U.S. equity-index futures were little changed, following a Nasdaq Stock Market outage yesterday that affected thousands of stocks, as investors awaited a report on sales of new houses. Autodesk Inc. jumped 6.3 percent after reporting second-quarter results that surpassed analysts’ estimates. Ann Inc. added 3 percent after profit topped forecasts. Pandora Media Inc. slumped 7 percent as its sales forecast fell short of estimates. Nasdaq OMX Group Inc. fell 0.5 percent after the shares slid the most in more than four months following yesterday’s trading disruption. Standard & Poor’s 500 Index (SPX) futures expiring next month added 0.1 percent to 1,655.60 at 8:46 a.m. in New York. Contracts on the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 3 points, or less than 0.1 percent, to 14,936 today. “The Nasdaq technical hangover may prompt caution among investors taking positions until there is further clarity that the error has been fully resolved,� James Butterfill, who helps oversee $44 billion as head of global equity strategy at Coutts & Co. in London, wrote in an e-mail. Nasdaq OMX Group halted trading of its listed stocks for three hours yesterday because a computer problem left some investors without quotes and the company did not want to have “information asymmetry,� Chief Executive Officer Robert Greifeld said in interviews today. Fed Debate The S&P 500 has gained 0.1 percent this week as investors weighed Federal Reserve minutes that showed almost all policy makers agreed with plans to reduce the pace of monthly bond purchases if the economy continues to improve in line with forecasts. Fed officials, who are meeting in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, today to discuss monetary policy, have been scrutinizing data to determine whether the economy is strong enough to reduce stimulus. Fed Bank of Atlanta President Dennis Lockhart told Bloomberg Television that he wouldn’t rule out a September move to start tapering as long as the economy’s performance justifies it. Data today from the Commerce Department at 10 a.m. in Washington may show new-house sales declined in July. Purchases dropped 2 percent to an annualized pace of 487,000 houses, from a 497,000 rate in June, economists surveyed by Bloomberg predicted. A report yesterday showed the fewest workers in more than five years applied for U.S. unemployment benefits over the past month. Fluctuation Speculation about the stimulus has whipsawed stocks since May, when the Fed first indicated cuts could start this year. The S&P 500 tumbled 5.8 percent from a record high on May 21 through June 24. It then rebounded as much as 8.7 percent to close at its latest record of 1,709.67 on Aug. 2. The index finished yesterday 3.1 percent below the all-time high. The stimulus helped push the S&P 500 up as much as 153 percent from its March 2009 low, as better-than-estimated corporate earnings also fueled equity gains. Of the 484 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported quarterly earnings this period, 71 percent surpassed profit estimates, Bloomberg data show. Autodesk (ADSK) jumped 5.2 percent to $38.02. The software maker was upgraded to buy from neutral by B Riley & Co. after its sales and profit topped estimates in the second quarter. Ann rose 3.6 percent to $33.80. The owner of the Ann Taylor and LOFT clothing brands said second-quarter profit topped estimates. The company also plans to repurchase as much as $250 million in shares. Pandora Media slumped 7 percent to $20.18. The biggest online radio service forecast third-quarter profit that will miss analysts’ estimates as the company invests to expand its sales staff. Nasdaq slid 0.5 percent to $30.32. The exchange operator will probably not have to spend large sums on damages, Wells Fargo & Co. analysts led by Christopher Harris wrote in a note. Nasdaq suspended trading in the stocks, so investors probably didn’t lose money as a result of mismanaged orders. Greifeld told CNBC that Nasdaq has “no liability� from the outage. To contact the reporter on this story: Jonathan Morgan in Frankfurt at jmorgan157@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Andrew Rummer at arummer@bloomberg.net

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