U.S. stock futures pointed to a lower open on Thursday after the bankruptcy of General Growth Properties offset better-than-expected quarterly earnings from JPMorgan Chase & Co .

General Growth Properties Inc , the second largest U.S. mall owner, on Thursday filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection from its creditors, making it one of the biggest victims of the credit crisis yet. The companies shares fell more than 50 percent in premarket trade.

The General Growth news is a little disconcerting for the market, their bankruptcy returns some focus to the fact that for commercial property we are nowhere near out of the woods, said Rick Meckler, president of investment firm Liberty View Capital Management in Jersey City, New Jersey.

JP Morgan reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings that beat Wall Street estimates. Its shares, which are up nearly 19 percent since last Thursday when Wells Fargo said it expected to report a robust first-quarter profit, edged higher in trading before the bell.

The JP Morgan news, leaves people thinking at least there is no bad news, added Meckler.

S&P 500 futures fell 5.50 points and were below 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 fell 40 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures dropped 1.75 points.

(Reporting by Edward Krudy; Editing by Theodore d'Afflisio)

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