Stock Futures Soar on Lockdown Optimism

Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) futures are ready to start the final week of the month with a triple-digit move above fair value this morning. Futures on the Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) and S&P 500 Index (SPX) are also getting a lift, as optimism builds that parts of the U.S. economy will be phased into reopening soon. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced Sunday that the state's construction and manufacturing sectors would be the first to have the lockdown lifted, after coronavirus fatalities hit a one-month low over the weekend. Perhaps the only damper on today's optimism are oil prices, with June-dated crude last seen down 20.8%, at $13.41 per barrel. 

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

• Legal buzz, bear notes weigh on this retail stock.
• Breaking down a big post-earnings winner from Friday. 
• Plus, Boeing pulls out of Embraer deal; cybersecurity becomes a big work-from-home winner; and Beyond Meat shakes off downgrade.

5 Things You Need to Know Today

1. The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 1.3 million call contracts traded on Friday, and 755,632 put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio climbed to 0.60, and the 21-day moving average remained at 0.67.
2. Boeing Co (NYSE:BA) stock is up 1.6% ahead of the bell, after the aerospace name pulled out of its $4.2 billion deal with Brazilian airliner Embraer The move helps conserve cash-flow, with some experts predicting Boeing burning through as much as $29 billion in 2020. Boeing stock is down 60% year-to-date. 
3. Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ:CHKP) is up 3% before the open, after the cybersecurity name reported a first-quarter earnings and revenue beat. The company noted increased demand for network security amid the widespread work-from-home orders amid the COVID-19 outbreak. Heading into today, CHKP has tacked on 30% since its March 12 three-year bottom of $80.06.
4. One week removed from its launch with Starbucks in China, Beyond Meat Inc (NASDAQ:BYND) shares are up 2% in electronic trading. This comes despite a downgrade to "sell" from "neutral" at UBS, which warned that the company's recovery has not priced in the effect of the coronavirus. This recovery hit high gear last week, to the tune of a 41% seven-day gain.  

5. The week starts off slow with no economic data to report. F5 Networks (FFIV) and Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP) will report earnings. 

Asian Markets Climb on Bank of Japan Decision

Asian stocks rose on Monday, with the Nikkei leading the charge on a 2.7% pop, following a decision by the Bank of Japan (BoJ) to ease its monetary policy, and keep its short-term interest rate target steady. Elsewhere in the region, the Hong Kong Hang Seng tacked on 1.9%, and the South Korean Kospi rose 1.8%. The Shanghai Composite in China, on the other hand, inched just 0.3% higher, as investors looked at a 34.9% drop in industrial profits for March, per the country’s Bureau of Statistics, compared to the 38.3% drop during the first two months of the year. 

News that the region is going to start easing up on its lockdown measures has European bourses eyeing sizeable gains midday. The German DAX is 2.7% higher, the French CAC 40 is up 1.9% so far, and the London FTSE 100 is up 1.6%, at last glance.