Stock Futures Climb as Earnings Season Revs Up

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U.S. stock-index futures pointed to gains for Wall Street on Tuesday as traders parsed through a deluge of corporate news, earnings and economic data.

Today's Markets

As of 8:52 a.m. ET, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures climbed 60 points to 13419, S&P 500 futures gained 6.8 points to 1442 and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 13.3 points to 2745.

Traders had a slew of earnings to parse through ahead of the opening bell.

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) unveiled third-quarter profits of $2.85 a share on revenues of $8.35 billion, beating estimates of $2.12 a share on sales of $7.3 billion. The investment bank also raised its quarterly dividend to 50 cents a share from 46 cents.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) posted third-quarter earnings of $1.25 a share, excluding special items, beating estimates by four cents. The health-care giant’s revenues came in at $17.1 billion, also better than forecasts of $16.98 billion. The Dow component also raised its full-year guidance to a range of $5.05 to $5.10 a share, from $5 to $5.07 a share.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) revealed an adjusted third-quarter profit of 51 cents a share, meeting Wall Street’s expectations. The beverage and snack maker’s sales came in at $12.34 billion, shy of estimates of $12.41 billion. Shares fell slightly in pre-market trading.

UnitedHealth (NYSE:UNH), the blue-chip insurer, revealed quarterly earnings of $1.50 a share, besting estimates of $1.34 a share. Revenues came in at $27.3 billion, slightly shy of Wall Street's estimates of $27.62 billion. The latest entrant to the Dow also raised its full-year 2012 outlook to a range of $5.20 to $5.25 a share, compared to expectations of $5.14.

Then, after the close of trading, IBM (NYSE:IBM), Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) and CSX (NYSE:CSX) will take center stage.

Also on the corporate front, Vikram Pandit stepped down as Citigroup's (NYSE:C) CEO and will be replaced with Michael Corbat. Chief Operating Officer John Havens also resigned.

Citigroup shares have tumbled some 89%  during Pandit's tenure, which coincided with the global financial crisis Citi's subsequent massive government bailout, according to data compiled by FOX Business.

Citigroup shares have slumped some 89%  during Pandit's tenure, which coincided with the global financial crisis Citi's subsequent massive government bailout, according to data compiled by FOX Business.

Traders will also get a handful of economic reports.

The Labor Department said inflation at the consumer level increased 0.6% in September from August, a bigger increase than the 0.5% economists expected, as energy prices jumped. Excluding food and energy, prices ticked up 0.1%, a smaller gain than the 0.2% expected.

Later in the morning, a report from the Federal Reserve is expected to show a 0.2% increase in U.S. industrial production in September on a month-to-month basis. Meanwhile, the National Association of Home Builders' gauge of housing-market sentiment is expected to have climbed slightly this month as the market for new homes continues to show increasing signs of improvement.

Oil futures were mildly higher after a volatile session on Monday. The benchmark crude oil contract traded in New York rose 5 cents, or 0.08%, to $91.92 a barrel. Wholesale New York Harbor gasoline gained 0.21% to $2.856 a gallon.

In metals, gold gained $4.50, or 0.26%, to $1,742 a troy ounce.

Foreign Markets

The Euro Stoxx 50 jumped 1% to 5120, the English FTSE 100 climbed 0.66% to 5844 and the German DAX advanced 0.73% to 7314.

In Asia, the Japanese Nikkei 225 rallied 1.4% to 8701 and the Chinese Hang Seng edged up by 0.28% to 21207.