US Stock Futures Edge Higher; Jobless Claims Data In Focus - Astronics (NASDAQ:ATRO)

Pre-open movers

US stock futures traded higher in early pre-market trade. Data on weekly jobless claims will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 12 points to 17,988.00, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index futures rose 1 point to 2,079.90. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index climbed 4.50 points to 4,282.50.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were mixed today, with the Spanish Ibex Index gaining 0.09%, STOXX Europe 600 Index dropping 0.06%. German DAX 30 index climbed 0.57%, French CAC 40 Index slipped 0.33% and London's FTSE 100 Index rose 0.09%. In Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei Stock Average jumped 1.24%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index gained 0.07%, China's Shanghai Composite Index slipped 1.98% and India's Sensex declined 1.08%.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at MLV & Co initiated coverage on

Halozyme Therapeutics, Inc.HALO

with a Buy rating. The target price for Halozyme Therapeutics is set to $12. Halozyme Therapeutics' shares closed at $9.03 yesterday.

Breaking news

j2 Global, Inc. JCOM on December 23, 2014 delivered a letter, a copy of which is included below, to Carbonite, Inc. CARB indicating its intention to commence a cash tender offer to acquire all outstanding shares of Carbonite. To read the full news, click here.
Midstates Petroleum Company, Inc. MPO today announced that Mark Eck will be joining the Company as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer effective December 29, 2014. To read the full news, click here.
American Realty Capital Properties, Inc. ARCP today outlined its Board of Directors' business priorities for the Company moving forward and announced that it has concluded a status evaluation of the properties in ARCP's portfolio. To read the full news, click here.
Astronics Corporation ATRO announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Armstrong Aerospace ("Armstrong") for approximately $51 million. To read the full news, click here.

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