MannKind Corp (MNKD.O) shares were among the most actively traded in premarket on Thursday, after the company said it had closed a licensing agreement with Sanofi (SASY.PA) for the development and commercialization of its inhaled insulin product.

MannKind said it will receive a $150 million upfront payment within 10 days of the closing.

Shares were trading up 3.6 percent to $6.30 before the opening bell on volume of over 60,000 shares, putting it in the top-10 most actively traded issues on the Nasdaq.

Magnum Hunter (MHR.N) shares were surging 12.8 percent to $6.16 before the opening bell after the company announced its throughput volumes on its Eureka Hunter gas gathering pipeline system.

The gain would mark the biggest percentage jump for the stock since April 2013 should it hold throughout the session. Volume of 128,000 represents about 3.6 percent of its 50-day moving average.

U.S. stock index futures were little changed on Thursday, after the S&P 500 notched its biggest gain in a month, ahead of data on the labor market and durable goods.

The S&P 500 .SPX snapped a three-day losing skid on Wednesday in a broad advance, led by healthcare and biotech stocks, with gains in the housing sector also providing support after surprisingly strong data on the sector.

Weekly initial jobless claims data, due at 8:30 a.m. EDT), may provide investors with some insight on the health of the labor market. Expectations call for claims to rise to 300,000 from the 280,000 in the prior week.

Investors will also eye August durable goods data at 8:30 a.m. EDT. Expectations call for a decline of 18 percent after a 22.6 percent jump, its biggest gain on record, in July.

At 9:45 a.m. EDT, financial data firm Markit will release its preliminary services Purchasing Managers Index for September. The estimate stands at 59 against the final 59.5 reading posted for August.

Earnings are expected after the closing bell from Micron Technology (MU.O) and Nike Inc (NKE.N).