Day Traders Diary

4/29/11

U.S. stocks wobble at the start following disappointing earnings at Microsoft and lowered guidance from smart phone maker Research in Motion. The Dow Jones actually rose 25 points to 12,788 thanks to a 2.7% advance in Caterpillar following blowout earnings. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index added a point to 1,361 while the Nasdaq Composite added a fraction to 2,872. Its' the end of April and what a month it has been with all three major averages up 2-4%. However this morning we're seeing some profit-taking. A number of companies easily beat estimates with some raising guidance, yet the stocks are lower. Some of these examples include Crocs, Microsoft, VF Corp, Newell Rubbermaid, Coventry Health Care, Weyerhaeuser, Chevron, and Cliffs Natural Resources. The commodities in general are witnessing some profit-taking even though earnings are through the roof. The fertilizers are modestly higher. In the tech space Research in Motion and Microsoft are dragging down the sector. Apple is higher since they seem to be the main benefactor from Rimm's weakness. IBM continues to push higher. Resilient stock. KLA Tencor and Motorola Mobility are higher following earnings. An analyst raised their earnings estimates for Micron, but it doesn't seem to be helping. The financials remain stuck in the mud going nowhere. Goldman Sachs was upgraded, but the stock is at a seven month low. Homebuilder, DR Horton is up 2% on earnings. After the first hour the Dow pushed higher touching 12,800 for a new high. The Nasdaq is stuck in a rut around the unchanged level. Entering the lunch hour the Dow improved rallying over 40 points. Boeing, Caterpillar, American Express, and IBM are leading the blue chip average higher. Microsoft is the weakest component. Apple keeps rising lifting the Nasdaq into the green. In the afternoon the Dow rose as much as 64 points before pulling back in the last hour. The Nasdaq inched up 6 points before falling back into the red even as Apple kept rallying. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 47 points at 12,810. For the week, the Dow rose 2.4% and finished April up 4%, its heftiest monthly rise since December. The S&P 500 Index closed Friday up 3 points to 1,363, with energy the best performer of the index's 10 industry groups. The Nasdaq Composite Index on Friday edged up a point to 2,873. For the week, S&P 500 Index rose 2% and ended April up 2.9%. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.9% for the week, and posted a 3.3% rise in April.

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