U.S. Stock Futures Dip as Traders Eye Apple, Inflation Data

The producer price index rose a slimmer-than-expected 0.2% in August

Sep 13, 2017 at 9:17 AM
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After finishing yesterday at its highest close ever, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) is set to open lower this morning, with Apple stock signaling a negative start after yesterday's big iPhone reveal. Futures are also lower as traders digest the latest round of wholesale inflation data. The producer price index (PPI) rose 0.2% last month, compared to the estimated 0.3% rise, due to higher gasoline prices. Meanwhile, the International Energy Agency upped its estimates for global oil demand this year, lifting October-dated crude futures by 1% to $48.73 per barrel. 

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

US Stock Futures Sept. 13

5 Things You Need to Know Today
  1. The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 999,284 call contracts traded on Tuesday -- the most since July 28 -- compared to 580,890 put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio fell to 0.58, and the 21-day moving average remained at 0.64.
  2. Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU) stock is up 1.1% in pre-market trading, after Goldman Sachs upgraded MU to "buy" from "neutral" and raised its price target to $40 from $33 -- territory not charted since 2001 -- citing the potential for higher fourth-quarter memory chip prices. The semiconductor stock hit a two-year high of $34.54 yesterday.
  3. Shares of Centene Corp (NYSE:CNC) are up 5.4% in electronic trading, after the company announced its plan to buy privately held health insurer Fidelis Care for $3.75 billion, in order to expand its participation in government-sponsored healthcare coverage. As a result, no fewer than four brokerages raised their price targets on CNC stock -- which touched a record high of $91.16 yesterday -- including Piper Jaffray, to $112 from $105.  
  4. Nordstrom, Inc. (NYSE:JWN) stock is up 6.1% before the bell, after the retailer announced it will partner with Leonard Green in its bid to take the department store private, a plan the company has been exploring since early June. As such, Cowen and Company raised its price target on JWN stock to $53 from $49, and upped the probability of Nordstrom going private to a range of 60% to 70%, from 40% to 50%.
  5. Weekly crude inventories update will be released today, along with the Treasury budget. United Natural Foods (UNFI) will also report earnings.

Buzz Stocks Sept 13

Overseas Trading

It was a mixed finish in Asia today. Markets in Japan and mainland China followed U.S. stocks higher, with the Nikkei rising 0.5% on tailwinds from a cooler yen, and the Shanghai Composite bouncing back from early losses to claw out a 0.2% win. On the other hand, South Korea's Kospi backpedaled 0.2% after newly tightened U.N. sanctions on North Korea elicited heated rhetoric from Pyongyang, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng surrendered 0.3% to break a three-day string of gains.

Mining stocks are setting a bearish tone in London at midday, with the sector succumbing to profit taking amid a 1.7% drop in copper prices. Apple suppliers are also struggling, tracking the lackluster post-event price action in the iPhone parent. London's FTSE 100 is off 0.2% at last check -- but France's CAC 40 has inched up 0.1%, and Germany's DAX is 0.2% higher. 

 

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