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US equities look set to open close to flat, as the market digests a number of event, disappointing EU earnings saw the European stocks open lower, the prolonging of the Greek PSI talks also prompted some risk averse sentiment. Positive US jobs data provided a lift in futures, as the focus starts to switch to tomorrow’s NFP release.

•          US Continuing Claims (Jan 21) W/W 3437K vs. Exp. 3535K (Prev. 3554K, Rev. 3567K)

•          US Initial Jobless Claims (Jan 28) W/W 367K vs. Exp. 371K (Prev. 377K, Rev. 379K)

•          US Nonfarm Productivity (Q4 P) Q/Q 0.7% vs. Exp. 0.8% (Prev. 2.3%, Rev. 1.9%)

•          US Unit Labour Costs (Q4 P) Q/Q 1.2% vs. Exp. 0.8% (Prev. -2.5%, Rev. -2.1%)

•          US Challenger Job Cuts (Jan) Y/Y 53.48K vs. Prev. 41.8K

•          US RBC Consumer Outlook Index (Feb) M/M 45.1 vs. Prev. 45.8. (RTRS)

•          FTSE (-0.04%), CAC (+0.20%), DAX (+0.15%), SMI  (-0.30%), IBEX (+0.39%), EURO STOXX (+0.06%) prices taken at 1355GMT

Pre-market activity following earnings:

Qualcomm – up 3.8%

Mastercard – up 2.5%

Merck – up 1.3%

Kellogg – up 1.3%

Facebook IPO update: 

-       Co. files its IPO under ‘FB’ symbol, with initial registration amount USD 5bln; via Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs as their underwriters. The filing shows Zuckerberg owns 28.4% of the co., and Accel Entities 11.4%. (RTRS/Sources)

-       Facebook does not plan on offering dividend for foreseeable future 

-       Facebook reports FY11 EPS USD 0.52 vs. FY10 EPS USD 0.34, FY11 revenue USD 3.71bln vs. FY10 revenue USD 1.97B. 

-       FY11 net income USD 1bln vs. FY10 net income USD 660mln

-       FY11 costs and expenses USD 1.95bln vs. FY10 costs and expenses USD 942mln

DJIA

Earnings:

Merck - Q4 adjusted EPS USD 0.97 vs. Exp. USD 0.95, Q4 revenue USD 12.30bln vs. Exp. USD 12.51bln. (RTRS/Sources)

-       co. sees FY12 adjusted EPS USD 3.75-3.85 vs. Exp. USD 3.83

-       Q4 worldwide sales of Singulair grew 8% to USD 1.5bln vs. Exp. USD 1.4bln

-       Q4 worldwide sales for Remicade and Simponi declined 24%

-       Q4 Pharmaceutical sales USD 10.76bln

-       Q4 Januvia sales up 42% to USD 960mln vs. Exp. USD 1.26bln

-       co.’s US patent for Singulair will expire in August 2012 and co. expects a significant decline in sales following the expiry

-       co. plans to file five major product for approval between 2012 and 2013

-       co. says at current exchange rates, sales would be unfavourably affected by around 2-3% in 2012

Other news:

ExxonMobil – Co. has started drilling for its USD 15.7bln Papua New Guinea gas project expansion. (Sources) 

Johnson & Johnson – Co. cancer drug Zytiga has been rejected for publicly funded use in the UK because the prostate-cancer pill does not offer value for money, according to the UK Healthcare regulator. (Sources)

Hewlett-Packard – Co. is set to again increase notebook shipments coming out of Chongqing, China this year. (Digitimes)

Pfizer – Co. says the voluntary recall of Lo/Ovral-28 is ‘based on their own rigorous internal assessments of this problem and believe there are approximately 30 packs of birth control pills that may have received an inexact count or inactive tablet’. (RTRS) 

S&P 500

Earnings:

Mastercard - Q4 adjusted EPS USD 4.03 vs. Exp. USD 3.91, Q4 revenue USD 1.70bln vs. Exp. USD 1.72bln. (RTRS)

-       co. had USD 3.73blb cash at end of period

-       Quarterly increase in processed transactions of 23.2%, to 7.7bln

-       co. says worldwide purchase volume during the quarter was up 15.2% on a local currency basis

Kellogg - Q4 EPS USD 0.64 vs. Exp. USD 0.62; reaffirms forecast. (RTRS)

-       co. reaffirms guidance for internal net sales growth, which is expected to increase by 4-5% in FY

-       co. reported net sales of 5.6% in 2011 and 6.6% in Q4

-       co. expects full year operating profit to be unchanged or slightly greater

Dow Chemical - Q4 adjusted EPS USD 0.25 vs. Exp. USD 0.31, Q4 revenue USD 14.10bln vs. Exp. USD 14.21bln. (RTRS/Sources)

-       co. sees gaining momentum in H2

-       Q4 sales in feedstock and energy USD 2.8bln

-       Q4 sales in performance plastics USD 3.70bln

-       Q4 sales in performance materials USD 3.6bln

Green Mountain Coffee – Q1 adjusted EPS USD 0.60 vs. Exp. USD 0.36, co. reaffirms forecast, Q1 net sales USD 1.16bln. (RTRS)

-       co. sees Q2 adjusted EPS USD 0.60-0.65 vs. Exp. USD 0.7

-       co. plans to introduce next generation brewer in Q2

-       co. shares were seen up 11.7% in after-market trade

Chipotle Mexican Grill – Co.’s Q4 EPS 1.81, revenue USD 596.7mln, shares seen down 3.9% in after-market trade. (RTRS)

-       co. announces additional USD 100mln share repurchase plan 

Cigna - Q4 adjusted EPS USD 1.11 vs. Exp. USD 1.19, Q4 revenue USD 5.46bln vs. Exp. USD 5.51bln, Quarterly cancellation rates 35.1%. (RTRS)

Pultegroup - Q4 EPS USD 0.04 vs. Exp. USD 0.07, Q4 revenue USD 1.26bln vs. Exp. USD 1.13bln. (RTRS)

-       Q4 closings 4,303 homes, down 2%

-       Q4 average selling price was USD 271,000, up 3% 

-       Q4 EPS is on USD 0.17 in charges, USD 0.10 in gains/benefits

CME Group - Q4 adjusted EPS USD 3.55 vs. Exp. USD 3.64

-       Co. boosts quarterly dividend to USD 2.23 per share

-       Co. declares added dividend USD 3.00 per share

Viacom - Q1 EPS USD 1.06 vs. Exp. USD 1.05, Q1 revenue USD 3.95bln vs. Exp. USD 3.99bln. (RTRS)

Boston Scientific - Q4 adjusted EPS USD 0.13 vs. Exp. USD 0.08, Q4 revenue USD 1.85bln vs. Exp. USD 1.90bln. (RTRS)

National Oilwell Varco - Q4 adjusted EPS USD 1.37 vs. Exp. USD 1.30, Q4 revenue USD 4.26bln vs. Exp. USD 4.03bln. (RTRS)

-       Q4 gross margin 30.2%

Cummins - Q4 adjusted EPS USD 2.56 vs. Exp. USD 2.24. (RTRS)

Teco Energy - Q4 EPS USD 0.25 vs. Exp USD 0.28. (RTRS)         

Sara Lee - Q2 adjusted EPS USD 0.27 vs. Exp. USD 0.25, Q2 revenue USD 2.08bln vs. Exp. USD 2.14bln. (RTRS)

Allstate – Q4 operating EPS USD 1.48 vs. Exp. USD 0.96, Q4 revenue USD 8.24bln vs. Exp. USD 6.45bln. (RTRS)

Goodrich - Q4 cont. ops. EPS USD 1.85 vs. Exp. USD 1.57, Q4 revenue USD 2.15bln vs. Exp. USD 2.13bln. (RTRS)

Las Vegas Sands - Q4 EPS USD 0.57 vs. Exp. USD 0.57, Q4 revenue USD 2.54bln vs. Exp. USD 2.47bln. (RTRS)

Beazer Homes - Q1 EPS USD 0.01 vs. Exp. loss per share USD 0.36, Q1 revenue USD 188.6mln vs. Exp. USD 211.43mln. (RTRS)

Ryder - Q4 comparable EPS USD 0.97 vs. Exp. USD 0.97, Q4 revenue USD 1.54bln vs. USD 1.54bln. (RTRS)

Lennox - Q4 EPS USD 0.51 vs. Exp. USD 0.49, Q4 revenue USD 755.8mln vs. Exp. USD 800.06mln. (RTRS)

Other news:

Verizon/Comcast - Senator Herb Kohl said he would hold a hearing on the marketing alliance between Verizon Wireless and Comcast over concerns that together they could reduce competition in the telecommunications market, leading to higher prices. (WSJ)

Big Lots – Co. raises their Q4 EPS view to USD 1.71-1.74 vs. Exp. USD 1.63, Q4 Same Store Sales increase 3.4%, co. report retail sales for US operations for Q4 of USD 1.622bln, an increase of 7.7%. (Sources)

Abercrombie & Fitch – Co. sees Q4 gross margin erosion of 750bps, cites markdowns, sees Q4 Same Store Sales flat compared to last year, co. sees FY12 EPS USD 3.50-3.75 vs. Exp. USD 2.73, sees Q4 EPS USD 1.10-1.15 vs. Exp. USD 1.55, co. reports Q4 net sales USD 1.33bln. (RTRS)         

Companies going ex-dividend: Citigroup (USD 0.0100), Baker Hughes (USD 0.1500), Eaton (USD 0.3800), Noble Energy (USD 0.2200), Nisource (USD 0.2300), Southern co (USD 0.4725)

Companies paying dividend: CVS Caremark (USD 0.1625)

Nasdaq 100

Earnings:

Qualcomm – Q1 adjusted EPS USD 0.97 vs. Exp. USD 0.90, co. boosts forecast, Q1 revenue USD 4.68bln vs. Exp. USD 4.57bln. (RTRS/Sources)

-       co. sees Q2 adjusted revenue USD 4.6-5.0bln vs. Exp. USD 4.51bln

-       co. sees Q2 adjusted EPS 0.91-0.97 vs. Exp. USD 0.89

-       co. sees 2012 revenue USD 18.7-19.7bln, saw USD 18-19bln vs. Exp. USD 18.47bln

-       co. sees 2012 adjusted EPS USD 3.55-.375, saw USD 3.42-3.62 vs. Exp. USD 3.59

-       co. shares seen up 3.44% in after-market trade

Electronic Arts – Q3 adjusted EPS USD 0.99 vs. Exp. USD 0.93, Q3 non-gaap revenue USD 1.65bln vs. Exp. USD 1.62bln. (RTRS)

-       co. sees Q4 adjusted revenue USD 1.65bln vs. Exp. USD 1.62bln

-       co. sees Q4 adjusted EPS USD 0.10-0.20 vs. Exp. USD 0.30

-       co. shares were seen down 4.6% in after-market trade

Other news:

Apple - A large increase in sales of Apple's iPhone caused the company to jump to third place in worldwide mobile phone sales in Q4, up from fifth place previously. (Cnet) In other news Daiwa securities expects the iPhone 5 to launch in the summer of 2012 and will continue to utilise glass to glass touch panel technology, analysts expect the firm to announce the launch of the iPhone 5 at  the co.’s WWDC held in mid-June. (9to5mac)

Google – Co.’s YouTube announced yesterday that it was launching the first six new educational channels as part of its channel-oriented strategy announced last year. (Sources)

Research In Motion – Co.’s latest Blackberry 7 has been granted the necessary government approval in both the US and Canada to be used by government agencies. (Boy Genius Report)

Hewlett-Packard/Microsoft/Apple/Google/Dell - With the recovery of the hard drive industry and release of Windows 8 in Q3, notebook shipments are expected to rise significantly in H2 2012, perhaps hitting shipment proportions of 40% and 60% between the first and second halves. (Digitimes)

January Same Store Sales

Costco – Co. January Same Store Sales rose 8%; Jan sales were USD 7bln vs. Exp. USD 6.3bln. (RTRS)            

Macy's - Jan same store sales up 2.4% vs. Exp. up 3.8%. (RTRS)

TJX - Jan same store sales rose 7%. (RTRS)

Sak's - Jan same store sales up 10.5% vs. Exp. up 6.0%. (RTRS)

Kohl's - Jan same store sales up 0.6% vs. Exp. up 0.5%. (RTRS)

Dillards - Jan same store sales unchanged. (RTRS)         

Target - Jan same store sales up 4.3% vs. Exp. up 2.4%, sees Feb. same store sales up in low-to-mid single-digit range. (RTRS)

Gap - Jan same store sales down 4% vs. Exp. down 5.1%. (RTRS)

Nordstrom - Jan same store sales up 5% vs. Exp. up 5.3%. (RTRS)

Ross Stores - Jan same store sales up 5%, with 20% dividend increase to USD 0.14 from USD 0.11. (RTRS)

Broker moves

Upgrades:

Dell – Co. upgraded to Overweight from Underweight at JP Morgan, Price target raised to USD 21 from USD 17.50

Qualcomm – Co. price target raised to USD 75 from USD 70 at Piper Jaffray, firm reiterates an Overweight rating on the stock

C.H. Robinson – Co. upgraded to Strong Buy from Market Perform at Raymond James, Price target is USD 75

Chipotle Mexican Grill – Co. price target raised to USD 425 from USD 410 at Goldman, Shares are Conviction Buy rated

Green Mountain – Co. price target raised to USD 65 from USD 60 at BofA/Merrill, Shares are Buy rated

Franklin Resources – Co. upgraded to Neutral from Underweight at JP Morgan, Price target raised to USD 108 from USD 91

Downgrades:

Molycorp – Co. price target cut to USD 50 from USD 70 at Dahlman Rose, Shares are Buy rated

JDSU – Co. downgraded to Neutral from Buy at UBS, Price target raised to USD 14.50 from USD 13

NASDAQ OMX – Co. downgraded to Outperform from Strong Buy at Raymond James, Price target lowered to USD 30 from USD 32

Northrop Grumman – Co. downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at BofA/Merrill 

NYSE Euronext – Co. downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at BMO Capital, Price target lowered to USD 30 from USD 35

AK Steel – Co. downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at BofA/Merrill 

CNBC’s Jim Cramer on US corporate earnings

THURSDAY earnings: Allergan and Dow Chemical - Cramer is a buyer of both stocks. 

FRIDAY earnings: Cramer is a buyer of both American Axel and Clorox on any weakness. 

Significant EU earnings

Royal Dutch Shell - Co. Q4 CCS ex-items USD 4.8bln vs. Exp. USD 5.2bln, Q4 net income USD 6.5bln vs. Prev. 6.79bln. (RTRS/Sources)

-       Co. says Q4 results impacted by sharp downturn in industry

-       Co. says sees 250,000BOE/D of asset sales, expiries in 2012-17 

-       Co. says expects to grow the dividend in 2012

Deutsche Bank – Co. Q4 net EUR 147mln vs. Exp. EUR 556mln. Co. CIB pretax loss EUR 138mln vs. Exp. EUR 526mln. (Sources)

-       Co. posts EUR 422mln loss at its investment banking arm in Q4 

-       Co. reports core tier 1 capital ratio 9.5% at the end of Q4 

-       Co. proposes dividend of EUR 0.75 for 2011 vs. Exp. EUR 0.75

-       Co. Q4 loan-loss prov. EUR 540mln vs. Exp. EUR 513mln

AstraZeneca – Co. Q4 EPS ex-items USD 1.61 vs. Exp. USD 1.58. Co. Q4 revenue USD 8.66bln vs. Exp. USD 8.58bln. (Sources)

-       Co. Seroquel Q4 sales USD 1.55bln vs. Exp. USD 1.45bln

-       Co. has said it plans to buy back USD 4.5bln shares in 2012

-       Co. reports FY EPS ex-items USD 7.28 vs. Exp. USD 7.24 

-       Co. has increased dividend by 10% to USD 2.80 for Full Year 2011

-       Co. cost cuts to affect 7,300 jobs and reaffirms planned revenue range of USD 28-34bln over 2010-2014

Unilever - Co. Q4 underlying sales growth 6.6% v. Exp. 6.8%, FY net EUR 4.25bln vs. Exp. EUR 4.34bln. Says expects less input cost headwinds than in 2011. (RTRS/Sources)

Other news

Diamond Offshore - Q4 EPS USD 1.36 vs. Exp. USD 0.99. (RTRS)

Starwood Hotels - Q4 EPS USD 0.71 vs. Exp. USD 0.57, Q4 revenue USD 1.53bln vs. Exp. USD 1.42bln. (Sources)

Weatherford – Co. is poised to generate greater earnings growth than its larger rivals Schlumberger, Baker Hughes and Halliburton. Barron's contends that the shares could return another 35% over the next 12 months. (Barron’s)

Xstrata – Co. confirms that is has received an approach from Glencore and is in discussions. Co. has added that there can be no certainty that any offer will be made. (RTRS)