Check out which companies are making headlines before the bell:
SanDisk—A judge has issued a preliminary injunction preventing Canada's Diablo Technologies from selling chipsets using chips made by SanDisk and other manufacturers. The case was brought by memory systems maker Netlist, which claims the Diablo chipset uses technology developed by Netlist.
Hilton Hotels—The hotel operator's stock was upgraded to "outperform" from "market perform" at Wells Fargo. Wells points to a number of potential positives, including the possibility of a real estate spinoff and sooner-than-expected repayment of debt.
MetLife—The insurer is suing the government over its designation as a systemically important financial institution.
IHS—The provider of business and information services reported quarterly profit of $1.68 per share, beating estimates by 13 cents, with revenue also above estimates. Its results were helped by an increase in subscription revenue.
Abbott Labs—Jefferies downgraded the drug maker's stock to "hold" from "buy," citing currency and other near-term headwinds as well as what it calls an "uncertain" merger and acquisition strategy.
Hewlett-Packard—Pacific Crest downgraded the stock to "sector perform" from "outperform," on both a valuation basis and what the firm terms "hyperconvergence risks."
Best Buy—Goldman Sachs upgraded Best Buy shares to "buy" from "neutral," saying it sees a 15 percent upside for the shares. Among the catalysts: a surge in sales of advanced technology television sets.
Apple—Credit Suisse upgraded Apple to "outperform" from "neutral," on what it terms solid and sustainable performance in iPhone sales.
Alcoa—The former Dow component reported quarterly profit of 33 cents per share, 4 cents above estimates. The aluminum producer's revenue also beat consensus, and Alcoa projected global aluminum demand growth of seven percent for 2015.
Wolverine Worldwide—The shoe retailer said its 2015 profit would be hurt by a stronger U.S. dollar and previously announced store closures. Wolverine said its 2014 earnings would come in at the "high end" of its prior outlook of $1.57 to $1.63 per share, and that 2015's numbers would be similar. That would put 2015 below consensus estimates of $1.77.
RadioShack—The company was offered a $500 million loan by Salus Capital Partners, according to the Wall Street Journal. The electronics retailer said in September that it might file for bankruptcy.
Toyota—The automaker is planning new assembly plants in China and Mexico, according to Reuters, ending a three-year moratorium on new plants.
Amazon.com—The online retailer has created 6,000 new jobs in Europe, thanks to strong demand. Amazon said those jobs are full-time, putting its permanent Europe staffing levels at 32,000. Separately, the stock was upgraded to "buy" from "neutral" at Citi, which called current valuation "attractive" and said Amazon can reverse recent trends and see rising profit margins once again.
Fresh Market—President and Chief Executive Officer Craig Carlock has left the company, with Chief Operating Officer Sean Crane taking over on an interim basis until a permanent successor is found. No reason was given for Carlock's departure.
Newmont Mining, Barrick Gold, Randgold—These and other gold producers are on watch today, as gold rises to a 12-week high.
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