Day Traders Diary
10/19/10
U.S. stocks fell sharply Tuesday, bringing the Dow industrials below 11,000 for the first time in a week, as spectacular earnings from the likes of Apple had already been priced in to the market. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 146 points, or 1.3%, to 10.996. The S&P 500 declined 16 points, or 1.4%, to 1,168. The Nasdaq Composite declined 46 points, or 1.9%, to 2,434. The earnings are flooding in better than expected from the likes of Apple, IBM, VMware, and EMC. However, we are seriously due for a down day even though the news is good. We can't go up every day. IBM is down 3%. VMware is down 5%. Apple is down only 2%. Research in Motion is down 3% due in part to Apple bragging they sold more Iphones then Blackberries in the last quarter. That's not good for Research in Motion. In the financial sector Goldman Sachs and Bank of America beat estimates although it was less than a stellar quarter. Goldman opened higher while Bank of America opened unchanged. Bank of New York Mellon and State Street are lower after reporting earnings. Citigroup opened modestly lower after the Treasury reported they will start selling Citigroup shares once again. The commodity sector is getting hit for a second straight day. Peabody Energy and Occidental Petroleum are lower following earnings. Parker Hannifin is jumping 7% on strong earnings. Fluor is lower on a downgrade. Other companies reporting earnings today include New York Times, Illinois Tool Works, Forest Labs, J&J, Coke, Lockheed Martin, Harley Davidson, United Health Group, and Heinz. All are lower. In the retail space, Coldwater Creek is down 32% after lowering guidance. That stock does not look good. After the first hour the averages started to slowly recover with the Dow falling less than 100 points. After the first hour the averages sold back off. It just looks like a down day. Through the morning and into the afternoon the averages remain under pressure with the Dow falling 200 points. Yesterday in the middle of the afternoon, Bank of America instigated a rally. Today, Bank of America instigated a further sell off thanks to a lawsuit brought against them from other Wallstreet firms. Bank of America fell 4% while the Dow and Nasdaq moved back toward the lows of the day. In the last hour into the close the Dow improved even as Bank of America remained weak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished down 165 points to 10,978. The S&P 500 index dropped 18 points to 1,165. The Nasdaq Composite fell 43 points to 2,436.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.