By Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch
SolarCity slides premarket after earnings
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks were poised for a weak open
on Wall Street on Thursday, with futures hit by a sharp fall in oil
prices and investors staying on the sidelines ahead of a raft of
earnings reports and economic data.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJH5) slipped 20
points, or 0.1%, to 17,973, while those for the S&P 500 index
(SPH5) dropped 3.60 points, or 0.2%, to 2,091.80. Futures for the
Nasdaq 100 index (NDH5) were flat at 4,386.00.
Markets had closed slightly lower on Wednesday, as investors
wrestled with interpreting minutes from the Federal Reserve's
latest meeting, which suggested the first rate hike might come
later than expected. The report showed the central bank is worried
about the low rate of inflation and slow pickup in wages,
emphasizing the importance of those data points.
Data: Investors on Thursday might get more hints to whether
wages are likely to improve, with a reading on weekly jobless
claims due at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time. Economists polled by
MarketWatch expect 290,000 Americans filed for unemployment
benefits last week, down from 304,000 the week before.
The Philadelphia Fed's manufacturing index for February is out
at 10 a.m. Eastern. Economists expect a slight rebound to 8 from
the sharp decline to 6.3 in January, compared with 24.3 in
December. The leading indicators readings is scheduled for 10 a.m.
Eastern as well.
Oil blues: Energy companies and oil-related funds were hit hard
in premarket trade, as crude-oil prices slid below $50 a barrel.
The oil slump came after data showed a whopping jump in U.S. oil
stockpiles, which underscored concerns of a supply glut. Among
oil-tracking indexes, the iPath Goldman Sachs Crude Oil Total
Return Index ETN (OIL) fell 3%, and the Velocity Shares 3X Long
Crude ETN (UWTI) slumped 7.7%.
ConocoPhillips dropped 1.7% ahead of the open, while Exxon Mobil
Corp. (XOM) shaved off 1.2%, and Halliburton Co. (HAL) lost 2%.
Progress in Greece: The Greek government formally requested a
six-month extension to its loan agreement, sending stocks higher in
Athens. Senior eurozone finance ministers will meet later on
Thursday to discuss the request, but it's not a given that they'll
grant Greece the extension. The country's anti-austerity government
has distinguished between a mere loan agreement and a continuation
of the full bailout program, which it argues hurts the Greek
society and economy. Germany said yesterday they were against
approving just the loan extension without the conditions attached
to the full rescue program.
The full Eurogroup of eurozone finance ministers is scheduled to
meet on Friday.
Earnings: It's a busy premarket line-up on the earnings front:
Wal-Mart Stores Inc.(WMT) is projected to report fourth-quarter
earnings of $1.54 a share, according to a consensus survey by
FactSet.
Reporting early, T-Mobile US Inc.(TMUS) posted fourth-quarter
earnings of 12 cents a share, against a loss of 12 cents a share a
year ago.
Priceline Group Inc.(PCLN) is forecast to post fourth-quarter
earnings of $10.10 a share.
DirecTV(DTV) is projected to post fourth-quarter earnings of
$1.39 a share.
Hormel Foods Corp.(HRL) is forecast to post fiscal first-quarter
earnings of 64 cents a share.
Movers and shakers:SolarCity Corp.(SCTY) slumped 6.7% after the
solar-energy firm late Wednesday said it swung to a fourth-quarter
loss of 4 cents a share, from a profit of 28 cents a share a year
ago.
Counterpart SunEdison Inc.(SUNE) was also in focus. The
solar-energy company late Wednesday reported a
smaller-than-expected fourth-quarter loss.
BJ's Restaurants Inc.(BJRI) could also be active after reporting
a sharp rise in profit for the fourth quarter.
Other markets: European markets struggled for direction as
investors digested developments in Greece's debt negotiations.
In Asia, Japanese stocks rose to a 15-year intraday high, while
the rest of Asia closed mixed. Chinese markets were closed for the
Lunar New Year celebrations.
Gold rallied, while the dollar (DXY) was slightly lower, after
the Federal Open Market Committee minutes dashed hopes of a midyear
rate hike.
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