Dow Jones Industrial Average Futures Point to Another Record High

Fresh off yesterday's record high above 20,000, Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) futures have advanced modestly in pre-market trading amid a raft of earnings reports -- putting the index on track for another new all-time peak at the open. However, Dow stock Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) is down 1.4% ahead of the bell, as a weak full-year profit forecast overshadows a fourth-quarter earnings beat. Meanwhile, weekly jobless claims jumped more than expected to 259,000, though the four-week average fell to its lowest level since November 1973.

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

• 5 energy stocks set to surge.
• Traders are banking on a massive post-earnings move for Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX).
• The steel stock that's sunk 11% since earnings.
• Plus, Ford's earnings grab headlines, J&J makes a $30B buy, and Southwest is set to fly. 

Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) are 18.5 points above fair value.

5 Things You Need to Know Today
  

1. The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 948,681 call contracts traded on Wednesday, compared to 575,321 put contracts. The resultant single-session equity put/call ratio slid to 0.61, while the 21-day moving average edged down to 0.65.
2. Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) reported earnings in line with estimates, while revenue came in above the consensus view. Meanwhile, in an interview earlier, Ford CEO Mark Fields -- who's already met twice with President Donald Trump -- said, "The president is going to be very good for business and the economy."
3. Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) has reached an agreement to buy Actelion for $30 billion. Jupiter Fund applauded the move, remarking that it's a "very good outcome" with "clear synergies for J&J."
4. Southwest Airlines Co (NYSE:LUV) is set to soar 4.5% at the open -- to the delight of activist investor Warren Buffett -- after the company's earnings report blew past expectations. That said, CEO Gary Kelly acknowledged that capacity growth will likely slow in 2017.
5. Today, new home sales data will be released. On the earnings front, Intel (INTC), Microsoft (MSFT), Alphabet (GOOGL), SBUX, Baker Hughes (BHI), Biogen (BIIB), Blackstone (BX), Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY), Celgene (CELG), Comcast (CMCSA), E*TRADE (ETFC), Dow Chemical (DOW), Fiat Chrysler (FCAU), Helmerich & Payne (HP), hhgregg (HGG), JetBlue Airways (JBLU), Juniper Networks (JNPR), Northrop Grumman (NOC), PayPal (PYPL), PulteGroup (PHM), Quest Diagnostics (DGX), Raytheon (RTN), Sherwin-Williams (SHW), Stanley Black & Decker (SWK), Swift Transportation (SWFT), and VMware (VMW) will report.

Overseas Trading

Yesterday's bullish price action in U.S. equities spread to Asia, where major stock indexes posted strong gains. Leading the way was Japan's Nikkei, rising 1.8%. Stocks in China also moved higher ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday, with the Shanghai Composite gaining 0.3%. Likewise, Hong Kong's Hang Seng jumped 1.4% -- its fourth straight win -- touching a three-month high in the process. In South Korea, the Kospi ended up 0.8%.

Stock returns are more mixed in Europe at midday. Among individual equities, Actelion is up more than 20% on Johnson & Johnson's buyout bid, while a cautious outlook from Unilever has the shares trading lower. London's FTSE 100 has so far managed a 0.2% gain, as traders digest better-than-expected preliminary fourth-quarter gross domestic product data (GDP) out of Britain. Germany's DAX is also in positive territory, up 0.4%, though France's CAC 40 is slightly lower. 

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