Futures Edged Higher Ahead of Jobs Data. Stocks to Watch: AXP, AAPL, BKC, CME, FORM, FCX, and M

Published on Thursday, 02 September 2010 08:24 Written by Christopher Lynn

New York, September 2^nd (TradersHuddle.com) – Stock futures edged higher after yesterday’s big rally ahead of the weekly jobless claims report.

The Labor Department's weekly report on initial jobless claims will be released at 8:30 am, with economists expecting claims for first-time unemployment benefit to drop to 470,000 from last week's 473,000.

Also at 8:30 am, the government's revision to second-quarter productivity figures will be out, with consensus forecasts calling for productivity to have dropped to 1.9%.

Major retailers will be reporting through out the morning their same-store sales, with investors focusing on the number, as it provides a snapshot of the strength of the back to school business.

At 10 am, the National Association of Realtors will be out with its pending home sales report for July, with analysts expecting a 1% decline in July.

Today’s stocks to watch: American Express (NYSE:AXP), Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), Burger King (NYSE:BKC), CME Group (NYSE:CME), FormFactor (NASDAQ:FORM), Freeport McMoRan (NYSE:FCX), and Macy’s (NYSE:M).

American Express (NYSE:AXP), the credit card issuer, will be in focus as major retailers report their August same store sales and the Labor Department releases its weekly jobless claims report. American Express will likely see increased volatility, as retail data will offer a glimpse of the strength of transaction fees at the credit card issuer.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) was fractionally higher in pre-market trading after gaining close to 3% yesterday. Several analysts weighed in the event where Apple unveiled its new iPod lineup, a new version on iTunes and a redesign Apple TV. Kaufman notes that while these announcements were somewhat expected, they still found the overall news impressive and believe Apple has a strong iPod lineup for the upcoming holiday season. They liked iTunes social networking capability (Ping), which they believe has potential to become a big social networking play. The new ipod touch will likely be a top seller; the new touch nano will provide nano lovers a compelling reason to upgrade, making it potential sleeper hit. Kaufman set a target price of $350 on the stock. Also Oppenheimer said the iPod Touch has graduated from gaming/media player to full-fledged social media device that simultaneously helps advance the stickiness of the iOS ecosystem and services like FaceTime. And the new Apple TV, redesign to stream instead of download, is poised to provide iOS a growing foothold in the family room, a development that could open the door to further long-term opportunities while also boxing out would-be rivals such as Google.

Burger King (NYSE:BKC), the fast food hamburger chain, jumped more than 21% after gaining close to 15% yesterday. Today CNBC is reporting 3G will acquire the company for $24 per share. Wendy’s (NYSE:WEN) jumped close to 6% in pre-market trading as investors speculated that the fast food chain will be another likely candidate for a buyout.

CME Group (NYSE:CME), the largest futures exchange operator, reported trading volume averaged 11.7 million contracts per day in August 2010, up 15% versus Aug 2009 and up 8% sequentially from July.

FormFactor (NASDAQ:FORM), the maker of advanced semiconductor wafer probe cards, will likely see some upside bias, after it was upgraded to a Neutral from Sell at Goldman Sachs.

Freeport McMoRan (NYSE:FCX), the world’s largest publicly traded copper producer, gained in pre-market trading as copper prices climbed to a four-month high in London after the International Monetary Fund boosted its growth forecast for South Korea and factory orders in the U.S., the metal’s second-largest market, probably increased in July. South Korea is the fourth largest user of the base metal.

Macy’s (NYSE:M), the department store operator and owner of the iconic New York Store in 34th Street, reported better than expected same store sales. The department store retailer said same store sales jumped 4.3% thanks to its back to school business, which was strong led by great performances by Material Girl, the exclusive juniors brand by Madonna, as well as American Rag, their largest private brand in juniors and young men.