Day Traders Diary

8/10/09

U.S. stocks opened slightly lower on Monday, hit bit a bout of profit taking from last week's gains ahead of what is expected to be a busy week, including the Federal Reserve's monetary policy meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 23 points to 9,349. McDonalds is bucking the trend, trading up 2% on strong monthly sales. The S&P 500 index lost 2 points to 1,007, while the Nasdaq Composite dipped 4 points to 1,996. The government owned companies are performing well. Freddie Mac is up 71% after reporting a profit. Can the government manipulate their own numbers? Freddies good news is lifting Fannie Mae and AIG. The banks opened lower, but quickly turned around. Capital One is higher on an upgrade. On the earnings front Pricline is up 12% after beating estimates. Hormel is up 6% after beating estimates and lifting guidance. Sysco, Allied Capital, and Berkshire Hathaway are lower following earnings. A couple of downgrades are hitting Best Buy and Research in Motion. Both down over 3%. After the first half an hour, the averages remained in the red, but not by much. The financials look good. Through the morning and into the afternoon, the averages did not budge. In the last hour more the same. No end of the day rally, but the financials are holding firm. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished down 32 points at 9,337. The S&P 500 index declined 3 points to 1,007 while the Nasdaq Composite dipped 8 points to 1,992.

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