Russell 2000 futures lower

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) futures are pointing lower and the small-cap index will be weighed down by feeble earnings from Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) and Bank of America (NYSE: BAC).

Bank of America Corp.’s third-quarter net income plunged 32% due to write-downs on leveraged buyout loans and higher credit loss provisions. The firm’s third-quarter profit was $3.7 billion, or $0.82 per share, below analyst expectations of $1.06 per share and from $5.4 billion, or $1.18 per share, during the same period of 2006.

In other bearish news, Pfizer Inc.’s third-quarter net income plummeted 77%, due to a $2.8 billion charge related to the company exiting its insulin product Exubera. The company made the decision to exit Exubera because of intense competition from generic competitors. Pfizer’s third-quarter net income totaled $0.76 billion, or $0.11 per share, below Wall Street projections of $0.52 per share and from $3.36 billion, or $0.46 per share, a year earlier.

At 8:30 a.m., the U.S. Department of Labor said the number of Americans filing first-time applications for state unemployment benefits increased beyond economists’ expectations. For the week ended Oct. 13, the number of initial jobless claims rose to 337,000, above a forecast 315,000 and compared with 309,000 during the prior week.

Here are the biggest percentage gainers and losers in pre-market trading among companies with a market cap below $750 million:

Biggest percentage gainers:

• WSI Industries, Inc. (WSCI), up 23.8%.
• Fonar Corp. (FONR), up 19%.
• HSW International Inc. (HSWI), up 19%.

Biggest percentage losers:

• LK International Inc. (JADE), down 20.5%.
• Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR), down 18.3%.
• Syneron Medical Ltd. (ELOS), down 15%.

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