What to watch today: Dow, S&P 500 set to rise, one day after closing at records

BY THE NUMBERS

U.S. stock futures pointed to gains at Tuesday's open, which would add to Wall Street's advance on the first trading day of the year after a strong 2021. The Dow and the S&P 500 each rose 0.6% on Monday, closing at record highs. The Nasdaq gained 1.2%, but it remained 1.4% away from its latest record finish in November. (CNBC)

* Cramer's 2022 outlook for the S&P 500′s 10 biggest losers in 2021 (CNBC)
* Cramer's 2022 outlook for the S&P 500′s 10 biggest winners last year (CNBC)
* Cramer: Don't rule out another strong 2022 stock rally after 2021′s gains (CNBC)
* Byron Wien releases his widely followed annual 'surprises' list (CNBC Pro)

Apple's (AAPL) premarket gain would put it over the $3 trillion market cap again. The tech giant became the first U.S. company to do so during Monday trading. But it just missed closing above that level. The milestone is mostly symbolic but it shows investors remain bullish on Apple stock and its ability to grow. (CNBC)

Bond yields jumped to start the year, with the 10-year Treasury yield topping 1.6% and continuing higher early Tuesday. At 10 a.m. ET, the Labor Department is set to release its latest Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey. JOLTS is expected to show 11.1 million job openings as of the end of November. (CNBC)

IN THE NEWS TODAY

The U.S. reported a record number of new Covid cases Monday, with more than 1 million new infections, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The record single-day total may be due in part to delayed reporting from over the holiday weekend. President Joe Biden on Tuesday is scheduled to meet with the White House Covid response team. (CNBC)

* WHO sees more evidence that omicron causes milder symptoms (CNBC)

The FDA on Monday expanded eligibility for Pfizer (PFE) and BioNTech (BNTX) booster shots to children 12 to 15 years old. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention still has to sign off. The CDC's expert advisory panel will meet Wednesday. (CNBC)

Also on Monday, the FDA shortened the time between the second Pfizer dose and the booster to five months, down from six months. The agency authorized a third vaccine dose as part of the primary series of shots for kids 5 to 11 with compromised immune systems.

Biden's overall disapproval rating reached a new high in December as more voters signaled unhappiness with his handling of the economy and the pandemic. The latest CNBC/Change Research poll showed 60% of respondents said they disapproved of Biden on the economy and 55% disapproved of his leadership during the Covid.

Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, a one-time billionaire and darling of Silicon Valley who promised a revolutionary blood-testing technology, has been found guilty of four of 11 charges in her criminal fraud trial. Deliberations lasted more than 50 hours over seven days. Holmes faces up to 20 years in prison. (CNBC)

Ford (F) will start accepting purchase orders this week for its F-150 Lightning electric pickup truck. It had previously shut down its reservation system for the truck due to an overwhelming response. Ford added 1.4% in the premarket. Ford said it will nearly double the annual production the F-150 Lightning. (AP)

* Toyota to launch its own automotive software platform by 2025 (Nikkei)

Tesla (TSLA) has opened a new sales and service center in the Xinjiang region of China, home to a Muslim population known as the Uyghurs, whom the U.N. and rights organizations identified as a repressed ethnic group. China has repeatedly dismissed those claims as "lies and disinformation." (CNBC)

* Activists urge Tesla to close new Xinjiang showroom (AP)

Warner Music (WMG) slid 4% in the premarket following news of an 8.6 million share sale by affiliates of stakeholder Access Industries. Warner Music will not receive any proceeds from the sale. Separately, Warner Music's publishing unit has purchased late British rock star David Bowie's entire catalog . (Reuters)

Michael Rubin's e-commerce company Fanatics has acquired Topps trading cards, sources close to the deal confirmed to CNBC last night. Terms of the agreement were not available, but industry sources put the deal at roughly $500 million. (CNBC)

A judge ruled against BlackBerry's (BB) bid to have a more than eight-year-old investor lawsuit thrown out. The suit claims BlackBerry, which now focuses on cybersecurity, inflated the success and profitability of its BlackBerry 10 smartphone. Separately, BlackBerry will end service for its classic devices Tuesday. (NBC News)

STOCKS TO WATCH

Foot Locker (FL) dropped 3.9% in the premarket after J.P. Morgan Securities downgraded the athletic footwear and apparel retailer to "underweight" from "neutral," pointing to cost pressures and tougher competition.

Under Armour (UAA) rose 2.5% in premarket trading after a Baird upgrade to "outperform" from "neutral." Baird said the athletic apparel maker's stock would benefit from a cyclical recovery in earnings.

Coca-Cola (KO) rose 1% in the premarket after Guggenheim upgraded the stock to "buy" from "neutral," citing a number of factors including strong emerging market performance and a faster-than-expected recovery in on-premises sales.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) was upgraded to "overweight" from "equal weight" at Barclays, which points to a number of factors including an attractive valuation for the enterprise technology company. Hewlett Packard Enterprise gained 2.3% in the premarket.

General Electric (GE) gained 1.4% in premarket trading after it was upgraded to "outperform" from "neutral" at Credit Suisse, with a price target of $122. Credit Suisse said a recent sell-off in GE shares gives investors the opportunity to benefit from a cyclical aerospace industry recovery.