Dow Jones Industrial Average Futures Slip Ahead of Earnings Onslaught

Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) futures are signaling a lower open for U.S. stocks, with third-quarter earnings season set to heat up. Ahead of the open, Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC) is on the rise thanks to strong earnings, following the lead of its fellow bank stocks from last week. Traders are also gearing up for post-close earnings reports from Dow component IBM Corp. (NYSE:IBM) and streaming giant Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX). Meanwhile, Wall Street continues to digest Friday's comments from Fed Chair Janet Yellen, with Fed Vice Chair Stanley Fischer set to speak at midday. 

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

• This chipmaker has tripled in the past year, and a fresh deal with Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA) is icing on the cake.
• The sector-wide analyst burn that sank Macy's Inc (NYSE:M) and J C Penney Company Inc (NYSE:JCP).   
• How this huge bullish option trade on Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR) went south in a hurry. 
• Plus... Global markets mixed ahead of ECB, Disney merch boosts Hasbro, and a $1.4 billion retail M&A deal. 

Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) are 5.4 points below fair value. 

5 Things You Need to Know Today
  

1. Global stocks are mixed ahead of a European Central Bank (ECB) meeting later in the week. 
2. The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 715,484 call contracts traded on Friday, compared to 488,875 put contracts. The resultant single-session equity put/call ratio slipped to 0.68, while the 21-day moving average held steady at 0.65.
3. BAC is up 1.3% in electronic trading following the bank giant's better-than-expected third-quarter earnings results. The move higher would mark the stock's third straight post-earnings gain, and comes after the shares settled right at the crucial $16 level on Friday. 
4. Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAS) is also set to rise after topping Wall Street's estimates with its third-quarter numbers, gaining 5.3% in pre-market trading. The solid quarterly results were due in part to strong demand for Disney-themed products. The toymaker was in the news on Friday, too, thanks to Amazon.com, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:AMZN) holiday toy list. 
5. Grocery stock SUPERVALU INC. (NYSE:SVU) is joining these pre-market gainers, up 7.8%, thanks to news the company is selling its Save-A-Lot business to Onex Corp for nearly $1.4 billion in cash. This should be a breath of fresh air for SVU shareholders, as the stock has struggled throughout the year. 

Earnings and Economic Data

The week kicks off with the Empire State manufacturing survey and industrial production numbers. IBM, NFLX, IDEX Corporation (IEX), and United Continental (UAL) report earnings. To see what else is on this week's schedule, click here. 

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