Stock futures higher on Apple, solid euro zone data

By Angela Moon

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street was set for a higher open on Wednesday as Apple was expected to boost tech shares after reporting stronger-than-expected results and positive euro-zone economic data boosted market sentiment.

Shares of Apple , the world's largest technology company, rose 4.3 percent to $436.93 in premarket trade after the iPhone and iPad maker late Tuesday reported earnings and revenues that beat Wall Street's estimates, boosted by a jump in iPhone sales to 31.2 million.

In another busy day of earnings, Boeing Co , a Dow component, posted better-than-expected second-quarter results, helped by a 15 percent jump in commercial aircraft revenue. The stock rose 1.4 percent to $109.30 in premarket trade.

"It's all about the earnings," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Rockwell Global Capital in New York.

"We could see a similar action that we saw yesterday which is, opening higher and then consolidating a bit during the day, but recovering at the end. These intraday corrections are setting a stage for prices to move higher."

As of Tuesday's close, of the 130 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported earnings so far this season, 63.8 percent have beaten analysts' expectations for earnings, but 51.5 percent have fallen short of revenue forecasts. Over the past four quarters, 67 percent of companies have beaten earnings estimates.

S&P 500 futures rose 4.9 points and were above fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures rose 35 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures added 28.5 points.

Caterpillar Inc reported a lower quarterly profit and cut its outlook for full-year earnings, saying its independent dealers were focused on reducing machine inventories rather than building them up. The stock fell 1.2 percent to $84.57 in premarket trade.

Ford Motor Co , maker of the top-selling F-150 pickup truck, reported a better-than-expected second-quarter profit, helped by truck sales, higher vehicle prices and stronger results outside North America. The stock jumped 3 percent to $17.46 in premarket trade.

Overseas, euro zone private industry unexpectedly bounced back to show growth this month as factories increased output for the first time in well over a year, according to business surveys. The unexpected rise in euro zone economic activity sparked a rally in European shares.

But a sign of China's economy was slowing cast a cloud over the positive news out of Europe. China's flash HSBC/Markit Purchasing Managers' Index fell as new orders faltered and a sub-index measuring employment sank to its weakest since March 2009. Asian stocks fell after the economic indicators from China.

In U.S. economic news, June new-home sales data is due at 10 a.m. (1400 GMT). Sales are forecast to rise to an annual rate of 482,000 last month from 476,000 in May, according to a Reuters survey of analysts.

On Tuesday the S&P 500 snapped a four-day winning streak and pulled back from Monday's record closing high, while healthy earnings from United Technologies gave the Dow a slight lift.

(Reporting by Angela Moon; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Kenneth Barry)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/stock-futures-boosted-apple-solid-euro-zone-data-114641679.html

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