The Dow is slightly above breakeven this morning
Stock futures are muted this morning, after last week surging in response to Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's speech at the annual Jackson Hole symposium, which eased fears surrounding interest rate hikes. Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) futures are inching higher this morning, while S&P 500 Index (SPX) and Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) futures are pointed slightly above breakeven, too, after the two benchmarks nabbed fresh record in the previous session. Traders are now looking ahead to the release of the August jobs report, which is due out Friday.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- Options traders blasted this retail stock ahead of today's report.
- Snowflake stock attracted several bull notes after its quarterly win.
- Plus, MRNA suspends vaccine doses; LEVI notches fresh coverage; and buyout buzz boosts drug maker.
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw more than 1.9 million call contracts traded on Friday, compared to 951,728 put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio fell to 0.49 and the 21-day moving average stayed at 0.53.
- Moderna Inc (NASDAQ:MRNA) is down 2.7% in electronic trading, after the pharma name said 1 million of its Covid-19 vaccine shots were withdrawn in Japan due to contamination fears. Last week, 1.63 million doses were suspended after two deaths were linked to foreign substances found in its vaccine. The security has been struggling with overhead pressure at the $410 level recently, though it still boasts an impressive 461.8% year-over-year lead.
- The shares of Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE: LEVI) are up 1.2% ahead of the bell, after Wells Fargo initiated coverage of the security with an "overweight"
rating. The analyst in question noted a new denim cycle, as well as the apparel retailer's global reputation as a quality brand. Shares have been middling since July, but LEVI is up 11.7% year-over-year.
- Drug maker Catalent Inc (NYSE:CTLT) is up 2.8% before the open, after reporting blowout fiscal fourth-quarter earnings and revenue. The company also announced it will buy supplement maker Bettera for $1 billion. The equity notched an all-time high of $131.63 in Friday's session, and has added 48% over the last 12 months.
- The week is off to a quiet start, with only pending home sales data on tap.
Asian, European Markets Enjoying Global Optimism Wave
Stocks in Asia began the week on a positive note, rising after Fed Chair Jerome Powell indicated the central bank is likely begin tapering before the year’s end, but reiterated that there’s no immediate threat of interest rate hikes. In other news, Beijing is mulling over new restrictions for domestic internet firms looking to go public in the U.S. The Nikkei in Japan and Hang Seng in Hong Kong each added 0.5%, while South Korea’s Kospi and China’s Shanghai Composite tacked on 0.3% and 0.2%, respectively.
European stocks are on board with the upbeat sentiment seen around the globe, while U.K. markets are closed for a public holiday. And while there’s no earnings of note, investors are keeping an eye on preliminary inflation readings out of Germany, as well as euro zone economic sentiment and business climate data. At last check, London’s FTSE was 0.3% higher, while France’s CAC 40 and the German DAX were each up 0.2%.