Good morning! For July 1, 2015, here are your Dow futures, earnings reports, top stock market news, and stocks to watch...
Dow Futures Today
Dow futures today (Wednesday) forecasted a 144-point gain from yesterday's close on news Greece has accepted conditional terms for a new bailout round overnight. However, Germany's financial ministers remain skeptical and said the nation should proceed with its referendum vote.
Yesterday, the DJIA gained 23 points, paring gains after the Greek debt talks broke down in the final hours before the European nation fell into default. Germany slammed the door on Greece's last-minute request for another bailout. Greece failed to make its €1.5 billion ($1.7 billion) payment to the International Monetary Fund. This is the first time that an advanced economy has failed to make a payment to the 71-year-old global financial agency.
Top News in the Stock Market Today
- Stock Market Today: This morning, optimism in Greece will likely overshadow domestic data. Still, a busy economic calendar includes the release of domestic and foreign motor unit sales, the monthly ADP National Employment Report for the month of June, and the weekly U.S. Energy Information Administration Petroleum Status Report.
- Auto Outlook: Auto manufacturers will announce monthly motor vehicle sales this morning. Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) will announce its sales at 9:15 a.m., while General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) will announce at 9:30 a.m. The companies will attempt to keep up with their extremely strong pace in May. During the last report, sales hit the fastest annualized pace since 2001. Edmunds.com expects sales to hit 1.48 million vehicles in June, which would set the seasonally adjusted annual rate at 17.3 million.
- Oil Outlook: Oil prices fell on news that global energy production rose. WTI crude futures for August fell 1.5% this morning to $58.58 per barrel. Meanwhile, Brent oil prices fell 1.1% to trade at $62.87 per barrel.
- Earnings Reports: Companies reporting earnings this morning include Acuity Brands Inc. (NYSE: AYI), Constellation Brands Inc. (NYSE: STZ), General Mills Inc. (NYSE: GIS), and McCormick & Co. Inc. (NYSE: MKC).
Pre-Market Movers in the Stock Market Today: NKE, T, CB
- Pre-Market Movers No. 1, NKE: Shares of Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) were up 0.3% this morning after chairman and co-founder Phil Knight announced plans to step down in 2016. Knight has endorsed Nike CEO Mark Parker as his replacement as chairman of the board. The company also announced it has transferred Knight's ownership shares into an LLC called Swoosh.
- Pre-Market Movers No. 2, T: Shares of AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) were on the rise this morning on news that government regulators could approve the firm's deal to purchase DirecTV (Nasdaq: DTV) as soon as next week. The deal will combine the nation's second-largest wireless carrier with its largest satellite television provider.
- Pre-Market Movers No. 3, CB: Shares of insurer Chubb Corp. (NYSE: CB) jumped more than 34% on news that it will be purchased by ACE Ltd. (NYSE: ACE) for $28.3 billion in cash and stock. Shares of ACE jumped more than 11%.
Stocks to Watch Today: AAPL, FIT, DIS
- Stocks to Watch No. 1, AAPL: An antitrust court decision against Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) ruled the tech giant colluded with publishers to raise the prices of electronic books. The company may have to pay up to $450 million to its customers should the decision stand against appeals.
- Stocks to Watch No. 2, FIT: Shares of Fitbit Inc. (NYSE: FIT) gained more than 14.4% on news its new products have outsold the Apple Watch. FIT stock is now up nearly double from its $20 IPO price. Bloomberg's Slice Intelligence reports Fitbit's wearable technology line - which is more focused on fitness - has been resilient to Apple's entry into the market. The Apple Watch has more general purposes to its functionality. In addition, Fitbit gadgets range between $60 and $250, a discount to the Apple Watch's starting price of $350. Shares of Apple stock were up 0.7% on the day.
- Stocks to Watch No. 3, DIS: Shares of Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) gained almost 1% on news the firm will be merging its Disney Interactive division, a producer of online content and video games, with its Disney Consumer Products division. The latter is in charge of toys and other products that fall under the entertainment giant's intellectual property. (Profit Opportunity - Don't miss our recent Disney stock analysis: It's Time to Change the Way You Look at Disney [NYSE: DIS] Forever.)
Today's U.S. Economic Calendar (all times EDT)
- MBA Mortgage Applications at 7 a.m.
- Challenger Job-Cut Report at 7:30 a.m.
- ADP Employment Report at 8:15 a.m.
- Gallup U.S. Job Creation Index at 8:30 a.m.
- Gallup U.S. Payroll to Population at 8:30 a.m.
- PMI Manufacturing Index at 9:45 a.m.
- ISM Manufacturing Index at 10 a.m.
- Construction Spending at 10 a.m.
- EIA Petroleum Status Report at 10:30 a.m.
What Investors Must Know This Week
- Four Trillion-Dollar Tech Trends to Get In On Today
- The New No. 1 Threat to Your Savings and How to Avoid It
- The Truth You're Not Hearing About the Oil Market
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About the Author
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.