US Stock Futures Flat Ahead Of Economic Data, Wal-Mart Earnings

Pre-open moversUS stock futures traded mostly flat in early pre-market trade, ahead of economic data and earnings from Wal-Mart Stores (NYSE: WMT). The consumer price index for April, the Empire State manufacturing index for May and initial jobless claims data will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. Data on Industrial production for April will be released at 9:15 a.m. ET, while the general conditions index of the Philadelphia Fed's Survey and the NAHB housing market index for May will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 2 points to 16,585.00, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index futures fell 1.30 points to 1,884.00. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index gained 1.50 points to 3,597.75.A Peek Into Global Markets European markets were mixed today, with the Spanish Ibex Index dropping 0.56%, STOXX Europe 600 Index rising 0.01%. German DAX 30 index climbed 0.14%, French CAC 40 Index fell 0.17% and London's FTSE 100 Index gained 0.12%. The euro-zone GDP expanded 0.2% in the first quarter, versus estimates of a 0.4% gain.In Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei Stock Average dropped 0.75%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.66%, China's Shanghai Composite Index fell 1.12% and India's BSE Sensex surged 0.38%.Broker RecommendationAnalysts at FBR Capital downgraded Urban Outfitters (NASDAQ: URBN) from “outperform” to “market perform.” The target price for Urban Outfitters has been lowered from $44 to $37.Urban Outfitters' shares closed at $36.67 yesterday. Breaking news

• Kindred Healthcare (NYSE: KND) today announced a proposal to acquire all of the outstanding shares of common stock of Gentiva Health Services (NASDAQ: GTIV) for a combination of $7.00 per share in cash and $7.00 of Kindred common stock. To read the full news, click here.
• Sorrento Therapeutics (NASDAQ: SRNE) announced the pricing of an underwritten public offering of 4,765,000 shares of common stock at a public offering price of $5.25 per share. To read the full news, click here.
• Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) announced today that its board of directors has approved an $80 million increase to the Company's ongoing share repurchase program. To read the full news, click here.
• In a move to expand significantly its portfolio of leading solutions for peripheral interventions, Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the Interventional Division of Bayer AG for $415 million in cash, including fees for transitional services. To read the full news, click here.