US Stock Futures Up; J.P. Morgan Earnings In Focus - Aon (NYSE:AON), Envestnet (NYSE:ENV)

Pre-open movers

US stock futures rose in early pre-market trade, ahead of earnings from J.P. Morgan Chase & Co

JPM

and Wells Fargo & Co

WFC

. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 20 points to 15,053.00, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index futures rose 1.30 points to 1,686.30. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index gained 4.25 points to 3,197.75.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were mostly higher today, with the Spanish Ibex Index falling 0.27%, London's FTSE 100 index gaining 0.73% and STOXX Europe 600 Index rising 0.32%. German DAX 30 index rose 0.30% and French CAC 40 Index surged 0.03%. Asian markets ended higher today. Japan's Nikkei Stock Average rose 1.48%, China's Shanghai Composite climbed 1.70% and Australia's ASX/S&P500 gained 1.61%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 1.16% and India's Sensex surged 1.26%.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Goldman Sachs upgraded Johnson & Johnson

JNJ

from “sell” to “neutral.” The target price for Johnson & Johnson has been raised from $87 to $95. Johnson & Johnson's shares closed at $87.78 yesterday.

Breaking news

China Lodging Group HTHT today announced that the Company, through one of its subsidiaries, entered into a purchase agreement to acquire ordinary shares of China Quanjude (Group) Co through a private placement of RMB100 million (approximately US$16.3 million), effective upon meeting certain closing conditions. To read the full news, click here.
ImmunoGen IMGN today announced that Novartis NVS has licensed the exclusive right to use the Company's ADC technology to develop anticancer therapeutics to an undisclosed target. To read the full news, click here.
Aon Hewitt, the global talent, retirement and health solutions business of Aon plc AON, has announced that it advised the trustees of the Kodak Pension Plan (KPP) on its agreement to set up a new pension scheme for its members. To read the full news, click here.
Envestnet ENV announced Thursday the pricing of a public offering on behalf of selling stockholders of 5,045,215 shares of common stock at a public offering price of $29.25 per share. To read the full news, click here.

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