A Peek Into The Market Before The Trading Starts - KB Home (NYSE:KBH), Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI)

Pre-open movers

US stock futures are slightly higher this morning, as investors are awaiting existing home sales and jobless claims data. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 3 points to 13,222.00 and S&P 500 index futures rose 0.70 points to 1,433.80. Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 4 points to 2,697.00.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were mostly higher today. The STOXX Europe 600 Index rose 0.02%, London's FTSE 100 Index gained 0.06%, French CAC 40 Index climbed 0.54% and German DAX 30 index rose 0.04%. Asian markets ended mixed, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average falling 1.19%, China's Shanghai Composite gaining 0.28% and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rising 0.29%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.16% and India's Sensex dropped 0.11%.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at RBC Capital upgraded PPG Industries

PPG

from “sector perform” to “outperform.” The target price for PPG Industries has been raised from $130 to $160. PPG Industries shares dropped 0.95% to close at $131.21 yesterday.

Breaking news

KB Home KBH posted a 44% drop in its fiscal fourth-quarter net income. To read the full news, click here.
China Zenix Auto International Limited ZX today announced that Mr. Jianhui Lai, the founder, chairman of the board of directors and chief executive officer of Zenix Auto, has exercised his option to purchase all of the outstanding equity of Newrace Limited from its sole shareholder, Ms. Laifan Chu, and as a result, has become Zenix Auto's controlling shareholder. To read the full news, click here.
Darden Restaurants DRI reported a 60% drop in its second-quarter profit. Darden's quarterly profit declined to $33.6 million, or $0.26 per share, versus $53.7 million, or $0.40 per share, in the year-earlier period. To read the full news, click here.
Rite Aid RAD swung to a profit in the third quarter. To read the full news, click here.

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