(By Salman - iStockAnalyst Writer)US stock futures were little changed on Tuesday as investors remained cautious ahead of key consumer data.
At 8:25 am ET, the S&P 500 futures fell 1 point to 1065.40. The Dow Jones Industrial average futures rose 9 points to 9850. The Nasdaq Composite futures dropped 3.50 points to 1744.50.
Late on Monday, Baidu Inc. (NASDAQ:
BIDU) said that its third-quarter earnings jumped 42% to 492.9 million yuan ($72.2 million), or 14.14 yuan ($2.07) per American depositary share, compared with 347.9 million yuan, or 10 yuan per ADS, in the prior-year period. Revenue surged 39% to 1.28 billion yuan ($187.3 million).However, American depositary shares of the company came under pressure after the earnings announcement as it gave a disappointing fourth-quarter revenue projection in the range of $174 million to $180 million, well below the $205 million expected by analysts.
Early on Tuesday, Johnson Controls Inc. (NYSE:
JCI) reported that its fiscal fourth-quarter profit surged to $300 million, or 47 cents a share, from $16 million, or 3 cents a share, in the comparable period last year. Excluding one-time items, the Milwaukee automotive-supply company earned 52 cents a share in the latest period, compared with 73 cents a share in the year-ago period. Revenue decreased to $7.87 billion from $9.31 billion.
China-based solar company LDK Solar Co.(NYSE:
LDK) on Tuesday boosted its third-quarter revenue guidance. The company now expects to report revenue of $270 million to $290 million, compared with its previous estimate of $240 million to $270 million.
Networking giant Cisco (NASDAQ:
CSCO) on Tuesday announced that it has agreed to buy web-security firm ScanSafe for about $183 million.
On the economic front, CaseShiller Home Price index and consumer confidence data are due for release at 09:00 am ET.
US stocks finished lower on Monday as a strengthening dollar pressurized oil prices and commodity shares.
European stocks advanced in afternoon trade. At 11:58 pm London time, the UK FTSE climbed 24.57 points or 0.24% to 5,216.31. The German DAX and French CAC decreased 0.24% and 0.44% respectively.
Asian stocks finished with steep losses. The Nikkei 225 lost 150.16 points or 1.45% to $10,212.46. The Hang Seng index of Hong Kong plunged 420.14 points or 1.86% to 22,169.59.
NYMEX crude oil for December delivery declined 13 cents or 1.2% to $78.55 a barrel in electronic trading.
Disclosure: Author doesn't own any of the stocks discussed here.
