US Stock Futures Edge Lower Ahead Of CPI, Housing Starts - Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG), Hertz Global Holdings (NASDAQ:HTZ)

Pre-open movers

US stock futures slipped in early pre-market trading, ahead of economic data. The Federal Open Market Committee will begin its 2-day policy meeting today. The Consumer Price Index and housing starts data for February will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 12 points to 16,154.00, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index futures fell 2.40 points to 1,848.30. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index declined 6 points to 3,645.50.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were lower today, with the Spanish Ibex Index falling 0.16%, London's FTSE 100 index dropping 0.14% and STOXX Europe 600 Index slipping 0.15%. German DAX 30 index declined 0.42% and French CAC 40 Index fell 0.11%. Asian markets ended higher today. Japan's Nikkei Stock Average surged 0.94%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.51% and China's Shanghai Composite Index climbed 0.08% and India's BSE Sensex gained 0.1%.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Credit Suisse upgraded 21Vianet Group

VNET

from “neutral” to “outperform.” The target price for 21Vianet Group has been raised from $27 to $36. 21Vianet's shares closed at $27.80 yesterday.

Breaking news

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions KTOS announced today that its Public Safety & Security (PSS) Division recently received an initial $4.5 million contract award for the deployment of specialized security and surveillance related products, equipment, and system integration services across a large public school district located in the eastern United States. To read the full news, click here.
Google's GOOG upcoming unconventional stock split will enable Co-founder Sergey Brin and Larry Page to maintain close control over the company. The stock split will diminish shareholders voices and modify how the company is represented in the S&P 500 index. To read the full news, click here.
Veeva Systems VEEV today announced that it has filed a registration statement on Form S-1 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission relating to a proposed public offering of shares of its Class A common stock. To read the full news, click here.
The Hertz HTZ today announced that its board of directors has approved plans to separate into two independent, publicly traded companies. To read the full news, click here.

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