Good morning! For May 14, 2015, here are your stock futures, top market news, earnings reports, and pre-market movers to watch in the stock market today...
Stock Futures Today
U.S. stock futures forecasted a 30-point increase from Thursday's close as continued weakness in the dollar squeezes out even more from the markets' bull run.
The S&P 500 soared to a new high on Thursday and the DJIA Index rose 191 points on news that weekly jobless claims remained near a 15-year-low. A falling U.S. dollar fueled optimism about the possibility of stronger international sales for domestic-based companies.
Top News in the Stock Market Today
Stock Market Today: Investors will look to reports on industrial production and consumer sentiment. Companies reporting earnings include hhgregg Inc. (NYSE: HGG), General Steel Holdings Inc. (NYSE: GSI), Petroleo Brasileiro Petrobras SA (NYSE ADR: PBR), and Acorn Energy Inc. (Nasdaq: ACFN).
Looking Abroad: American companies are attempting to shield themselves from a collapsing currency in Venezuela. Firms with a presence in the nation are beginning to remove their operations from financial statements thanks to exposure to the collapsing bolivar.
Oil Prices Today:Oil prices are heading for a weekly gain today despite traders' continued concerns over the ample state of crude supplies. WTI crude futures for June down 0.4% this morning at $59.62 per barrel. Meanwhile, Brent oil was flat at $66.69 per barrel.
Pre-Market Movers in the Stock Market Today: LOCO, EBAY, AMZN, PYPL, GMCR
Pre-Market Movers 1, LOCO: Shares of El Pollo LoCo Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq: LOCO) cratered by more than 12% this morning after the company issued a 2015 profit forecast well below analyst estimates. The company did beat Wall Street quarterly earnings and quarterly sales expectations by 1.9%. However, concerns about its outlook overshadowed the good.
Pre-Market Movers 2, EBAY: Shares of eBay Inc. (Nasdaq: EBAY) were up more than 1.2% this morning as optimism grows about the pending spin-off of PayPal, the transaction processing business it purchased in 2002. Yesterday, PayPal said it will list shares on the Nasdaq, under the ticker PYPL. This is the same ticker the company used when it originally joined the Nasdaq in February 2001. The independence will allow the firm to partner with other online merchants like Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN).
Pre-Market Movers 3, GMCR: Shares of Keurig Green Mountain Inc. (Nasdaq: GMCR) slipped nearly 6% in pre-market hours after a report indicated the company would release its new cold brewing system later than analysts expected. Bloomberg reports that the new system will not hit retail outlets until sometime in 2016.
Stocks to Watch Today: AVP, BABA, NFLX,
Stocks to Watch No. 1, DE: Shares of Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE) were down 1.7% this morning after the company received a downgrade from investment bank JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM). The bank slashed its price target from $90 to $84 per share, citing concerns in the farming equipment market that include a pending liquidity crunch for purchasers in the coming year.
Stocks to Watch No. 2, AVP: The mystery continues. Yesterday, shares of Avon Products (NYSE: AVP) surged as many as 20 points after a supposedly non-existent company listed on a remote Indian Ocean island offered to pay three times the market value for the cosmetics giant. The stock was down roughly 1% in pre-market hours, and the SEC will likely investigate possible stock price manipulation.
Stocks to Watch No. 3, BABA: Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (NYSE: BABA) continued to rise pre-market this morning on Thursday's news that the company is working with Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) to accept mobile payment system Alipay at 400 stores in southern China. The company is also exploring expansion plans with online-streaming giant Netflix Inc. (Nasdaq: NFLX), in a video market worth roughly $5.9 billion each year. Don't miss our expert analysis on why Alibaba stock is rising -and what you should do now.
Today's U.S. Economic Calendar (all times EST)
Empire State Manufacturing Survey at 8:30 a.m.[epom key="ddec3ef33420ef7c9964a4695c349764" redirect="" sourceid="" imported="false"]
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.
