Dow Futures Signal Triple-Digit Surge

Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) futures are signaling a positive open, as traders' concerns over Hurricane Irma and North Korea ease. After reaching the Florida Keys over the weekend as a Category 4 storm, Irma weakened to a Category 1, sparking a drop in total damage estimates -- and lifting insurance stocks, including Travelers, ahead of the bell. Fears over North Korea's expected nuclear missile test were also put to rest, as the isolated country instead said the U.S. will pay a "due price" if the United Nations today votes for harsh sanctions.

Continue reading for more on today's market, including:

• How to trade events outside of earnings season, according to Schaeffer's Senior Equity Analyst Joe Bell.
• Short sellers prepare for more losses from Kroger stock. 
• Analyst: This restaurant stock is headed even lower.
• Plus, the Achillion-Janssen break-up; Mastercard scored an upgrade; and Teva Phamaceutical's new CEO.

1. The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 830,893 call contracts traded on Friday, compared to 603,930 put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.73, and the 21-day moving average dropped to 0.65.
2. Achillion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACHN) stock is down 25.7% ahead of the bell, after Johnson & Johnson's Janssen pharmaceutical unit -- which recently announced its plan to discontinue development of hepatitis C treatments -- terminated its research collaboration with the company. AHCN stock will likely be in the red on a year-to-date basis, headed for territory not charted since May.
3. Shares of Mastercard Inc (NYSE:MA) are up 1.3% in electronic trading -- and could touch record highs -- after Guggenheim upgraded the credit card issuer to "buy" from "neutral," citing the company's long-term revenue opportunity from "Faster Payments."  
4. After naming Kare Schultz as its new CEO -- ending a months-long search -- Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd (NYSE:TEVA) stock is up 11.6% before the open. The drug stock just last week touched a 14-year low of $15.22, before ending Friday at $15.50.
5. The economic and earnings calendars are bare today.

Overseas Trading

Stocks in Asia closed higher today, led by a 1.4% rally for Japan's Nikkei. Tokyo-listed equities benefited from a cooling yen, as well as a report showing the first increase in core machinery orders in four months. Hong Kong also climbed, with the Hang Seng rising 1% on strength in financial names. Likewise, China's Shanghai Composite closed up 0.4%, as investor sentiment caught a lift from freshly relaxed yuan trading regulations. South Korea's Kospi rounded out the regional advance, rallying 0.7% despite downbeat forecasts from automakers Hyundai and Kia. Instead, traders priced in relief as Pyongyang abstained from missile tests over the Foundation Day weekend.

European markets are broadly higher at midday. Insurance stocks are among the top gainers due to downwardly revised damage estimates from Irma, with names like London's Beazley up 5.3% and Zurich's Swiss Re climbing 3.8%. Meanwhile, investors are keeping an eye on the U.K. parliament, where lawmakers today will debate the Brexit bill ahead of a vote expected by early Tuesday. At last check, the German DAX has gained 1.1%, the French CAC 40 has advanced 1%, and London's FTSE 100 is up 0.4%.