Day Traders Diary

10/16/09


U.S. stocks declined sharply at Friday's start, with disappointing results from Bank of America, IBM, and General Electric. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 89 points to 9,973. Bank of America, IBM, and GE are all down over 4%. The S&P 500 declined 9 points to 1,086. The Nasdaq Composite lost 13 points to 2,160. In the tech sector, AMD is down 6% following another quarterly loss. Qualcomm and Adobe were upgraded, but both are modestly lower. AS mentioned IBM is lower as well. Not many stocks are higher except for GOOGLE. Google is jumping 3.5% to new highs after beating estimates handily last night. This morning at least four analysts upgraded the stock. In the retail space, Mattel is up 4% following earnings. Harley Davidson is higher on an upgrade. Petsmart, American Eagle, and Nordstrom were upgraded, but all three are lower. After the first hour, the Dow fell 93 points. The Nasdaq declined 24 points. Google remains the lone bright spot. Through the morning, more of the same. The averages pushed a little lower, Google pushed a little higher. In the afternoon the averages rebounded off the lows, but remained quiet. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished down 67 points, or 0.7%, at 9,995, leaving it with a weekly gain of 1.3%. The S&P 500 Index declined 8 points, or 0.8%, to close at 1,087, off 1.5% from last Friday's close. The Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 16 points, or 0.8%, to end at 2,156, a level that translates into a 0.8% weekly rise for the technology-laden index. Another great week.

All comments contained herein are for informational purposes only, and should not be considered as a solicitation to buy or sell any security. The firm does not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information or make any warranties regarding results from it's usage.