Dow futures are trading just below fair value this morning
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) futures are trading just below fair value this morning, after centrist candidate Emmanuel Macron won the French presidential election over the weekend -- a victory that seems to have been priced into stocks. On top of that, investors will continue to consider last week's
jobs data, as well as the latest from the Fed and earnings fronts. There's also major M&A buzz this morning, as high-end retailer
Coach has announced it will buy rival
Kate Spade for $2.4 billion in cash, or $18.50 per share. Against this backdrop,
stocks will look to pare their gains from Friday.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- Analyst: this biotech stock could surge more than 300%.
- Short interest is at record levels ahead of Pandora Media Inc (NYSE:P) earnings.
- This video game stock could be an Apple acquisition target.
- Plus, more bullish buzz for Wal-Mart; a biotech in free fall; and Buffett misses estimates.
Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) are roughly 10 points below fair value.
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 862,095 call contracts traded on Friday, compared to 550,581 put contracts. The resultant single-session equity put/call ratio dropped to 0.64, while the 21-day moving average edged up to 0.68.
- Wal-Mart could keep its hot streak alive today, after Deutsche Bank raised its price target to $81 from $71. WMT shares hit a two-year high of $76.60 on Friday, and sport a year-to-date gain of 10.7%.
- Weak first-quarter results and a disappointing outlook has Horizon Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:HZNP) 25% lower ahead of the open. HZNP stock is now set to open at a more than two-year low, and more losses could be in store, since analysts are so bullish.
- Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A) reported first-quarter earnings that missed expectations, due to weakness in its insurance business. BRK.A -- the most expensive stock in history -- closed Friday at exactly $250,000 per share.
- Speeches from St. Louis Fed President James Bullard and Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester will be in focus today, too. AMC Entertainment (AMC), Hecla Mining (HL), Hertz Global (HTZ), JD.com (JD), Kite Pharma (KITE), Marriott (MAR) are also in the earnings spotlight today.
Overseas Trading
Most Asian markets settled higher today following the French presidential election results, led by big gains for Tokyo and Seoul. Japan's Nikkei 225 and South Korea's Kospi both closed up 2.3%, with the Nikkei rising to a new annual high along the way. Hong Kong's Hang Seng joined in the rally with an advance of 0.4%, even as stocks in mainland China were pressured by disappointing trade data. By the close, the Shanghai Composite was off 0.9%.
Meanwhile, it appears that President-elect Macron's Sunday landslide was fully priced into European stocks, with most regional indexes succumbing to some profit-taking at midday. Mining and resource names are leading the laggards, with investors casting a wary eye on Beijing's sluggish pace of imports last month. At last look, the French CAC 40 is off 0.9% and the German DAX is 0.3% lower, while London's FTSE 100 has managed a 0.2% gain.