Gold rose Wednesday but shares of gold mining companies were mixed in premarket trading, indicating that optimism about the yellow metal is doesn't automatically transfer to companies that mine the precious commodity.

The broader stock market were poised to open higher.

Gold for December delivery on the CME Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose $3.10 to $1,788.10. Spot gold climbed $1.45 to $1,783.66.

Some large gold mining companies were higher in premarket trading, including Barrick Gold Corp., AngloGold Ashanti Ltd., Newmont Mining Corp., Kinross Gold Corp., Randgold Resources Ltd. But others were lower, including Goldcorp Inc. and Yamana Gold Inc.

Shares of exchange-traded funds backed by physical gold were lower, as well.

Meanwhile, stock index futures rose as investors focused on strong earnings reports from Target Corp. and Staples Inc. and as the euro climbed.

"We've seen some household names put out better earnings numbers this morning, and that's extremely constructive," Art Hogan, managing director of Lazard Capital Markets in New York told Reuters.

S&P 500 futures rose 3.5 points, above fair value, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures gained 40 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures fell 1.5 points.

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