Benzinga | Jul 27, 2020 06:16AM EDT

A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Gain Ahead Of Earnings

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded higher in early pre-market trade, after recording a drop in the prior session. Investors are awaiting earnings results from Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAS), SAP SE (NYSE:SAP) and Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO). Data on durable goods orders for June will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET, while the Dallas Fed manufacturing index for July is scheduled for release at 10:30 a.m. ET.

The U.S. has the highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the world, with total infections in the country exceeding 4,234,020 with around 146,930 deaths. Brazil confirmed over 2,419,090 cases, while India reported a total of at least 1,435,610 confirmed cases.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 130 points to 26,452 while the Standard & Poor's 500 index futures traded rose 16.25 points to 3,220.25. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index surged 82 points to 10,541.00.

Oil prices traded mixed as Brent crude futures rose 0.6% to trade at $43.60 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures fell 0.4% to trade at $41.11 a barrel.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were mostly lower today, with the Spanish Ibex Index falling 1% and STOXX Europe 600 Index dropping 0.3%. The UK's FTSE index was trading lower by 0.2%, while French CAC 40 Index fell 0.2% and German DAX 30 gained 0.3%.

In Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei fell 0.16%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index declined 0.20%, China's Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.26% and India's BSE Sensex fell 0.3%.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at KeyBanc upgraded Gentex Corporation (NASDAQ:GNTX) from Sector Weight to Overweight and announced a $33 price target.

Gentex shares rose 0.1% to close at $26.29 on Friday.

Breaking News

* Moderna Inc (NASDAQ:MRNA) disclosed that it received another $472 million funding from the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority to support late-stage clinical development of its novel coronavirus vaccine..

* Gold prices jumped to record highs on Monday as China and the US forced each other's consulates to close in key cities.

* SAP SE (NYSE:SAP) announced plans to take its experience management (XM) software unit Qualtrics public in the US.

* AstraZeneca plc (NYSE:AZN) and Daiichi Sankyo Company, Limited announced plans to collaborate on a new cancer drug.