Seems one day of selling does not create a bear market. Domestic markets are shrugging off yesterday’s sell-off thanks to Oracle’s earnings beat. Dow futures are up 32 points to 13,140. Nasdaq 100 futures are tacking on 3.75 points to 2,739. The S&P 500 futures are rounding out the gains, up 3 points to 1,403.
On the economic data front, a single report on housing is expected to be released at 8:30 am EST. February existing home sales are expected to be at an annual rate of 4.6 million, up from 4.57 million in January. This is on the heels of a report that showed a jump in building permits.
Today, Fed Chairman Bernanke will give the second of his 4 scheduled lectures at George Washington University. The topic will be on the history of the central bank.
Overnight, Asian indexes continued their slide as fears over a Chinese slowdown intensified. Japan’s major index closed in the red for the first time in six sessions.
While Europe is currently in positive territory, all eyes will be on a major budget address in Britain today. The Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osbourne, is expected to push for a reduction in the top tax rate from 50% to 45%.
Commodities are also joining in on the rally. After yesterday’s rout, Gold prices are up $2 to $1649 per ounce. Oil is also following the pre-market bullish move, with Nymex crude futures up 48 cents to $106.55.
Stocks to watch today include USG Corporation (NYSE:USG), Linkedin Corporation (NYSE:LNKD), Amarin Corporation (NASDAQ:AMRN), Oracle Corporation (NASDAQ:ORCL), FSI International, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSII), Frontline Ltd. (NYSE:FRO) and Ariad Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARIA).
USG Corporation (NYSE:USG) is up 11.92% in pre market trading at $19.15. USG Corp announced preliminary, unaudited results for January and February. These results show the company produced net sales of $516.9 million with an operating profit of $5.7 million and a net loss of just over $30 million. USG pointed to an increase in its average U.S. wallboard price and gross margin as reasons for the improvement. USG trades 3.2 million shares a day on average. The company has a market cap of 1.80 billion.
Linkedin Corporation (NYSE:LNKD) is up 5.86% in pre market trading at $97.22. LNKD has traded over 30 thousand shares this morning and trades 2.4 million shares a day on average. Goldman Sachs upgraded the stock to buy from neutral this morning and gave it a price target of $135. The company has a market cap of 9.41 billion.
Amarin Corporation (NASDAQ:AMRN) is up 2.18% in pre market trading at $12.20. Amarin stock trades close to 4 million shares a day on average, but traded over 20 million yesterday. AMRN continues to trend higher thanks to yesterday’s news that it was awarded U.S. patent for key heart drug. The company has a market cap of 1.62 billion.
Oracle Corporation (NASDAQ:ORCL) is up 2% in pre market trading at $30.69. ORCL has traded 561 thousand shares this morning and trades 34.3 million shares a day on average. ORCL shares are higher after the company reported fiscal third quarter results. Third quarter profit came in at $0.62 per share on $9.04 billion in revenue. Analysts were expecting profit of 0.56 per share on $8.76 billion in revenue. The company has a market cap of 151.28 billion.
FSI International, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSII) is up 15.22% in pre market trading at $5.30. FSII has traded 33 thousand shares this morning and trades 405 thousand shares a day on average. FSI International posted better than expected quarterly results late yesterday causing shares to spike. Second quarter net income fell $3.7 million or $0.9 per share. Revenue came in at $38.5 million. Analysts were expecting the company to earn $0.05 per share on revenue of $32.1 million. The company has a market cap of 178.99 million.
Frontline Ltd. (NYSE:FRO) is down 2.65% in pre market trading at $7.36. FRO shares could continue to dip today as it may pull back after recently running up more than $3 a share. FRO has traded 22 thousand shares this morning and trades 2.3 million shares a day on average. The company has a market cap of 588.61 million.
Ariad Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARIA) is down 2% in pre market trading at $14.75. ARIA shares are down this morning after an FDA panel voted against ridafrorlimus, an experimental drug for a rare form of cancer that Merck & Co. Inc. acquired from Ariad. ARIA has traded 120 thousand shares already this morning and trades over 3 million shares a day on average. The company has a market cap of 2.39 billion.
About Danny Fisher
