A Peek Into The Markets: U.S. Stock Futures Gain; Morgan Stanley Beats Q2 Views

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded higher in early pre-market trade ahead of earnings from several major companies. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 62 points to 18,543.00, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures rose 6.50 points to 2,165.50. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index gained 14.75 points to 4,621.25.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures rose 0.32 percent to trade at $46.83 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures also declined 0.07 percent to trade at $44.62 a barrel. The Energy Information Administration’s weekly report on petroleum inventories is schedule for release at 10:30 a.m. ET.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were higher today, with the Spanish Ibex Index rising 0.69 percent, STOXX Europe 600 Index surging 0.74 percent and German DAX 30 index gaining 1.31 percent. The UK's FTSE index was trading higher by 0.15 percent, while French CAC 40 Index climbed 1.04 percent. The unemployment rate in the U.K. declined to 4.9 percent in the three months to May, compared to 5 percent during the prior three months.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average fell 0.25 percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 0.97 percent, China’s Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.29 percent and India’s BSE Sensex rose 0.46 percent.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Oppenheimer downgraded Verizon Communications Inc. VZ from Outperform to Perform.

Verizon shares fell 0.70 percent to $55.31 in pre-market trading.

Breaking news

• Morgan Stanley MS announced better-than-expected adjusted earnings and revenue for the second quarter. Morgan Stanley reported net income applicable to its shareholders of $1.6 billion or $0.75 per share, down from net income of $1.8 billion or $0.85 per share in the year-ago quarter. To read the full news, click here.



• Halliburton Company HAL reported second quarter results Wednesday morning which exceeded analyst expectations. To read the full news, click here.



• Microsoft Corporation MSFT reported better-than-expected fiscal fourth-quarter financial results on Tuesday. To read the full news, click here.



• St. Jude Medical, Inc. STJ announced 18 percent drop in net income for the second quarter despite sales witnessing 10.64 growth. However, its adjusted earnings, which increased 3 percent, came in line with the expectations. To read the full news, click here.