Check out which companies are making headlines before the bell:
Gap — The parent of Gap, Banana Republic, and Old Navy apparel stores reported a two percent increase in comparable store sales for June. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had expected a 3.2 percent drop.
Intel — Bernstein upgraded the chipmaker's stock to "market perform" from "underperform," while cutting rival AMD to "underperform."
McDonald's — The restaurant chain said it would incur a $235 million charge against current quarter earnings, or about 20 cents per share, related to its previously announced plans to refranchise 4,000 restaurants by the end of 2018.
Polycom — The maker of video conferencing equipment ended its agreement to be bought by Mitel, after receiving what it considers a superior bid from Siris Capital Group. Siris will pay $12.50 per share in cash for each Polycom share, with Mitel waiving its right to match or exceed that offer.
Juno Therapeutics — Juno shares are under pressure after U.S. regulators put a trial of a Juno cancer drug on hold. That follows the deaths last week of two leukemia patients enrolled in the study.
Nintendo — Nintendo's new Pokemon mobile game has become the number one free app in Apple's iTunes store, following its U.S. debut Wednesday.
Barracuda Networks — Barracuda reported adjusted quarterly profit of 20 cents per share, well above estimates of 11 cents, with the provider of cloud security products also beating Street forecasts.
Volkswagen — The automaker will pay California $86 million in penalties related to its diesel emissions scandal, on top of the $14.7 billion previously reached with U.S. regulators.
Humana, Aetna — The two companies remain on watch today, after Humana tumbled 11 percent Thursday. That followed reports that the Justice Department has significant concerns about Aetna's proposed deal to buy Humana.
CF Industries —The fertilizer producer's stock was upgraded to "outperform" from "market perform" at BMO Capital Markets, which notes more solid recent prices for fertilizer.
Royal Dutch Shell — Reuters reports that Chief Executive Officer Ben van Beurden is warning that Britain's planned exit from the European Union could slow the oil giant's planned $30 billion asset sale.
HCP — Goldman Sachs upgraded the health care focused REIT to "neutral" from "sell," citing the planned spin-off of HCP's skilled nursing portfolio.
Apollo Education Group — The University of Phoenix operator reported quarterly profit of 37 cents per share, nine cents above estimates. The company said it will continue to look for efficiencies even after significantly reducing its cost base.
Helen of Troy — The beauty products seller reported adjusted quarterly profit of $1.27 per share, beating estimates of $1.11. However, sales were shy of forecasts, with CEO Julien Miniberg saying retail headwinds and macroeconomic uncertainties had intensified in parts of the company's business.
Questions? Comments? Email us at marketinsider@cnbc.com