NEW YORK (CNN/Money) -
Stocks headed for a mixed open Thursday, as investors found disappointment in a weaker-than-expected report on the chip sector but were relieved by a stronger weekly reading on unemployment benefits claims.
Investors also mulled New York Stock Exchange Chairman Richard Grasso's resignation late Wednesday and the potential impact of approaching hurricane Isabel.
Just after 8:40 a.m. ET, futures pointed to a mixed open for major indexes.
A report on the semiconductor sector from an industry trade group came in weaker-than-expected after the close of trading Wednesday.
The book-to-bill ratio, which measures the number of orders booked for future delivery against those being immediately shipped, came in at 0.91. The reading from Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International missed Wall Street's average estimate.
Meanwhile, the government reported before the open that the number of new jobless claims last week slipped to 399,000 from a revised 428,000 in the prior week. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com expected the number to drop to 410,000. Economists consider any reading above 400,000 to indicate weakness in the labor market.
After the markets open, the Conference Board will issue its index of leading economic indicators for August. The anticipated 0.4 percent increase would match the rise in July. At about midday, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia puts out its regional activity report for September, and that index is projected to decline to 18 from 22.1 in August.
It's unclear if Grasso's resignation will have much of an impact on the day's trading. But institutional investors have been among those demanding his departure since it was revealed that he had a compensation package valued at $140 million, particularly in the wake of the corporate scandals that have roiled markets for the past two years.
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For details of Wednesday's session, click above
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Investors will be charting the damage done by Hurricane Isabel as it reaches the U.S. mainland across North Carolina's Outer Banks. Insurance, tourism and retail issues will be among those closely monitored.
Also in the insurance industry, MONY Group (MNY: Research, Estimates) has agreed to be acquired by the North American unit of France's AXA for $1.5 billion in cash. The deal values MONY at $31 a share, 5.7 percent above Wednesday's $29.33 closing price. Shares of MONY jumped more than 9 percent in pre-market trading on Instinet.
Among the handful of companies issuing corporate results before Thursday's open was investment banker Bear Stearns (BSC: Research, Estimates). The company posted a fiscal third-quarter profit of $2.30 a share, up from $1.23 a share in the same period last year and soaring past Wall Street's average estimate of to $1.65 a share, according to a consensus of analysts surveyed by First Call. Shares of Bear Stearns jumped more than 2 percent in pre-market trading.
Due after the close Thursday are sportswear maker Nike (NKE: Research, Estimates), handheld computer maker Palm (PALM: Research, Estimates) and computer systems developer 3Com (COMS: Research, Estimates).
Also among techs, the wireless sector could get a boost Thursday after U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray raised its rating on Motorola (MOT: Research, Estimates) to "outperform" from "market perform." Shares of Motorola rose 2.6 percent in pre-market trading.
Both the Dow Jones industrial average and Nasdaq composite index pulled back 0.2 percent after a disappointing forecast from DuPont (DD: Research, Estimates) and weakness in tech issues. (See chart for details.)
J.P. Morgan downgraded Dow component DuPont to "neutral" from "overweight" Thursday. Shares of DuPont fell $1.50 to $42.47 Wednesday.
Asian-Pacific stocks ended mostly lower, although Tokyo's Nikkei index managed a 0.4 percent gain to finish above 11,000 for the first time this year. European markets were mixed at midday there. (Check the latest on world markets.)
Among U.S. stocks trading in Europe, AOL Time Warner (AOL: Research, Estimates) fell less than 1 percent. The company could be known simply as "Time Warner" by day's end, as its board meets to decide whether to lop off the initial acronym representing the acquirer in the merger that created the world's largest media company. AOL Time Warner (or perhaps Time Warner if you read this in an archive) is the parent of CNN/Money and CNN.com.
Microsoft (MSFT: Research, Estimates) also tipped lower in Europe. The top software maker said it would increase its number of board directors to 10 from eight in an effort to strengthen its corporate governance controls.
Treasury prices rose in early trading, sending the 10-year note yield down to 4.12 percent from 4.17 percent late Wednesday. The dollar lost ground against the yen, but was little changed versus the euro.
Brent oil futures slipped 26 cents to $25.41 a barrel in London, where gold was higher.
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