MR: U.S. Stock Futures Little Changed As Investors Await Earnings, Retail Sales
By Victor Reklaitis, MarketWatch
SanDisk, B. of A., Delta poised to rise in Wednesday's session
U.S. stock futures were little change early Wednesday, as investors avoided big bets ahead of a flurry of earnings reports and economic data.
Investors are waiting for quarterly results from companies such as Wells Fargo & Co. and Netflix Inc., as well as a reading on retail sales, though they also are bidding up shares of Bank of America Corp. after its earnings topped forecasts.
S&P 500 futures recently inched higher by 1.10 point, or less than 0.1%, to 1,995, while Dow Jones Industrial Average futures tacked on by 3 points, or less than 0.1%, to 16,976. Nasdaq -00 futures edged lower by 3 points, or 0.1%, to 4,338.25.
"With the focus in the U.S. swinging back to quarterly earnings season, investors are becoming more cautious," said Ian Williams, an economist and strategist at Peel Hunt, in a note early Wednesday. The wariness comes despite low expectations for third-quarter results for S&P 500 components, with performance "depressed by the energy sector (XLE)," Williams added.
On Tuesday, U.S. stocks closed with modest losses, as the Dow industrials snapped a seven-session winning streak (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-stock-futures-slip-dow-on-track-to-halt-7-day-runup-2015-10-13), while the S&P and Nasdaq both halted a four-day advance. The Dow is down 4.2% for the year as of Tuesday's close, while the S&P is off 2.7% and the Nasdaq is up 1.3%.
Check out: This chart level keeps tripping up the tech-heavy Nasdaq (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/this-stock-chart-level-keeps-tripping-up-the-tech-heavy-nasdaq-2015-10-14)
Movers & shakers:SanDisk Corp.(SNDK) is poised for a big up day after news late Tuesday saying the maker of flash-memory chips is thinking about selling itself (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/micron-western-digital-interested-in-sandisk-report-2015-10-13) and talking with Micron Technology Inc.(MU) and Western Digital Corp.(WDC)
Shares in Bank of America Corp.(BAC) gained 2% in premarket action after the company's quarterly earnings topped expectations (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/bank-of-america-swings-to-profit-tops-estimates-2015-10-14). Delta Air Lines Inc.(DAL) also rose in the wake of better-than-expected earnings (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/delta-shares-rise-after-company-beats-second-quarter-earnings-expectations-2015-10-14).
Wells Fargo & Co.(WFC) is still due to release earnings before the open, while Netflix Inc.(NFLX) is among the companies slated to report after the market's close.
Shares in Intel Corp.(INTC) slipped in premarket trading after the chip giant's quarterly profit beat forecasts late Tuesday (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/intel-profits-slide-amid-pc-slump-2015-10-13-164852525), but the company signaled slower growth in its data-center business (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/a-darker-cloud-intel-data-center-growth-slows-2015-10-13).
J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) shares also are down premarket after the bank's quarterly revenue missed expectations (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/jp-morgans-revenue-falls-and-misses-estimates-2015-10-13) late Tuesday.
Key economic reports: Investors will take in a raft of U.S. economic data on Wednesday, starting with reports on retail sales and producer prices for September, both due at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time.
A figure for business inventories in August is expected at 10 a.m. Eastern, followed by the Federal Reserve's Beige Book at 2 p.m. Eastern.
There are no Federal Reserve speakers scheduled for today.
