revenue missed estimates.

ServiceNow ( NOW ) shed 4.5% after the digital workflow

company forecast second-quarter subscription revenue below

market expectations.

On the day, Caterpillar ( CAT ), American Airlines ( AAL )

and Bristol-Myers Squibb ( BMY ) among others are slated to

report results before the opening bell.

With the earnings season in full swing, adjusted blended

earnings for the first quarter are expected to grow by 6.4% on a

year-on-year basis, as per LSEG data.

Growing tensions in the Middle East and shifting

expectations for interest rate cuts from the Fed have pressured

equities recently, with markets now keenly awaiting the Personal

Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index, the U.S. central bank's

preferred inflation gauge, on Friday to ascertain the timing of

the rate cut.

Money markets are pricing in just about 42 basis points

(bps) of rate cuts from the Fed this year, down from about 150

bps seen at the start of the year, according to LSEG data.

For the day, markets will watch the gross domestic product

(GDP) advance for the first quarter, and the weekly jobless

claims numbers, both due at 8:30 a.m. ET.

At 5:40 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were down 137 points,

or 0.35%, S&P 500 e-minis were down 27.5 points, or

0.54%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 152.25 points,

or 0.86%.

Among other stocks, Ford Motor ( F ) gained 2.6% premarket

as the automaker's first-quarter earnings beat Wall Street's

expectations, bolstered by a strong performance in its

commercial vehicle division and an increase in hybrid vehicle

sales.