US Stock Futures Surge Ahead Of Manufacturing Data - Hilltop Hldgs (NYSE:HTH)

Pre-open movers

US stock futures traded higher in early pre-market trade. The PMI manufacturing index for December will be released at 8:58 a.m. ET, while the ISM manufacturing composite index for December and construction spending data for November will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 65 points to 17,817.00, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index futures rose 6.70 points to 2,059.10. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index climbed 14.50 points to 4,247.25.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were mostly lower today, with the Spanish Ibex Index gaining 0.78%, STOXX Europe 600 Index falling 0.25% and German DAX 30 index dropping 0.79%. French CAC 40 Index declined 0.37% and London's FTSE 100 Index fell 0.14%. Eurozone's manufacturing PMI climbed to 50.6 in December, versus 50.1 in November. In Asian markets, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index gained 1.07% and India's Sensex jumped 1.38%.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Canaccord Genuity upgraded

Bed Bath & Beyond Inc.BBBY

from Hold to Buy. The price target for Bed Bath & Beyond has been raised from $66 to $91. Bed Bath & Beyond's shares closed at $76.17 on Wednesday.

Breaking news

Cesca Therapeutics Inc. KOOL today announced that it has received a letter from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration responding to the Company's investigational device exemption ("IDE") application for its pivotal CLIRST III clinical trial. To read the full news, click here.
Knight Therapeutics Inc. KHTRF today announced that it has entered into a strategic partnership with NeurAxon Inc. for the commercialization of NeurAxon's innovative products in various stages of development in Canada, Israel, South Africa and Russia. To read the full news, click here.
Eli Lilly and Company LLY today announced that it has completed the acquisition of Novartis Animal Health, which will further position Lilly's Elanco as a global leader in the animal health industry. To read the full news, click here.
Hilltop Holdings Inc. HTH, the parent company of PlainsCapital Corporation, today announced that it has completed its acquisition of Dallas-based SWS Group, Inc. To read the full news, click here.

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