Dow Jones Industrial Average Futures Edge North

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) is signaling a higher start, with futures trading north of fair value -- even with Dow stock Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS) eyeing a post-earnings drop. Futures on the S&P 500 Index (SPX) and Nasdaq Composite (COMP) are also up, suggesting fresh record highs could be on the horizon. In addition to another batch of retail earnings, stocks will likely react to this morning's updates on June job openings and weekly crude oil inventories, both slated for release after the open. Ahead of the latter event, September-dated oil prices are down 0.6% at $42.50 per barrel, after Saudi Arabia reportedly told the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) its crude output hit a record level in July.

Continue reading for more on today's market, including:

• Schaeffer's Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White investigates what a historically low CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) could mean for stocks.
• Options traders weren't buying this tech stock's big surge.
• Is a major telecom merger on the horizon? Macquarie seems to think so.
• Plus... Oil prices pressure global stocks, more on Disney's earnings, and the energy stock poised to sell off.

Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) are 9 points above fair value.

5 Things You Need to Know Today
 

1. A dip in oil prices has European stocks in the red today, overshadowing strong earnings. 
2. The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 698,791 call contracts traded on Tuesday, compared to 425,168 put contracts. The resultant single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.61, while the 21-day moving average remained at 0.62.
3. Michael Kors Holdings Ltd (NYSE:KORS) is set to slump 3.2% out of the gate, after reporting a steeper-than-expected drop in comparable-store sales. The luxury retailer's expected slide should be celebrated by recent KORS options buyers, at least.
4. Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS) is down 1.4% ahead of the bell -- set to extend its string of negative earnings reactions -- even after reporting stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings. The entertainment giant also announced it would be introducing a direct-to-consumer ESPN streaming service, after taking a stake in BAMTech.
5. SunPower Corporation (NASDAQ:SPWR) is down nearly 30% in pre-market trading -- and getting hammered by analysts again -- after the solar power firm said it now expects to report a full-year loss. The company also slashed its current-quarter sales guidance and announced plans to cut roughly 1,200 jobs."

Earnings and Economic Data

Today's economic calendar features the Labor Department’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS), as well as the weekly crude inventories update and the Treasury Budget. JD.Com (JD), Michael Kors Holdings Ltd (KORS), Perrigo Company (PRGO), Ralph Lauren (RL), Shake Shack (SHAK), Silver Wheaton (SLW), Spark Therapeutics (ONCE), and Wendy's (WEN) will tell all in the earnings confessional. To see what else is coming up on this week's schedule, click here. 

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