Stocks futures lose ground

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Stocks futures lost ground Monday as investors eyed weak results from home improvement retailer Lowe's and hoped for a plan to rescue bond insurer Ambac.

A little more than an hour before the start of trading, Nasdaq and S&P futures were mixed, with a comparison to fair value suggesting a slightly positive open for Wall Street.

Earlier, futures had climbed on hopes that a plan by big banks to bail out Ambac, which is struggling to hold on to its top-notch credit rating, would be announced shortly. Ambac (ABK) shares surged 34% in Frankfurt trading Monday.

Art Hogan, chief market analyst for Jefferies & Co., said the projected bailout of Ambac was one the most important factors driving the markets.

"A sliver of good news in the financials goes a log way in moving up the market," he said Hogan.

But futures lost momentum after Lowe's (LOW, Fortune 500) reported lower profit and sales. Lowe's said it earned $408 million in the fourth quarter, down from $613 million in the year-ago period. Sales fell to $10.38 billion from $10.41 billion.

Investors will be closely watching the speeches of two Federal Reserve officials. Fed Governor Randall Kroszner is due to speak at 9:50 a.m. ET. Fed Governor Frederic Mishkin is on tap to deliver a speech at 3:30 p.m. ET.

Also on the agenda is a report on January existing home sales. The report from the National Association of Realtors is slated for release at 10 a.m. ET. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com expect the report to show existing home sales slowed to an annual pace of 4.8 million.

Among stocks to watch, video game publisher Electronic Arts (ERTS) said Sunday it had raised its offer for rival Take-Two (TTWO) to $2 billion. Take-Two, the maker of the "Grand Theft Auto" video game rebuffed EA's takeover approach.

Biotech Genentech (DNA) could get a lift after the Food and Drug Administration approved its drug Avastin for the treatment of breast cancer on Friday. The drug was already on the market for the treatment of colorectal and lung cancer. Genentech's stock surged 9% in after-hours trading Friday.

Oil prices rose after the Turkish military launched an artillery attack across the border into Iraq against Kurdish rebels. A barrel of light, sweet crude for April delivery rose 35 cents to $99.16 a barrel in electronic trading.

The dollar gained against the euro and yen.

Japan's Nikkei rallied to finish the session 3% higher and European stocks jumped in morning trading.