U.S. stock-index futures were little changed, with the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index heading for its biggest weekly gain in two months, amid investor confidence that U.S. economic growth will be sufficient to withstand a reduction in Federal Reserve stimulus. Red Hat Inc. surged 13 percent in pre-market New York trading as the software company raised its full-year profit and sales forecasts after posting third-quarter earnings that exceeded analysts’ estimates. Carnival Corp. (CCL) added 3.5 percent as Credit Suisse Group AG recommended that investors buy shares in the world’s largest cruise operator. Futures on the S&P 500 expiring in March rose less than 0.1 percent to 1,802.9 at 7:31 a.m. in New York. Dow Jones Industrial Average contracts added 9 points, or 0.1 percent, to 16,124 today. “We’ve had a fantastic year,� Andy Lynch, who helps oversee about $419 billion at Schroder Investment Management, told Manus Cranny on Bloomberg Television. “A lot of it has been driven by multiple expansion rather than underlying earnings growth. We might start seeing a market correction early next year as companies start coming out with their results for 2013 and giving guidance for 2014.� The S&P 500 is trading at 16.3 times its members’ projected earnings, up from 13.7 times at the end of last year. The benchmark has rallied 27 percent so far in 2013, on course for its best performance since 1997. This year’s gains have taken the U.S. equity benchmark to trade at 2.6 times the value of its assets, near its highest valuation in more than five years, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Profit Growth Companies listed on the S&P 500 will probably report 5.4 percent profit growth for the final quarter of this year, with sales increasing 1.5 percent, according to projections compiled by Bloomberg. Analysts predict profit will rise 6.8 percent in the first three months of 2014, with revenue growth of 3.5 percent, the data showed. The S&P 500 rose 1.9 percent so far this week and the Dow jumped 2.7 percent, its largest weekly advance since September, after the Federal Reserve’s decision to slow the pace of its stimulus boosted investor confidence that the recovery in the world’s largest economy is on course. Data today may show U.S. gross domestic production rose an annualized 3.6 percent during the third quarter, economists predicted before a final release at 8:30 a.m. New York time. The Fed will probably reduce its bond purchases by $10 billion in each of its next seven meetings before ending the program in December 2014, according to the median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of 41 economists conducted on Dec. 19. Red Hat Red Hat surged 13 percent to $55.40. Adjusted earnings for its 2014 financial year will be $1.46 to $1.48 per share, the company predicted, up from its previous forecast of $1.36 to $1.38. Revenue may be about $1.53 billion, exceeding the average analyst estimate for $1.51 billion. Carnival gained 3.5 percent to $39.39 in early New York trading. Credit Suisse raised its rating on the stock to outperform, similar to a buy recommendation, from neutral, after the company’s 2014 earnings forecast range exceeded some analysts’ estimates. The brokerage increased its earnings estimates by 30 cents to $1.67 per share in 2014, and by 35 cents to $2.50 for 2015. To contact the reporter on this story: Sofia Horta e Costa in Lisbon at shortaecosta@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Cecile Vannucci at cvannucci1@bloomberg.net

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