Stock Futures Set Sights on a Positive Start to 2021

The first trading day of 2021 is eyeing an upbeat open, with stock futures looking to build off last week's impressive record closes to 2020. Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI), S&P 500 Index (SPX), and Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) are all moving higher this morning, guided by a lift in the tech, auto, and pharmaceutical sectors. Specifically, a rollout of AstraZeneca's (AZN) COVID-19 vaccine in the U.K. and news Tesla (TSLA) beat vehicle delivery expectations last quarter is giving markets a boost.

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

• A look at Sirius XM stock's last month of 2020.  
• The shipping name flashing a bull signal on the charts. 
• Plus, Tesla comes close to delivery goal; Britain administers AZN vaccine; and ROKU in talks to buy Quibi's content.

5 Things You Need to Know Today

1. The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw more than 1.6 million call contracts traded on Thursday, and 881,025 put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.56 and the 21-day moving average jumped to 0.43. 
2. Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) is up 2.2% before the bell following news that the electric car concern delivered a new record of 499,550 vehicles in 2020. That's just a chip shot away from its goal of half a million deliveries. Year-over-year, the security is up 743.4%. 
3. AstraZeneca plc (NASDAQ:AZN) is up 2.3% in electronic trading, after it was reported that Britain began to administer doses of its COVID-19 vaccine at the Oxford University Hospital. Over the last six months, however, AZN has lost 13.3%.
4. The shares of Roku Inc (NASDAQ:ROKU) are up 2.6% in pre-market trading, following reports that the streaming device maker is in advanced talks to buy the content catalog of Quibi -- a short-form video streaming service that is currently shutting down operations. Year-over-year, Roku stock is up an impressive 148%.
5. Later today look out for Markit manufacturing PMI and construction spending data.  

European Stocks Move Higher on Vaccine Rollout

Asian markets ended the first trading day of the new year mostly higher -- China’s Shanghai Composite and the Hong Kong Hang Seng both added 0.9%, with the former getting a boost from a private survey showing an expansion in manufacturing activity in December. Meanwhile, the region’s official Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) saw a slight dip from November, though it still demonstrated expansion. Elsewhere, the South Korean Kospi surged 2.5%, while Japan’s Nikkei fell behind with a 0.7% drop.

Over in Europe, markets are ringing in 2021 on a high note, amid news of Britain’s rolling out of AstraZeneca’s (AZN) coronavirus vaccine, which started today. The beginning of a post-Brexit trade relationship between the United Kingdom and the European Union (EU) is also making headlines, with investors eyeing potential trade disruptions as a result. By midday, the London FTSE 100 is 2.8% higher, the French CAC 40 has tacked on 1.6%, and the German DAX is up 1.2%.