Stock Futures Mixed amid Hopes for Policy Action. Stocks to Watch: ARO, AAPL, DRYS, FB, FL, GPS, SJM, MRVL

Published on Friday, 17 August 2012 07:19 Written by Christopher Lynn

New York, August 17^th (TradersHuddle.com) – Stock futures were pointing to mix open for the major benchmark indices, following the solid gains from the prior session. Participants were taking a breather amid positive price action in overseas action, with chatter of additional Chinese stimulus and supportive comments from Germany’s Angela Merkel spurring risk appetite.

In Asia, stocks ended higher after German Chancellor Angela Merkel voiced support for the ECB’s pledge to save the euro. The comments from the German leader eased worries over the debt crisis and prompted participants to move into riskier trades. The Nikkei gained 0.77%, hitting a 3-month closing high, while the Shanghai Composite climbed 0.13% to post its worst weekly performance in 2 months, as chatter over further stimulus measures in China added support.

In Europe, markets were moving to the upside, hitting a 5-month high amid increased hopes that political leaders will be able to resolve their differences and work together with the ECB to tackle the debt crisis in the region. Comments from Angela Merkel late Thursday helped spur appetite for risk in global markets. The German Chancellor pressed other euro zone nations to move quickly towards a closer integration of fiscal policies.

The euro was gaining against the Dollar, trading above the $1.23 level. Crude oil was dropping 0.52% to $95.10 per barrel. Also in the energy complex, natural gas was falling 0.04% to $2.723 per MMBtu. Gold was sliding 0.04% to $1616.40 an ounce, and silver was slumping 0.08% to $28.19 an ounce, meanwhile copper was advancing 0.43%.

On economic Data, at 9:55 am the preliminary August University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment reading will be available and at 10 am, July Leading Economic Indicators will be released.

Today’s Stocks to watch: Aeropostale (NYSE: ARO), Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), DryShips (NASDAQ: DRYS), Facebook (NASDAQ: FB), Foot Locker (NYSE: FL), Gap (NYSE: GPS), J.M. Smucker (NYSE: SJM), and Marvel Technology (NASDAQ: MRVL).

Aeropostale (NYSE: ARO), the specialty retailer, will be in focus after tumbling nearly 8% to $12.58 in after hours trading on negative reaction to its quarterly results that were inline with its preannouncement and as the company issued weak earnings guidance for the quarter. The retailer reported break even for the quarter on revenue that climbed 3.6% from a year ago to $485 million. Aeropostale cited significant pricing pressure due to the highly promotional and competitive retail landscape.

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), the maker of iPads and iPhones, was climbing 0.30% to $638.25 in pre-market inching towards challenging its all-time high of $644 and as the stock closed at $636.34 in the prior session, its best closing price ever. Yesterday, the Wall Street Journal reported that Apple was in talks with U.S. cable providers over their set-top boxes. The report stated that the discussions centered on operators allowing viewers to use an Apple TV device as a set-top box for live television and other content. It was not clear if the set-top box will use an upgraded hardware from the current Apple TV or if it would be embedded on a TV set. The stock has benefited from heightened expectations over its short-term product refresh cycle that includes the highly anticipated redesigned iPhone 5 and a possible iPad with a smaller screen and lower price point.

DryShips (NASDAQ: DRYS), the owner and operator of dry bulk carriers, was falling 2.16% to $2.26 in pre-market after the company missed earnings expectations on revenue that was short of consensus. DryShips posted a loss of $0.05 per share, $0.10 worse than consensus, on revenue that surged 50% from a year ago to $336.14 million versus consensus of $341.5 million.

Facebook (NASDAQ: FB), the social media Company, was climbing 0.65% to $20.00 in pre-market, after it tumbled 6.27% to $19.87 in the prior session as the first sales lock up of early shareholders expired yesterday, providing them the first opportunity to sell their shares. Participants took the stock down to a new record los of $19.69. Since the IPO Facebook has lost close to half its value, which questions how many early investors will sell their shares. One of these investors, Microsoft will not be selling, as the software giant sees its 26.2 million shares stake as strategic.

Foot Locker (NYSE: FL), the athletic footwear and apparel retailer, was rallying 5.3% to $36.31 in pre-market after beat earnings and revenue expectations. The footwear retailer said it earned $0.38 per share, $0.05 better than consensus, on revenue that climbed 7.2% from a year ago to $1.37 billion versus consensus of $1.35 billion. For the second quarter, comparable same store sales jumped 9.8%, while on a constant currency basis sales gained 10.6%.

Gap (NYSE: GPS), the owner and operator of specialty retailers like Banana Republic and Old Navy, will be in focus after gaining 1.3% to $34.80 in after hours trading, following reaction to solid quarterly results that beat on both the bottom and the top lines. Gap earned $0.49 per share, $0.02 better than consensus, on revenue that climbed 5.6% from a year ago to $3.58 billion versus consensus of $3.52 billion. Also, Gap raised its fiscal 2013 earnings guidance to a range that was below consensus.

J.M. Smucker (NYSE: SJM), the maker of Smucker's jam and Jif's peanut butter, will be in focus after the company posted solid quarterly results and offered an upbeat outlook. J.M. Smucker posted adjusted earnings of $1.17 per share, $0.17 better than consensus, on revenue that jumped 15.2% from a year ago to $1.37 billion versus consensus of $1.30 billion. The acquired Sara Lee foodservice business contributed 7 percentage points of the net sales growth. Favorable sales mix and higher net realized prices each contributed to growth.

Marvel Technology (NASDAQ: MRVL), the maker of integrated circuits for communications-related markets, will be in focus after tumbling 9.61% to $11.10 in after hours trading. The company reported quarterly results that missed earnings expectations on revenues that were short of consensus, while offering a weak outlook for the current quarter, as weak PC sales and a slowdown in China weighed on performance. Marvel earned for its fiscal second quarter $0.24 per share, $0.02 worse than consensus, on revenues that fell 9.1% from a year ago to $816 million versus consensus of $853.4 million. FBR Capital cut its target price on the stock to $15 from $16.50.