The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq headed for a stronger open on Friday as chipmakers returned to the driver's seat in a volatile week that also marked the start of the fourth-quarter earnings season. .N

** Micron Technology Inc MU.O:BUZZ - Jumps; director buys shares worth $7.8 million nL6N3YH0LO

** QXO Inc QXO.N:BUZZ - Drops after $753 mln stock sale nL6N3YH0OS

** M&T Bank Corp MTB.N:BUZZ - Rises after Q4 profit boost nL6N3YH0QE

** J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc JBHT.O:BUZZ - Slumps after Q4 results; brokerages cut PT nL4N3YH0XO

** AST SpaceMobile Inc ASTS.O:BUZZ - Jumps after US Missile Defense Agency contract nL4N3YH0Z9

** J.M. Smucker Co SJM.N:

** Kraft Heinz Co KHC.O:BUZZ - Fall after Morgan Stanley downgrade, warns rising competition nL6N3YH0QX

** PNC Financial Services Group Inc PNC.N:BUZZ - Rises as Q4 profit surges nL6N3YH0RD

** Mosaic Co MOS.N:BUZZ - Dips on flagging North America fertilizer demand nL4N3YH11B

** Regions Financial Corp RF.N:BUZZ - Down after Q4 revenue miss nL6N3YH0R7

** ImmunityBio Inc IBRX.O:BUZZ - Rises on promising early cancer trial data nL4N3YH10R

** Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc HLT.N:

** Marriott International Inc MAR.O:

** Hyatt Hotels H.N:BUZZ - Barclays lifts PT on Hilton, Marriott over improved lodging outlook, cuts Hyatt nL4N3YH121

** EOG Resources Inc EOG.N:BUZZ - KeyBanc cuts EOG Resources to 'sector weight' nL4N3YE0XM

(Compiled by Sahil Pandey and Rajarshi Roy in Bengaluru)

((Sahil.Pandey@thomsonreuters.com))