Check out which companies are making headlines before the bell:
Bank of America – The bank reported quarterly profit of 25 cents per share, 6 cents below, with revenue falling below consensus as well. B of A's results were impacted in part by a drop in fixed income trading revenue.
BlackRock – The investment advisory firm earned an adjusted $4.82 per share for its fourth quarter, above estimates of $4.67, although revenue was slightly below consensus. BlackRock also raised its quarterly dividend by 13 percent to $2.18 per share and increased its stock buyback program.
Lennar – The home builder earned $1.07 per share for the fourth quarter, 11 cents above estimates, with revenue essentially inline. Lennar sold more homes at higher prices, and reported a 22 percent increase in new orders.
Best Buy – The electronics retailer had better than expected holiday season sales, but also said it would increase spending in order to promote sales growth.
Eli Lilly – Goldman upgraded Lilly to "neutral" from "sell", saying improving margins should keep the drug maker from underperforming its peers. At the same time, Goldman downgraded Johnson & Johnson to "sell" from "neutral", citing increasing headwinds for pharmaceutical growth.
Google – Google opened its domain name registration service to the public this week, after operating the service on an "invitation only" basis since last summer.
Groupon – Evercore upgraded Groupon to "hold" from "sell", pointing to more positive metrics such as user growth. At the same time, Evercore upgraded Yelp () to "hold" from "sell", citing a more attractive entry point, and improvement in unique visitor growth.
Corning – JPMorgan Chase upgraded Corning to "overweight" from "neutral", with Corning's glass TV screens seeing higher penetration in the Ultra High Definition TV market.
Apple – Apple was downgraded to "neutral" from "buy" at Mizuho, which said risk-reward is well balanced at the stock's current price level.
BlackBerry – BlackBerry remains on our watch list today, soaring yesterday on reports that Samsung had made a takeover overture, then retreating after-hours on denials by both sides.
Adobe Systems – The software producer announced a $2 billion stock buyback program that will last through the end of fiscal 2017.
RadioShack – The electronics retailer may file for bankruptcy protection as soon as next month, according to the Wall Street Journal.
BP – The oil company will cut several hundred jobs in its North Sea operations in response to lower oil prices, according to a BBC report.
Credit Suisse – The Swiss bank will ask U.S. regulators today to allow it to manage pensions. Permission would be required following the bank's guilty plea to criminal charges that it helped U.S. clients evade taxes.
Family Dollar – The retailer's deal to be acquired by Dollar Tree now has the approval of proxy advisory firm Glass Lewis, which has reversed its stance on the deal. During yesterday's trading day, proxy firm ISS had also changed its position and recommended that Family Dollar shareholders vote to approve the deal.
New York Times Co. – The newspaper publisher now has Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim as its largest shareholder, after he exercised warrants that doubled his stake to 16.8 percent.
Caesar Entertainment – The hotel and casino operator filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for its largest operating unit this morning, a move it had signaled Wednesday.