US Stock Futures Edge Higher; All Eyes On Fed - General Mills (NYSE:GIS), Elbit Systems (NASDAQ:ESLT)

Pre-open movers

US stock futures rose in early pre-market trading, ahead of the Federal Reserve's latest policy decision. The U.S. current account report for the fourth quarter will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. The Federal Open Market Committee will announce its policy decision at 2:00 p.m. ET, while the Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen will hold press briefing at 2:30 p.m. ET. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 11 points to 16,273.00, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index futures rose 1.40 points to 1,865.20. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index surged 6 points to 3,701.00.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were mostly higher today, with the Spanish Ibex Index rising 0.23%, London's FTSE 100 index dropping 0.09% and STOXX Europe 600 Index gaining 0.06%. German DAX 30 index rose 0.38% and French CAC 40 Index gained 0.11%. The UK unemployment rate remained unchanged at 7.2%. Asian markets ended mixed today. Japan's Nikkei Stock Average surged 0.36%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 0.07% and China's Shanghai Composite Index declined 0.17% and India's BSE Sensex gained 0.16%.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Keefe Bruyette & Woods downgraded Walker & Dunlop

from “outperform” to “market perform.” The target price for Walker & Dunlop has been raised from $16 to $18. Walker & Dunlop's shares closed at $16.88 yesterday.

Breaking news

Israeli firm Elbit Systems ESLT reported a drop in its fourth-quarter profit. Elbit's quarterly earnings, excluding one-time items, declined to $1.26 per share, versus $1.62 per in the year-ago period. To read the full news, click here.
Isis Pharmaceuticals ISIS announced today that it has initiated a Phase 1 clinical study for ISIS-ANGPTL3Rx, an antisense drug targeting angiopoietin-like 3 protein (ANGPTL3), an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease. To read the full news, click here.
General Mills GIS reported a rise in its fiscal third-quarter profit. General Mills' quarterly profit surged to $410.6 million, or $0.64 per share, versus a year-ago profit of $398.4 million, or $0.60 per share. To read the full news, click here.
Marchex MCHX announced today that it will commence an underwritten public offering, subject to market and other conditions, of 5,714,000 shares of Marchex's Class B common stock pursuant to an effective shelf registration statement. To read the full news, click here.

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