Netflix will report earnings after the close
U.S. stock futures are trading above fair value this morning, pointing to fresh record highs for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), S&P 500 Index (SPX), and Nasdaq Composite (IXIC). Investors are gearing up for the first full week of corporate earnings -- and while today's earnings slate is rather light, many will be watching a post-close release from red-hot Netflix (NFLX). As for economic data, the Empire State manufacturing index for October jumped to a three-year high. The energy sector could also be in focus, as oil prices rally amid reports of growing conflicts in Iraq. At last check, November-dated crude futures were up 1.6% at $52.26 per barrel.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 953,477 call contracts traded on Friday, compared to 619,436 put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio dipped to 0.65, and the 21-day moving average stayed at 0.64.
- Cancer specialist Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXEL) is up more than 18% in pre-market trading, thanks to news the company's liver cancer treatment, cabozantinib, met its goals in a late-stagy study. EXEL shares have already doubled in value over the past year, closing Friday at $24.76.
- Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com Inc (ADR) (NASDAQ:JD) is set to add 3% at the open, following a bullish Barron's write-up that suggested the stock is a better bargain than Alibaba (BABA), and could rally 30% over the next year. JD stock was last seen trading at $38.72, putting them roughly 2 points above their 200-day moving average.
- Shares of Adobe Systems Incorporated (NASDAQ:ADBE) are down more than 2% before the open, following a downgrade to "hold" from "buy" at Deutsche Bank. The brokerage firm kept its price target at $160, saying it expects the shares to trade sideways in the near term. ADBE stock finished Friday at $153.93, not too far below its record high of $157.89 from Sept. 11.
- Charles Schwab (SCHW), IDEX Corp (IEX), Omnicom (OMC), and Sonic (SONC) will also report earnings.
Stocks in Asia settled mostly higher today, tracking a positive weekly finish on Wall Street. In Tokyo, the Nikkei tacked on 0.5% and found a fresh 21-year peak, led by M&A-related gains for SoftBank and a healthy bounce for scandal-stricken Kobe Steel. Likewise, steel stocks were among the top performers in Seoul, with South Korea's Kospi settling 0.3% higher. Hong Kong's Hang Seng nailed down the biggest daily gain of 0.8%, while China's Shanghai Composite closed down 0.4% following a stronger-than-forecast rise in wholesale inflation.
European markets are just barely higher at midday, with traders keeping a wary eye on the ongoing uncertainty regarding Catalonia's bid for independence. However, oil stocks are on the upswing, with Brent crude futures rallying nearly 2% to $58.29 per barrel after Iraqi forces seized control of Kirkuk's oil refinery. At last check, the German DAX is up 0.2%, France's CAC 40 is 0.1% higher, and London's FTSE 100 has edged up 0.02%.