Check out which companies are making headlines before the bell:
Darden Restaurants–The restaurant operator earned 84 cents per share for its latest quarter, 10 cents short of estimates, with revenue in line. Those numbers include the results of Red Lobster, which Darden is now classifying as a "discontinued operation", but analysts had calculated their estimates including the soon-to-be-sold Red Lobster.
Family Dollar Stores — Activist investor Carl Icahn is demanding the company be put up for sale immediately. Family Dollar responded by saying it is always open to ideas to enhance shareholder value, and that it is still in the midst of an in-depth business review. The news on Family Dollar could impact the shares of rivals Dollar General and Dollar Tree.
Oracle–The company posted fiscal fourth-quarter earnings of 92 cents per share, excluding certain items, missing estimates by three cents. Revenue also came in below Street forecasts, disappointing investors who had expected more progress in Oracle's cloud computing business.
Shire–Shire rejected a takeover proposal from AbbVie, saying it undervalues the drug maker. AbbVie's offer values the British company at about $46 billion.
Molson Coors–Morgan Stanley upgraded the beer brewer's stock to "equal-weight" from "underweight," with current valuation in line with improving fundamentals.
AutoNation–Goldman Sachs upgraded the car retailer to "buy" from "neutral", based on a strong growth outlook.
Sprint–Sprint has reportedly lined up $40 billion in financing for a proposed buyout of T-Mobile US, according to Reuters.
Bristol-Myers Squibb, Gilead Sciences–The two companies will test a combination of their drugs in an attempt to develop a quicker hepatitis C treatment.
Nike–The athletic apparel and footwear maker appointed eBay CEO John Donahoe to its board of directors.
McDonald's–The fast food giant ranks last in a customer satisfaction survey for the 20th consecutive year. The American Customer Satisfaction Index of 12 fast food chains saw Papa John's and Yum Brands unit Pizza Hut tied for first place.
Coach–Coach will take a charge of $250– $300 million in the current quarter to close about 70 retail stores in North America. The luxury goods retailer said a substantial portion of those charges will be non-cash.
Smith & Wesson–The gun maker reported fourth quarter profit of 44 cents per share, beating estimates by 39 cents, with revenue coming in above consensus as well. But it also gave a much weaker than expected revenue forecast for the current quarter.
AK Steel–AK Steel warned that it will likely post a loss of two to six cents per share for the current quarter, compared to expectations of a 10 cent per share profit. The steel maker is citing severe winter weather as well as poor results from its hedging strategies. Ice on the Great Lakes delayed shipping and reduced supplies of iron ore during the quarter.
Alstom–Siemens and Mitsubishi raised their offer for the French company's energy business, countering an improved offer from General Electric.
Bank of America–The bank has reportedly asked U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder for a meeting between Holder and CEO Brian Moynihan, according to Reuters. The two sides are trying to work out a settlement over the ongoing case involving mortgage securities.
Twitter–Twitter is splitting the duties of departed chief operating officer Ali Rowghani between two executives, as Twitter tries to revive growth in its user base.
—By CNBC's Peter Schacknow
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