Dow Futures Flip Higher Ahead of Fed Testimony

Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) futures were lower earlier, but have since flipped higher as traders digest prepared remarks from Fed Chair Jerome Powell ahead of the central banker's testimony before the House Financial Services Committee. The Fed head will point to "notably" slower business investments and re-emerging "crosscurrents," and will reiterate that the central bank is ready to "act as appropriate" to sustain economic growth, boosting expectations for a July rate cut. Against this backdrop, the Dow is set to avoid its fourth day in the red.

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

• The underappreciated stock indicator that could predict big gains, according to Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White.
• The Dow stock one analyst is calling an "unquantifiable risk."
• How one restaurant's social media scheme could have others following suit.
• Plus, Levi Strauss steps up to the earnings confessional; Deere stock gets a downgrade; and Goldman says one media stock is a "buy."

5 Things You Need to Know Today

1. The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 941,111 call contracts traded on Tuesday, compared to 548,213 put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio landed at 0.58, while the 21-day moving average is 0.61.
2. The shares of jean company Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) are falling in pre-market trading, down 7% at $22, after the company reported second-quarter earnings that fell below analysts' estimates, and predicted slower sales growth for the second half of the year. 
3. Tractor concern Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) is lower in electronic trading, on a downgrade from UBS to "neutral" from "buy." The analyst predicted "machinery demand to be retrained until the 2019 growing season," knocking the shares of DE down 1.4% to trade at $161.
4. Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA), on the other hand, got upgraded to "buy" from "hold" at Goldman Sachs. The analyst also lifted its target price to $54 from $44, saying the CNBC owner is "positioned to sustain double-digit [earnings] growth" over the next five years. The stock is up 2.9% at $44.24, in response. 
5. Besides today's Fed testimony, the weekly crude inventories report will be released. AngioDynamics (ANGO) and Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY) will step into the earnings confessional.

European, Asian Markets Mixed as Traders Digest Economic Data

It was a mixed session in Asia. In China, the Shanghai Composite closed down 0.4% as traders digested economic data. While the consumer price index (CPI) for June matched expectations, the producer price index (PPI) was flat, raising deflation concerns. The Hang Seng and Kospi both managed 0.3% wins, but Japan’s Nikkei dipped 0.2%.

Stocks are also on both sides of breakeven in Europe. Traders are considering a gross domestic product (GDP) update out of the U.K., showing 0.3% growth for May, better than expected. Still, the FTSE 100 is eyeing a fourth straight loss, down 0.05%. Germany’s DAX is also lower, losing 0.4% so far, though France’s CAC 40 is up 0.06%.