The Santa Claus rally could take a breather today
After a Christmas week full of records on Wall Street, Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) futures are much quieter this morning, holding modestly above fair value. Futures on the S&P 500 Index (SPX) and Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) are signaling slightly lower opens, with volume likely to be low heading into the New Year's holiday. As far as economic data, the U.S. trade deficit in goods fell 5.4% to $63.2 billion in November.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- Breaking down Tesla's big week.
- An FDA nod sent this drug stock soaring.
- Plus, Tesla rival scores quarterly win; Goodyear nabs a "buy" rating; and AstraZeneca gets an FDA nod.
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 1.16 million call contracts traded on Friday, compared to 698,615 put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.60, while the 21-day moving average stayed at 0.57.
- Nio Inc (NYSE:NIO) stock is up 18% ahead of the bell, after the Tesla rival reported a third-quarter loss that was slimmer than expected. Revenue topped forecasts and deliveries increased, as well. NIO is set to open above its 160-day moving average, but was still down 62% year-to-date heading into today.
- Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co (NASDAQ:GT) stock is up 2.8% in electronic trading, after Nomura Instinet initiated coverage with a "buy" rating and $20 price target, forecasting a strong earnings recovery next year. GT stock closed Friday at $15.10, after falling below $11 back in early September.
- The shares of AstraZeneca plc (NYSE:AZN) are up 0.7% before the open, after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Lynparza -- an ovarian cancer treatment the company develops with Merck (MRK) -- to treat pancreatic cancer. AZN is set to open a chip-shot under its Dec. 20 record high of $51.23, and is up 33% in 2019.
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Pending home sales and the Chicago purchasing managers index (PMI) will be released. For earnings, there are no other names on the docket.
Asian Markets Mixed; European Investors Take Profits
It was a mixed session for equities in Asia. China’s Shanghai Composite had a solid day, grabbing a 1.2% win, with brokerage stocks seeing particular strength thanks to new rules around initial public offerings (IPO) in the country. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng also rose, adding 0.3%. Markets in Japan and South Korea lagged behind, however, with the Nikkei and Kospi falling 0.8% and 0.3%, respectively.
Stocks in Europe are moving lower at the halfway point, as investors likely take profits off the table after last week’s rally. London’s FTSE 100 was last seen with a 0.4% decline, weighed by losses from drugmakers. France’s CAC 40 is lower, too, down 0.2%, while Germany’s DAX has shed 0.7% so far.