A Peek Into The Market Before The Trading Starts

Pre-open movers US stock futures are higher this morning, as strong gains from global markets lifted investor sentiment. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 36 points to 11,380, while those for the S&P 500 rose 3.40 points to 1,239. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index gained 4.75 points to 2,220. A Peek Into Global Markets Positive sentiments ruled the European markets today. While STOXX Europe 600 Index has advanced 0.41%, London's FTSE 100 Index moved up 0.97%. Asian markets ended in the positive territory, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average adding 0.80%, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 moving up 0.23% and China's Shanghai Composite gaining 2.89%. Broker Recommendation Goldman Sachs has a Neutral rating and a $29 price target on shares of Microsoft Corporation MSFT. In a note sent to investors, Goldman writes, "The Street has remained almost uniformly Buy-rated on Microsoft, and while valuation provides support, we view CY11 as a much more challenging year with top-line growth decelerating from 12% in CY10 to 7%. A tablet response is still not forth-coming and our early read on Windows Phone 7 has not yet changed our view that Microsoft's share in mobile OSes will remain at only the single-digit level. For an unlocking of shareholder value, we continue to look for a more aggressive dividend, a more focused consumer strategy, and stronger Cloud-Azure traction." Shares of MSFT gained 26 cents on Friday to close at $27.34. Breaking news

• Hormel Foods Corporation HRL today announced its Board of Directors has authorized a two-for-one split of the company's common stock. This would be the first split in 10 years and the 9th in company history. To read the full news, click here.
• Did Nass Tech NSTC just get a buyout bid for twice its Friday value? To read the full news, click here.
• TransDigm Group Incorporated TDG earlier today issued its guidance for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2011. To read the full news, click here.
• Biostar Pharmaceutical BSPM announces unaudited October and November 2010 combined revenues increased 68% to approximately $18.3 million; Sales of Xin Aoxing increased 67% to $12.4 million. To read the full news, click here.

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