Dow Jones Industrial Average Futures Higher; M&A, Oil in Focus

Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) futures are signaling a modestly higher open, as traders return to Wall Street from a long weekend. Stocks are reacting to a bevy of M&A headlines, and traders are keeping an eye on oil prices after Russia and Saudi Arabia on Monday agreed to help stabilize the global oil market. At last check, crude futures for December delivery were 0.3% lower at $44.29 per barrel. Stock investors will also be watching the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) non-manufacturing index for more clues about the next Fed rate hike, after Friday's jobs report.
 
Continue reading for more on today's market, including: 

• One analyst thinks Ted Cruz is no match for this cybersecurity stock.
• Is Home Depot (NYSE:HD) headed for record highs?
• The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) signal pointing to a volatility spike.
• Plus... Merger news out of Europe, Monsanto's sweetened bid, and Intel's startup purchase.

Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) are about 16 points above fair value.

5 Things You Need to Know Today
 

1. European markets are teetering on mixed M&A news.
2. The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 817,271 call contracts traded on Friday -- the most since Aug. 19 -- compared to 500,179 put contracts. The resultant single-session equity put/call ratio fell to 0.61, while the 21-day moving average remained at 0.63.
3. Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON) is up 0.8% in pre-market trading, after German pharmaceutical firm Bayer AG bumped up its bid to $65 billion. This offer of $127.50 per share is higher than the previous two offers made by Bayer AG, which came out to $122 and $125 per share.
4. Resolute Energy Corp (NYSE:REN) is up 9.4% ahead of the open -- set to touch a new annual high -- as the oil-and-gas stock continues its massive tear upwards, up nearly 800% in the last 12 months. Bolstering the stock is a huge price-target boost to $35 from $12 at Northland.
5. Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) is sitting 0.9% higher before the bell, after news that the tech company will acquire chipmaker startup Movidius. The amount of the sale and other details have yet to be disclosed. While recent option buyers have expressed pessimism toward INTC, Evercore ISI this morning upgraded the stock to "buy" and hiked its price target to $45.

Earnings and Economic Data

San Francisco Fed President John Williams will give a speech in the evening. Kicking off the week's earnings calendar will be Dave & Buster's (PLAY) and Marvell Technology Group (MRVL).To see what else is coming up on this week's schedule, click here.