Dow futures are more than 200 points above fair value
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) futures are signaling a huge day for stocks, trading more than 200 points above fair value. The move comes as a result of this weekend's French presidential election, with centrist Emmanuel Macron and far-right candidate Marine Le Pen both qualifying for the run-off vote on May 7, as many expected. On top of an expected
tax reform unveil by the Trump administration this week, traders back at home will have a raft of corporate earnings to consider, in what will be the busiest week of earnings season. Against this backdrop, the Dow,
S&P 500 Index (SPX), and
Nasdaq Composite (COMP) are all poised to join in on the global stock market rally.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- The bank stock that suddenly surged nearly 23%.
- How one options trader dropped a 6-figure bet on Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan (USA) (NYSE:POT).
- The news that sent this biotech stock tumbling 40%.
- Plus, Hasbro toys with record highs; Sears is considering bids; and analysts take action ahead of Amazon earnings.
Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) are 234 points above fair value.
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 980,905 call contracts traded on Friday, compared to 655,836 put contracts. The resultant single-session equity put/call ratio dipped to 0.67, while the 21-day moving average stayed at 0.66.
- Shares of toy-making giant Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAS) are set to rally 3.5% at the open, after the company once again topped earnings expectations. HAS stock is already up 10% over the past year, and could now come close to topping its March 20 record high of $101.08, after closing Friday at $96.03.
- Sears stock could be in focus today, amid news the company is looking at bids for some of its real estate properties. SHLD stock has recovered nicely since touching an all-time low of $5.50 on Feb. 8, settling last week at $13.39.
- Elsewhere, Amazon stock is once again receiving bullish attention from analysts ahead of the company's earnings release on Thursday. Instinet, Goldman Sachs, and Wedbush all hiked their price targets, with the latter firm setting the highest mark at $1,250. AMZN shares sport a record high of $923.72, and as of Friday's close of $898.53, are up 42% year-over-year.
- Alcoa (AA), Barrick Gold (ABX), Halliburton (HAL), Illinois Tool Works (ITW), Newmont Mining (NEM), Rambus (RMBS), Sohu.com (SOHU), and Whirlpool (WHR) highlight the earnings slate.
Overseas Trading
The French election results spurred Asian stocks higher for the most part. Japan's Nikkei soared 1.4% on a weaker yen -- and as a phone call between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and U.S. President Donald Trump, to discuss the tense situation in North Korea, caught traders' attention. Specifically, North Korea arrested an American citizen over the weekend, and hinted at its willingness and ability to "sink a U.S. nuclear powered aircraft carrier with a single strike."
Staying on the peninsula, South Korea's Kospi shrugged off the threat, ending 0.4% higher. Meanwhile, Hong Kong's Hang Seng also posted a 0.4% gain, while China's Shanghai Composite bucked the bullish regional trend, slumping 1.4% -- the index's worst percentage loss of 2017 -- amid signs of tightening regulations.
Macron's victory in the first round of the French election has triggered a huge rally in Europe, too, and sent the euro to multi-month highs. France's CAC 40 has exploded 4.6% higher, led by bank stocks. The German DAX is up big, too, jumping 3% after the IFO reported business sentiment hit its highest level since mid-2011. Rounding things out, London's FTSE 100 has surged 1.8%.