A Peek Into The Market Before The Trading Starts - ICF International (NASDAQ:ICFI)

Pre-open movers

US stock futures are mixed this morning, as investors are awaiting weekly jobless claims data. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 7 points to 12,923.00 and S&P 500 index futures fell 0.60 points to 1,355.30. Nasdaq 100 futures gained 2.50 points to 2,581.25.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were mostly lower today. The STOXX Europe 600 Index dropped 0.13%, London's FTSE 100 Index moved up 0.18%, French CAC 40 index fell 0.10% and German DAX 30 index dropped 0.48%. Asian markets ended mostly lower, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average surging 0.44%, China's Shanghai Composite rising 0.25% and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 moving down 0.11%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 0.78% and India's Sensex dropped 0.37%.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Brean Murray Carret & Co upgraded VIVUS Inc

VVUS

from “sell” to “hold.” VIVUS shares jumped 110.52% to $22.21 in pre-market trading.

Breaking news

Omnicare Inc OCR, today announced that its board of directors has approved an additional $200 million of share repurchase authorization and a 75% increase to the quarterly cash dividend. To read the full news, click here.
Mylan Inc MYL today announced that its subsidiary Mylan Laboratories Limited (formerly Matrix Laboratories Limited) has received tentative approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) under the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief for its New Drug Application (NDA) for Abacavir Sulfate and Lamivudine Tablets, 60 mg/30 mg. To read the full news, click here.
Royal Bank of Scotland RBS reported a wider than expected loss for 2011, fueled in part by a write down on Greek debt and compensation to customers who were sold insurance that they didn't need. To read the full news, click here.
ICF International ICFI has been awarded a re-compete contract by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to promote the value of continuous energy management improvement and deliver technical assistance, training, and outreach to ENERGY STAR commercial, institutional, and industrial partners. To read the full news, click here.

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