Stock futures higher as earnings heat up

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock index futures were higher on Monday, indicating the S&P 500 could rebound from its worst one-day drop since June 29 on Friday, as earnings season kicks into high gear.

Investors have scoured quarterly earnings for clues on the strength of the economic recovery in light of flagging economic data. On Friday, U.S. stocks slid after dismal consumer sentiment data and anemic revenues from GE and two big banks.

This week, 12 Dow components and 122 S&P 500 companies are set to report quarterly results.

"What we really have here is a market that is trying to assess how much the economy has slowed and what that means in terms of future earnings growth," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Avalon Partners in New York.

"Once the market realizes that growth is not going to slow to the point where earnings will fall off a cliff, then the market will respond in a better tone."

S&P 500 futures rose 3.6 points and were above fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures gained 39 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures added 8.25 points.

Hasbro Inc reported higher-than-expected quarterly profit Monday morning as tight cost controls offset tepid sales. Shares were unchanged at $39.50 in premarket trade.

BP Plc has spent nearly $4 billion on efforts to tackle its leaking oil well in the Gulf of Mexico and aims to permanently kill the well in the first half of August. BP shares were off 2 percent to $36.37.

Halliburton Co , the No. 2 oilfield services company, kicked off earnings for a sector hurt by the blown-out BP well on which it did some work. Halliburton shares gained 3.5 percent to $28.47.

A number of computer and technology-related companies will report after the closing bell. International Business Machines Corp is in danger of missing the average Wall Street estimate for its second-quarter revenue as the weaker euro dents sales in Europe. The continent accounts for about 30 percent of revenue. Texas Instruments Inc is also due to report.

The NAHB Index, measuring sentiment on home building, is set to fall to 16 for July from 17 in June, according to a Reuters poll.

Private equity firms TPG and Carlyle Group won a bidding war for Australian hospital owner Healthscope Ltd , agreeing to pay $1.73 billion in the country's largest buyout deal since 2007, besting an offer from Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co .

Engineering and logistics services provider ATC Technology Corp agreed to be acquired by privately held GENCO Distribution System Inc for about $512.6 million in cash.

European shares turned positive Monday morning trade as energy shares cut early losses and miners advanced, tracking stronger metals prices.

Asian stocks fell Monday as the drop in U.S. consumer sentiment added to worries that its economic recovery is losing momentum, with the cautious tone also pulling the euro from two-month highs.

(Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

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