Stock futures rise as investors assess earnings

STEVE ROTHWELL

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stock futures edged higher as investors assessed company earnings and waited for new data on the housing market.

KEEPING SCORE: Dow Jones industrial average futures were up three points at 16,190 as of 9:18 a.m. Eastern time. The Standard & Poor's 500 index futures rose one point to 1,847 and the Nasdaq futures climbed two points to 3,691.

HOME IMPROVEMENT: Lowe's climbed $2.54, or 5.3 percent, to $50.65 in trading before the opening bell. The company said its net income rose 6 percent in the most recent quarter, as the home-improvement retailer continued to benefit from the housing market's recovery.

DON'T LET THE SUN GO DOWN: First Solar tumbled Wednesday, after it reported quarterly earnings that fell short of financial analysts' expectations. The company's stock fell $6.58, or 11.3 percent, to $51.45 in pre-market trading.

CLOSE, BUT NO CIGAR: The S&P 500 index has climbed above its record closing high of 1,848.38 during the last two trading days only to fall below that level as the market closed.

TREASURIES AND COMMODITIES: The yield on the 10-year Treasury note was little changed from Tuesday at 2.70 percent. The price of oil rose 40 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $102.22 a barrel. Gold fell $8.60, or 0.6 percent to $1,334.20.