A Peek Into The Markets: U.S. Stock Futures Drop Ahead Of J C Penney Earnings, Economic Data

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded lower in early pre-market trade. J C Penney Company Inc JCP is projected to report quarterly earnings before the opening bell. The Consumer Price Index for April is schedule for release at 8:30 a.m. ET. Data on retail sales for April and business inventories for March will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. The University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index for May is schedule for release at 10:00 a.m. ET. Chicago Federal Reserve President Charles Evans is set to speak at the 56th ACI Financial Markets Association World Conference in Dublin, Ireland at 9:00 a.m. ET, while Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank President Patrick T. Harker will speak in Philadelphia at 12:30 p.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled 37 points to 20,833.00, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures declined 6 points to 2,385.00. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index slipped 10.75 points to 5,660.00.

Oil prices traded lower as Brent crude futures fell 0.10 percent to trade at $50.72 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures declined 0.15 percent to trade at $47.76 a barrel. The Baker Hughes North American rig count report for the latest week is schedule for release at 1:00 p.m. ET.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were mostly higher today, with the Spanish Ibex Index gaining 0.01 percent, STOXX Europe 600 Index rising 0.01 percent and German DAX 30 index gaining 0.11 percent. The UK's FTSE index was trading higher by 0.10 percent, while French CAC 40 Index slipped 0.03 percent.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average fell 0.39 percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 0.12 percent, China’s Shanghai Composite Index surged 0.72 percent and India’s BSE Sensex fell 0.21 percent.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Trade Desk Inc TTD from Neutral to Overweight.

Trade Desk shares gained 22.3 percent to $48.80 in pre-market trading.

Breaking news

• ArcelorMittal SA (ADR) MT reported net income of $1 billion on revenue of $16.09 billion in the first quarter.



• CA, Inc. CA reported stronger-than-expected earnings for its fourth quarter on Thursday.



• Cyberark Software Ltd CYBR reported better-than-expected results for its firs quarter, but issued a weak earnings forecast. The company also announced the acquisition of Conjur for $42 million.



• Nordstrom, Inc. JWN posted upbeat earnings for its first quarter, while same-store sales missed estimates.