Stock futures flat in overnight trading after Wall Street notches seventh straight day of gains

Futures tied to major U.S. equity averages were little changed in overnight trading on Monday after days of gains on Wall Street pushed the S&P 500 within striking distance of a record high.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were little changed. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100 futures were also flat.

The 30-stock Dow gained about 350 points in regular trading on Monday, posting its seventh positive session in a row — its longest winning streak since September 2019. The S&P 500 gained 0.2{3c4481f38fc19dde56b7b1f4329b509c88239ba5565146922180ec5012de023f}, sitting just 0.9{3c4481f38fc19dde56b7b1f4329b509c88239ba5565146922180ec5012de023f} below its record high set in February. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq underperformed with a 0.4{3c4481f38fc19dde56b7b1f4329b509c88239ba5565146922180ec5012de023f} loss as investors rotated out of some of the high-fliers.

“Markets are looking forward to better days ahead,” Jeff Buchbinder, equity strategist at LPL Financial, said in a note. “Although the timing is uncertain, the stock market is expressing confidence that the pandemic will end eventually with a vaccine—or multiple vaccines—and with help from better treatments in the interim.”

Investors still grappled with the uncertain fate of further coronavirus stimulus aimed at supporting Americans struggling during the pandemic. 

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Monday the White House is open to resuming coronavirus aid talks with Democrats and putting more relief money on the table to reach a compromise. 

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Monday in a tweet that he hoped lawmakers will be finalizing the bill this week and that he’s glad President Donald Trump “stepped in to soften the blow of their hostage tactics.”

Over the weekend, Trump signed four executive orders to extend some coronavirus aid, including unemployment benefits, a payroll tax holiday, defer student loan payments through 2020 and extend the federal protections from evictions. 

“Given the limited scope of the deal and the positive market reaction, equity investors continue to embed a likelihood that a larger agreement is reached,” Mark Hackett Nationwide’s chief of investment research, said in a note on Monday.

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