(By Balachander) U.S. stock index futures pointed to a modestly higher open on the Wall Street as investors weighed quarterly reports from companies including, Caterpillar, and await earnings from Yahoo!.
Mini Dow Industrial Average futures added 18 points to 13,270. The Nasdaq futures gained 9.50 points to 2,673.50. Standard and Poor's 500 futures inched up 2.20 points to 1,426.20.
There are no major U.S. economic data scheduled for the day, while the keenly-watched events in the week include: the FOMC meeting, monthly new home sales and pending home sales report, September durable goods orders, weekly jobless claims data and the advance GDP estimate for the third quarter.
On Friday, U.S. stocks tumbled as weak quarterly reports from companies including, GE (GE), Microsoft (MSFT) and McDonald's (MCD) dented sentiment.
Hot Stocks Of The Day: CAT, YHOO, HAS, VFC, EW, ACOM, BTU, TXN
In corporate news, Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) retreated 1.19 percent in premarket after the maker of construction and mining equipment reduced its earnings forecast that also trailed market expectations. The company's quarterly revenue also missed consensus.
Hasbro Inc. (NASDAQ: HAS) reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings and the toy maker still forecasts growth for the full year, excluding the impact of foreign exchange. However, revenue fell and missed Wall Street projections on top-line decreases at two of its segments.
V.F. Corp. (NYSE: VFC) posted better-than-expected quarterly earnings and the apparel retailer lifted its 2012 guidance boosted its quarterly dividend by 21 percent. Shares shed 4.51 percent in premarket.
Ancestry.com Inc. (NASDAQ: ACOM), an online family history resource, agreed to be acquired by a company owned by European private equity firm Permira for $32.00 per share in cash or $1.6 billion. The stock jumped 7.8 percent in premarket.
Peabody Energy Corp. (NYSE: BTU) surged 6.60 percent in premarket after the company's better-than-estimated results for the third quarter.
Advance Auto Parts Inc. (NYSE: AAP) declined 5.10 percent in premarket after the retailer of automotive aftermarket parts forecast lower third-quarter results and updated its 2012 earnings guidance that trailed market expectations.
Edwards Lifesciences Corp. (NYSE: EW) fell 0.86 percent in premarket following the company's third-quarter results. EW reported a 34.1 percent jump in quarterly earnings on the favorable impact of foreign exchange and an improved product mix. Despite revenue missing consensus, earnings exceeded Wall Street expectations.
Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO) and Texas Instruments (NASDAQ: TXN) are due to post their quarterly results after the market closes.
Global Markets:
European markets were little changed amid concerns over Spain, with Germany's DAX fell 0.18 percent to trade at 7,367.26. France's CAC40 was flat at 3,504.61. U.K.'s FTSE 100 traded at 5,896.32.
Among Asian markets, China's Shanghai Stock Exchange Composite Index added 0.21 percent to end at 2,132.76. Japan's Nikkei 225 inched 0.09 percent higher to finish at 9,010.71. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.68 percent to close at 21,697.55. India's BSE Sensex finished at 18,793.44, up 0.59 percent.
Commodity & Currency Scan:
Ahead of the opening bell, crude oil futures advanced 0.26 percent to $90.28 per barrel. Gold futures inched up 0.07 percent to $1,725.2 per ounce.
In the currency market, the euro advanced 0.25 percent against the U.S. dollar to 1.3056. The British pound rose 0.17 percent against the greenback to 1.6033, and the dollar added 0.64 percent against the Japanese yen to 79.8300.