S&P 500 futures are flat after a record close
Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) are slightly higher this morning, last seen up 64 points. S&P 500 Index (SPX) futures are hovering near breakeven in the wake of yesterday's record close, while Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) futures are eyeing a move into the red. The 10-year Treasury yield has inched higher, despite Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell noting pandemic recovery has been "uneven and incomplete." Elsewhere, investors are monitoring the producer price index (PPI), which rose 1% in March, higher than analyst estimates.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- Bulls won't want to miss this FAANG name this quarter.
- Snowflake stock saw a call surge in its options pits.
- Plus, LEVI pops on earnings beat; FuboTV wins World Cup 2022 rights; and Honeywell stock identified as "top pick."
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw more than 1.5 million call contracts traded on Thursday, and 683,964 put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio fell to 0.45 and the 21-day moving average rose to 0.46.
- Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) is up 4.8% before the bell, after the retailer posted better-than-expected first-quarter earnings, as well as a revenue win. The company attributed the upbeat results to a 41% jump in digital sales, and raised its revenue guidance for the first half of 2021, in anticipation of additional in-store traffic amid ramped up Covid-19 vaccination efforts.
- Streaming name FuboTV Inc (NYSE: FUBO) is up 9.3% ahead of the open, after winning the rights to air matches for the Qatar World Cup 2022, which include 10 South American Football Confederation teams. Details regarding the deal haven't been disclosed.
- The shares of Honeywell International Inc (NYSE:HON) are up 2.5% in electronic trading, after the security earned an upgrade to "buy" from "hold" at Deutsche Bank. The analyst in coverage said the stock has underperformed this year, but that it is favorably exposed to the economic cycle. Plus, JPMorgan Securities named the equity a "top pick."
- The week will come to a close with wholesale inventories data.
Asian Markets Fall Amid Slew of Chinese Economic Data
Stocks in Asia were mostly lower after today's session, amid plenty of economic data out of China. More specifically, the country's consumer price index for March rose 0.4%, and its producer price index rose 4.4% -- both higher than expectations. Leading the losses, Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 1.1%. Elsewhere, China's Shanghai Composite dropped 0.9%, and the Kospi in South Korea dipped 0.4%. Bucking today's trend, Japan's Nikkei closed with a 0.2% gain.
In Europe, shares are seeing fairly muted price action today. At last check, London's FTSE 100 was down 0.2% and the French CAC 40 was up 0.2%. Meanwhile, the German DAX is up just 0.03%, after data showed German industrial output fell 1.6% for February – far below the 1.5% rise expected by analysts.