Chips Lead Nasdaq Futures Higher Amid Middle East Tensions

Futures on the S&P 500 Index (SPX) are pointed comfortably higher this morning, with Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) and Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) futures eyeing triple digit opens as chip stocks give sentiment a boost. Gains look to be capped by simmering U.S.-Iran tensions, however, as the U.S. continues to launch air strikes.

Elsewhere, earnings season is in full swing, with several banks and blue chip Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) among those fresh out of the confessional. Meanwhile, a reading from the producer price index (PPI) showed lower-than-expected wholesale prices for June, down 0.3% on the month and at 5.5% on the year.

Continue reading for more on today's market, including:

• How a low correlation index reading can impact stocks, per Schaeffer's Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White.
• Buy the dip on this satellite stock, says signal.
• Plus, Morgan Stanley's record quarter; Dow stock suffers post-earnings slide; and buyout buzz circles PayPal.

5 Things You Need to Know Today

1. The Cboe Option Exchange saw roughly 2.4 million call contracts and 1.5 million put contracts traded on Tuesday. The single-session equity put/call ratio fell to 0.62, while the 21-day moving average remained at 0.58. 
2. Banking giant Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) is up 1.4% before the bell, after posting record revenue and profit -- blowing past estimates. The company cited equities trading revenue as the catalyst behind the surge. MS is up roughly 60% over the past 12 months.
3. Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) is off 1.9% in electronic trading, the pharma company brushing off a second-quarter earnings and revenue beat, set to shave off some of its 22% year-to-date gain.
4. PayPal Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:PYPL) stock is surging 18.6% premarket, after Reuters reported Stripe and Advent submitted a buyout offer worth $53 billion to buy the payments platform. PYPL has struggled this year, off 19% and unable to maintain a presence back above $50 since its early February bear gap.
5. The week continues with more earnings and data.

European Stocks Struggle Amid Geopolitical Tensions

Asian markets finished mostly higher on Wednesday as traders digested lower-than-expected new home prices in China. South Korea’s Kospi led gains, adding 6.2% as chip stocks rebounded. Elsewhere, Japan’s Nikkei jumped 1.5%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 1.4%, while China’s Shanghai shed 0.3%.

European stocks are trading lower as rising U.S.-Iran tensions weigh on investor sentiment, while losses in precious metal stocks offset energy-sector gains amid climbing oil prices. At last glance, London’s FTSE is off 0.2%, France’s CAC is down 0.1%, and Germany’s DAX is 0.6% lower.