A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Flat Ahead Of Home Prices, Consumer Confidence Data

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded mostly flat in early pre-market trade. The S&P Corelogic Case-Shiller home price index for June and the FHFA house price index for June will be released at 9:00 a.m. ET. The Conference Board consumer confidence index for August is schedule for release at 10:00 a.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 2 points to 25,941.00 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures slipped 0.10 points to 2,883.25. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index rose 4.75 points to 7,595.25.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures rose 1% to trade at $59.26 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures rose 1.1% to trade at $54.24 a barrel.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were mostly higher today, with the Spanish Ibex Index rising 0.6%, STOXX Europe 600 Index gaining 0.2% and German DAX 30 index gaining 0.4%. The UK's FTSE index was trading lower by 0.1%, while French CAC 40 Index rose 0.2%.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.96%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 0.06%, China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose 1.35% and India’s BSE Sensex rose 0.39%.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at JP Morgan upgraded Cree, Inc. CREE from Underweight to Neutral and announced a $45 price target.

Cree shares rose 2.7% to $44.36 in pre-market trading.

Breaking News

• J M Smucker Co SJM reported weaker-than-expected results for its first quarter and lowered FY20 EPS guidance.
• J.Jill Inc JILL reported upbeat results for its second quarter and raised FY19 earnings guidance.
• Nuvectra Corp NVTR disclosed that it is exploring strategic alternatives, including a potential sale or merger.
• Caleres Inc CAL reported better-than-expected Q2 EPS and sales results.