Day Traders Diary

6/19/09


U.S. stocks started higher on Friday, adding to the prior session's gains, as investors shed recent worries about the economy in the wake of recent data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 54 points to 8,610. The S&P 500 Index added 7 points to 925, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 22 points, or 1.2%, to 1,829. The financials and insurance stocks are performing well for a second day. Hartford is up 4% on an upgrade. GE is modestly higher on encouraging comments regarding GE Capital. Dick Bove upgraded Citigroup, but unfortunately his price target is only $4 for the current year. The techs are performing well. Microsoft is up 3% on another upgrade. The analysts are warming up to the tech titan. Research in Motion is lower by 4% even though they beat earnings estimates last night. On the earnings front, Car Max is jumping 16% after beating estimates by 7 cents. In the commoditiy space, the fertilizers continue to struggle. Potash is lower by 2% on production cuts. Through the morning and into the afternoon, the Nasdaq remained strong. The financials still look good, but the Dow gave up all its' gains. In the last hour, the Nasdaq remained strong. The Dow tried a couple of times to get back in positive territory. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 15 points to end at 8,539, giving it a weekly loss of 3%. The S&P 500 added 2 points to 921, leaving it down 2.6% on the week. The Nasdaq Composite rose 19 points, or 1.1%, to end at 1,827, with the tech-heavy index off 1.7% for the week.

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