Stock Futures Search for Direction as Tax Vote Stays in Focus

U.S. stock futures are signaling a mixed open, as investors consider the chances of a Senate vote on tax reform today. Buzz surrounding Republicans' tax proposal sent the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) and S&P 500 Index (SPX) to record highs yesterday, but Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell postponed a vote on the measure. The economic schedule will also draw attention, since it features auto sales, updates on the manufacturing sector, and construction spending. Against this backdrop, Dow futures are a hair above fair value, while SPX and Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) futures are in the red -- though the two former indexes are set for weekly wins.

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

• If past is precedent, this FAANG stock could be flashing "buy."
• How options traders doubled their money on this retail stock.
• An alternative options strategy for short sellers.
• Plus, Blue Apron's C-suite change-up; a soaring cloud stock; and Wynn stock eyes fresh eyes.

1. The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 1.1 million call contracts traded on Thursday, compared to 616,211 put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.55, while the 21-day moving average stayed at 0.62.
2. Blue Apron Holdings Inc (NYSE:APRN) has announced its CEO and co-founder Matt Salzberg has stepped down. The packaged meal concern named Brad Dickerson its new CEO. APRN stock has really struggled since going public in late June, closing yesterday at $2.99.
3. Cloud name Nutanix Inc (NASDAQ:NTNX) is up 8.5% before the open, thanks to an impressive fiscal first-quarter earnings report. The shares hit an annual high of $35 just two days ago, and have outpaced the S&P 500 Index (SPX) by almost 38 percentage points in the past three months.
4. Wynn Resorts, Limited (NASDAQ:WYNN) stock is edging higher in pre-market trading, after Macau casino revenues rose close to 23% year-over-year in November. WYNN stock as a result could test its annual high of $160 from earlier this week, after settling Thursday at $158.08.

5. The Institute of Supply Management's (ISM) manufacturing index and Markit's purchasing managers manufacturing index (PMI) come out today. St. Louis Fed President James Bullard and Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan are scheduled to take the podium. Big Lots (BIG) will report earnings.

Overseas Trading

Despite a breakout session on Wall Street, Asian stocks finished mixed, as news the U.S. Senate had delayed a vote on tax reform sparked caution among traders. Japan's Nikkei outperformed its peers, tacking on 0.4%, after data showed consumer prices rose for a 10th straight month in October. China's Shanghai Composite also closed up -- eking out a 0.02% gain, even as the Caixin manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI) fell to a five-month low in October. Elsewhere, Hong Kong's Hang Seng slid 0.4%, as another selloff in Tencent put the tech stock into correction territory. South Korea's Kospi closed down 0.04%.

European markets are mostly lower at midday, as uncertainty swirls around the U.S. tax vote. Declining tech, auto, and bank stocks are also putting pressure on the regional benchmarks -- and overshadowing a strong IHS Markit reading on the eurozone's final November manufacturing PMI, which came in at a 17-year high. At last check, both the German DAX and the French CAC 40 are flirting with 0.6% losses. London's FTSE 100, however, is fractionally higher, after the country's manufacturing sector grew at its fastest pace in four years, according to data from IHS Markit.