Investors a looking toward this week's Fed meeting
The major benchmarks are marking a modest rise before the bell this morning, after finishing Friday's session with solid weekly wins. Futures on the S&P 500 Index (SPX) are inching higher after its record close, while the Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) and Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) are sitting in the black as well, pre-market. Meanwhile, investors are looking ahead of this week's Federal Reserve meeting, as the central bank is expected to discuss speeding up its bond-buying program.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- A look at McDonald's stock after its latest round of record highs.
- Checking in following CROX's recent pullback.
- Plus, HOG jumps on EV unit news; AAPL receives a bull note; and ARNA soars on buyout buzz.
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw more than 1.7 million call contracts traded on Friday, compared to 1 million put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.61, and the 21-day moving average stayed at 0.48.
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Harley-Davidson Inc (NYSE:HOG) is surging before the bell, up 12.1%, after news that its “Livewire” electric motorcycle division will go public through a merger with a blank-check firm. Livewire will trade on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the ticker "LVW," and will be valued at $1.77 billion.
- J.P. Morgan Securities raised its price target on Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) to a street-high $210 from $180. The firm cited the 5G iPhone SE as boosting the iPhone product cycle in 2022, along with demand for the iPhone 13. AAPL is up 1.3% in electronic trading.
- Arena Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:ARNA) is soaring, up 89.4% pre-market, after news that Pfizer (PFE) will acquire the company in a $6.7 billion dollar deal. Today's bull gap has ARNA set to open at eight-year highs.
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International Markets Eye Bank Decisions
Asian markets saw mixed results on Monday, with a slew of key decisions from central banks due out this week -- both in the region and abroad. This includes the Bank of Japan (BoJ). The country’s Nikkei added 0.7% ahead of the event, while the Shanghai Composite added 0.4%, and the South Korean Kospi dropped 0.3%. Meanwhile, the Hong Kong Hang Seng shed 0.2%, weighed down by reports that the Chinese AI creator SenseTime Group will withdraw its $767 million public offering on the Hong Kong exchange after being put on a U.S. investment blacklist.
In Europe, investors are also looking at the deluge of central bank decisions due out this week around the globe. Markets are mixed ahead of decisions from the Bank of England (BoE) and the European Central Bank (ECB). Elsewhere, the U.K. has elevated its Covid-19 threat level, while also announcing booster shots will be available to all adults this week. In response, the London FTSE 100 is down 0.1%, the French CAC 40 is up 0.1%, and the German DAX is up 0.9%.