US Stock Futures Edge Higher; All Eyes On Fed

Pre-open movers US stock futures rose in early pre-market trading, ahead of the Federal Reserve's latest policy decision. The U.S. current account report for the fourth quarter will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. The Federal Open Market Committee will announce its policy decision at 2:00 p.m. ET, while the Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen will hold press briefing at 2:30 p.m. ET. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 11 points to 16,273.00, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index futures rose 1.40 points to 1,865.20. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index surged 6 points to 3,701.00. A Peek Into Global Markets European markets were mostly higher today, with the Spanish Ibex Index rising 0.23%, London's FTSE 100 index dropping 0.09% and STOXX Europe 600 Index gaining 0.06%. German DAX 30 index rose 0.38% and French CAC 40 Index gained 0.11%. The UK unemployment rate remained unchanged at 7.2%. Asian markets ended mixed today. Japan's Nikkei Stock Average surged 0.36%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 0.07% and China's Shanghai Composite Index declined 0.17% and India's BSE Sensex gained 0.16%. Broker Recommendation Analysts at Keefe Bruyette & Woods downgraded Walker & Dunlop WD from “outperform” to “market perform.” The target price for Walker & Dunlop has been raised from $16 to $18. Walker & Dunlop's shares closed at $16.88 yesterday. Breaking news

• Israeli firm Elbit Systems ESLT reported a drop in its fourth-quarter profit. Elbit's quarterly earnings, excluding one-time items, declined to $1.26 per share, versus $1.62 per in the year-ago period. To read the full news, click here.
• Isis Pharmaceuticals ISIS announced today that it has initiated a Phase 1 clinical study for ISIS-ANGPTL3Rx, an antisense drug targeting angiopoietin-like 3 protein (ANGPTL3), an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease. To read the full news, click here.
• General Mills GIS reported a rise in its fiscal third-quarter profit. General Mills' quarterly profit surged to $410.6 million, or $0.64 per share, versus a year-ago profit of $398.4 million, or $0.60 per share. To read the full news, click here.
• Marchex MCHX announced today that it will commence an underwritten public offering, subject to market and other conditions, of 5,714,000 shares of Marchex's Class B common stock pursuant to an effective shelf registration statement. To read the full news, click here.