Stock index futures edged higher on Tuesday following a two-day selloff as investors digested more corporate results and key data on consumer sentiment and home prices.

A flurry of companies are reporting results, including Johnson Controls Inc , Valero Energy Corp , United States Steel Corp , and Textron Inc .

On the macro side, investors awaited U.S. consumer confidence data for October, due at 10:00 am ET and the Case-Shiller home price indexes for August at 9:00 am ET.

The U.S. dollar slipped against a basket of currencies <.DXY>, retreating from the previous day's broad gains. U.S. equities and the dollar have moved in the opposite direction as of late with the weak dollar helping multinational companies with sales overseas.

Energy shares could be in the spotlight after BP Plc beat third-quarter earnings forecasts by a big margin as its cost-cutting program proved more successful than expected, prompting the oil major to increase its target for savings for the year.

Healthcare stocks could be pressured after Democratic U.S. Senate leader Harry Reid said on Monday the Senate's healthcare overhaul will include a government-run insurance plan that lets states opt out.

S&P 500 futures rose 2.7 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 24 points, while Nasdaq futures added 2.5 points.

Stocks fell for a second straight session on Monday as investors ditched home builders and financials on fears lawmakers may let a federal home buyer tax credit expire, while commodity shares succumbed to pressure from the higher U.S. dollar.

Without the home buyer credit, investors worry that the struggling housing market might lose a crucial incentive that has spurred hopes of stabilization in recent months.

The S&P 500 is now up 57.7 percent from the 12-year closing low of March 9, having slipped from its recovery peak when it was up 62.3 percent from that low.

(Reporting by Leah Schnurr; Editing by Padraic Cassidy)