Good morning! The stock market today (Thursday, January 15) appears headed for a gain following yesterday's close. S&P futures were up 0.35%, Nasdaq futures were up 0.05%, and Dow futures were also in positive territory, up 0.32%.
On Wednesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 both declined for the fourth-consecutive trading session. The Dow plunged a little more than 186 points as retail sales hit an 11-month low and oil prices swung significantly.
Today, investors will react to a slew of earnings reports from three large financial institutions and Nasdaq component Intel Corp. (Nasdaq: INTC). On the data side, jobless claims will remain in focus, in addition to an important update to the Philadelphia Fed Survey. Consensus estimates call for 295,000 new jobless claims for the week ending January 10.
Here's what else you should know about the stock market today - including your "Money MorningTip of the Day" - to make it a profitable Thursday:
Retailer Rout: Shares of RadioShack Corp. (NYSE: RSH) dived 29.29% pre-market this morning on news the company is preparing a bankruptcy filing as soon as February. Reports it may file within the next two weeks. The company currently seeks a loan to help sustain its operations undergoing bankruptcy. Since January 2010, the RSH stock has fallen by nearly 98% as the specialty retailer faced new competition from online commerce and other brick-and-mortar chains.
Tech Triumph: Shares of Google Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOG, GOOGL) may be hovering near a 52-week low, but that's not stopping the company of remaining ruggedly ambitious about its future. Yesterday, a senior official predicted there will be few regulatory hurdles for the company in its pursuit of putting driverless cars on the road. The official said that the central component of the company's project Google X will arrive within five years. Here's a look at Google's top five innovations of 2014 - including its self-driving car...
Merger Mania: Shares of Blackberry Ltd. (Nasdaq: BBRY) surged nearly 30% yesterday on news the company is a potential takeover target. However, shares then cratered more than 14% post-market after the firm announced it has not had any discussions with Samsung Electronics Co. (OTCMKTS: SSNLF) about a deal. BBRY has been in a large-scale turnaround since its current Chief Executive Officer John Chen took over in 2010. But the company still lags against competitors like Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL), Samsung, and other Android smartphone producers.
Stocks to Watch: Shares of Adobe Systems Inc. (Nasdaq: ADBE) were up more than 2% in pre-market hours on news the company will repurchase up to $2 billion in stock by the end of fiscal 2017. Adobe stock has outperformed the S&P 500 over the last three months, appreciating by more than 15%. A 3% revenue boost in the fiscal fourth quarter fueled that growth. The firm said it has seen a strong increase in subscriptions to its Creative Cloud suite. Get all of Money Morning's stocks to watch - for free - here...
Slim's Shares Surge: Shares of TheNew York Times Co. (NYSE: NYT) slipped nearly 3.7% on Wednesday. According a report, Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim now owns 17% of the company, making him its largest shareholder after he exercised warrants for 15.9 million shares. NYT stock was unchanged in early market hours.
Oil Prices Today: Oil prices surged in Wednesday afternoon, despite growing concerns over geopolitics and global growth. This morning, February 2015 futures for U.S. crude, priced at the NYMEX in New York City, decreased by nearly 0.4% to hit $48.28 per barrel. Meanwhile, Brent crude, priced in London, dropped more than 0.4% to hit $48.49 per barrel.
Earnings Reports: Stay tuned for an earnings report from Schlumberger NV (NYSE: SLB), M&T Bank Corp. (NYSE: MTB), Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C), Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC), and Intel Corp. (Nasdaq: INTC).
Full U.S. Economic Calendar January 15, 2015 (NYSE: all times EST)
Jobless Claims at 8:30 a.m.
PPI-Final Demand at 8:30 a.m.
Empire State Manufacturing Survey at 8:30 a.m.
Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index at 9:45 a.m.
Philadelphia Fed Survey at 10 a.m.
EIA Natural Gas Report at 10:30 a.m.
3-Month Bill Announcement at 11 a.m.
6-Month Bill Announcement at 11 a.m.
10-Year TIPS Announcement at 11 a.m.
Fed Balance Sheet at 4:30 p.m.
Money Supply at 4:30 p.m.
Money Morning Tip of the Day: U.S. auto sales were up big in 2014. Watch for the trend to continue this year. Oil prices have collapsed and are expected to stay low, fueling demand for pickup trucks, SUVs and RVs. Indeed, signs of a boom for the American auto industry appear aligned.
If you're wondering why auto stocks are still trading at depressed values compared to the rest of the market, we've got your answer - plus how to best play auto stocks in 2015...
Garrett Baldwin is a globally recognized research economist, financial writer, consultant, and political risk analyst with decades of trading experience and degrees in economics, cybersecurity, and business from Johns Hopkins, Purdue, Indiana University, and Northwestern.