By Barbara Kollmeyer, MarketWatch
MADRID (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stock futures traded flat early
Tuesday a day after the S&P 500 fell from record levels and as
investors watched for an update on monthly sales from McDonald's
Corp. as well as Apple Inc.'s product event.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (SPU4) were up 10
points to 17,110 and those for the S&P 500 index (SPU4) were up
1.2 points to 2,001.80. Futures for the Nasdaq-100 index (NDU4)
rose 6 points to 4,099.
Two lower-tiered pieces of data are due for release: the
National Federation of Independent Business index for August at
7:30 a.m. Eastern Time, and job openings for July at 10 a.m.
Eastern. Neither is expected to move the needle on stocks. Also
read: Michael Sincere on why this stock market will never go
down
On Monday, the S&P 500(SPX) closed off 0.3% to 2,001,
pulling back from Friday's record close, while the Nasdaq Composite
(RIXF) rose 0.2%. Tech stocks may lead the action on Tuesday, given
the spotlight on Apple.
Stocks to watch: The iPhone maker (AAPL) will hold its product
event at 10 a.m. PDT (1 p.m. Eastern) near its headquarters in
Cupertino, Calif. The newest version of its flagship phone and an
iWatch wearable device are among key things that could help boost
shares of Apple. Read: Options traders may be too excited about
Apple's event
Other stocks in focus include McDonald's (MCD) , which will
release monthly sales ahead of the market's open.
Shares of Annie's Inc.(BNNY) rose 37%, on the heels of a similar
late-session rally after General Mills Inc. (GIS) offered to buy
the organic foods company for $820 million in cash.
Shares of Pinnacle Foods Inc.(PF) fell 3.8% in premarket trade
after the packaged-foods company said shareholders tied primarily
to investment firm Blackstone will sell 15 million common
shares.
Barnes & Noble Inc. (BKS) will also report early, with
expectations for the bookseller to report a 58-cent loss on sales
of $1.26 billion.
Other markets: Brent crude oil prices held steady at $100 a
barrel, while the dollar charted new highs against the yen (USDJPY)
and the euro (EURUSD). Europe stocks posted mild losses, while Asia
markets saw mostly modest gains overnight.
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