Futures for both the Standard & Poor’s 500 index and Dow Jones Industrial Average are up about 0.2% ahead of Tuesday’s open, unchanged after durable-goods orders showed a 5.7% rise in February, largely on the back of a near doubling of aircraft demand. Orders fell 0.5% excluding transportation, while orders for core capital goods fell 2.7%. New homes sales data will be released at 10 am Eastern, while the Case-Shiller home price index will be released at 9 am.
Shares of retailer Children’s Place (PLCE) fell more than 5% despite improved sales in its latest quarter. Investors were likely spooked by a gloomy outlook:
However, the company also warned it expects unfavorable weather and weak macro-economic environment to affect consumer spending. As a result, Children’s Place estimated adjusted earnings at 60 cents to 65 cents a share for the current quarter and between $2.90 and $3.10 a share for fiscal 2013. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect $1.20 and $3.54, respectively.
Higher product costs have hampered Children’s Place’s profit and margins over the past year. The company has said it will focus on e-commerce growth, better fashion, improved merchandise assortment in Canada and inventory management to help drive sales. It has also taken a range of actions, such as streamlining its field workforce and closing its Northeast distribution center in Dayton, N.J., to reduce its operating expenses.
In other corporate news, Boeing (BA) has begun test flights for its 787 Dreamliner plane in the hope that it will be able to soon return to service:
The company flew what it dubbed a “functional check flight” on a production model 787 Dreamliner, painted in the colors of LOT Polish Airlines SA. Monday’s flight at the company’s Everett, Wash., factory was designed to check the systems of the jet, which hasn’t flown since taking to the air for the first time on Jan. 13. The entire 787 fleet was ordered grounded by the regulators around the world on Jan. 16 after the lithium-ion batteries burned on two Japanese 787s earlier that month.
Following Monday’s roughly two-hour flight, with six crew aboard, Boeing was to evaluate the performance of the aircraft’s systems and move to perform ground tests for certification.
Boeing shares are up 0.5% premarket on very light volume.
Also rising are shares of Peabody Energy (BTU), up more than 2% after analysts at Raymond James upgraded the stock to Outperform largely, it seems, on valuation:
Peabody has taken it on the chin recently, underperforming its peers, the index and the broader market as a whole.� Additionally, the company no longer receives the premium multiple it historically enjoyed and simply trades in line with the group on 2014 estimates.� Given an apparent metallurgical market bottom, improving prospects for natural gas (and thus coal) and since 1Q13 should be the weakest quarter from an earnings perspective, we view this as an attractive entry point into a high quality, core coal holding.� As such, we are taking the opportunity to upgrade shares to an Outperform with a $25 price target.
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