The Week In Review
03/19/12-03/23/12
March 23, 2012U.S. stocks began virtually flat Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 positioned for their largest weekly decline this year. The Dow Industrials dropped 13 points to 13,032. The S&P 500 fell half a point to 1,392. The Nasdaq Composite inched up to 3,063. On the earnings front Nike, Micron, and KB Homes are lower by more than 3%. All three have performed well to start the year. Elsewhere in the retail space Best Buy, Dollar General, and Gamestop are higher on positive comments. Michael Kors is down 3% after announcing a secondary offering. Lions Gate Entertainment is lower following the release of Hunger Games last night. The tech space is quiet on very little news. Even Apple is modestly lower. The financials are modestly higher. Goldman, Discover, Deutsche Bank, and Morgan Stanley are higher on upgrades. American Express is lower even though it was upgraded. The energy space is bouncing back following a couple down days. Silver Wheaton is higher by 5% even though they missed estimates. All the oils are higher. Mosaic is up 2% on an upgrade. Through the morning the averages battled back with the Dow moving into the green thanks to the financials, energy space, and healthcare. The Nasdaq is in the red, but not by much. One sector that doesn't want to verify the rally is transports. Oil is higher putting the transports into a 3% correction. Other than that everything is sunny. Through the morning into the afternoon the Dow pushed higher thanks to financials, energy, and materials. Telecom, transports, and techs are still struggling. The price of oil has rebounded up 1.6%. Through the rest of the afternoon the averages held on to modest gains. The averages don't want to close in the red. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 34 points to 13,080. It lost 1.2% for the week, its worst week since mid-December. The S&P 500 rose 4 points to 1,397. It lost 0.5% for the week, its worst week of the year and broke five straight weeks of gains. The Nasdaq Composite rose 4 points to 3,067.92, up 0.4% for the week
March 22, 2012
U.S. stocks started with declines Thursday, with the S&P 500 extending losses into a third session, after economic reports showing contractions in manufacturing in Europe and China. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 56 points to 13,069. The S&P 500 Index shed 7 points to 1,396. The Nasdaq Composite declined 14 points to 3,060. Weakness overseas is hitting the energy space, materials, and industrials. Exxon is lower on an upgrade. The price of oil is down nearly 2%. Gold Mining company, Randgold is down 11% on news the government in Mali has been overthrown. In the transportation sector, FedEx is down 4% following strong earnings, but cautious guidance. Royal Caribbean is lower on an upgrade. It looks like the transports are back in a correction. The best performing sectors this morning are utilities and consumer staples. Phillip Morris is higher by a percent to a new all time high. The retail sector continues to perform well. Dollar General is up 4% on earnings. Gamestop is also higher on earnings while Lululemon is lower following earnings. Through the morning the Dow dropped nearly 100 points before rebounding. The Nasdaq is performing better thanks to the techs. Google is acting great. IBM, Intel, and Microsoft are modestly higher while Apple is unchanged. Western Digital is up 3% on an upgrade. The financials are under a little bit of pressure. Discover is bucking the trend up 4% on strong earnings. In the entertainment space, Lions Gate is down 6% ahead of their blockbuster Hunger Games movie out at midnight tonight. In the afternoon the averages moved back toward the lows as energy, materials, and Industrials. Even Apple has fallen into the red. In the last hour the averages bounced off the lows, but still a down day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 78 points to 13,046. The S&P 500 lost 10 points to 1,392, its first close below 1,400 in just over a week. The Nasdaq Composite fell 12 points to 3,063.
March 21, 2012
U.S. stocks wavered Wednesday due on part to quiet markets overseas and limited news before the bell. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 10 points to 13,181. The S&P 500 Index added a point to 1,406. The Nasdaq Composite rose 6 points to 3,080. Another day another new high for Apple. Oracle also looks good following better than expected earnings last night. Micron is higher by 2% on an upgrade and agreeing to buy a Japanese firm. Rackspace is higher on an upgrade. LinkedIn is jumping 8% on an upgrade. The financials are holding up this morning. Hartford is higher by 4% after announcing they will wind down their annuity business. Annaly is higher after announcing their dividend. Hudson City Banc is lower even though it received an upgrade. Energy is the weakest sector so far. Baker Hughes is lower by 4% after lowering guidance. All the oils are lower. Through the morning the averages sold off as the US dollar perked up. The financials, techs, and telecom are resisting the sell off. AT&T is higher on an upgrade. During the lunch hour the averages rebounded with the Nasdaq nudging into the green thanks in part to Google. Oracle is going the other direction now in the red. The financials have also rebounded along with materials, consumer discretionary, transports, and telecom. Resilient market. Through the afternoon the averages held up by a select number of stocks. However, in the last hour the averages pulled back into the close. Even Apple dropped into the red. Amazing. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended down 45 points at 13,124, with H-P leading declines. The S&P 500 fell 2 points to 1,402, led by energy-share losses. The Nasdaq Composite rose a point to 3,075. The Nasdaq is up 18% for the year. Amazing.
March 20, 2012
U.S. stocks opened lower on Tuesday, with the S&P 500 retreating after a three-session rise, on signals China's economy is slowing. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 77 points to 13,162. The S&P 500 Index declined 8 points to 1,400. The Nasdaq Composite shed 21 points to 3,056. No matter what the excuse, the market needs a down day or two. It's not good to go up every day. The weakness in China is hitting the miners and other energy plays. The financials have been on fire, but are succumbing to profit-taking. Bank of America is rebounding as they don't have any intentions to issue more shares. Goldman is also higher. Jefferies is higher following earnings. The techs are lower including Apple. Wow. Apple did get an upgrade, shocker. F5 Networks is lower by 3% on a downgrade. Adobe is down 3% on in line quarterly guidance. In the retail space DSW is lower on earnings. Best Buy is down 2% on an upgrade. Through the first hour the Dow fell 100 points with the Nasdaq still on its' lows. The defensive sectors like utilities and consumer staples are the best performing areas. Through the morning the averages slowly improved as utilities and consumer staples pulled back. In the afternoon the averages kept improving. Apple moved into the green making a new all time high. The financials also turned around. Industrials, energy, and the transports are still in the red. In the last hour the Dow pulled back while the Nasdaq and Apple held up better. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 68 points to 13,170. The S&P 500 fell 4 points to 1,405. The Nasdaq Composite performed better, slipping just 4 points to 3,074.
March 19, 2012
U.S. stocks began mildly lower Monday following last week's advance to near four-year highs as Apple disclosed this morning they will start paying a dividend and buying back stock. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 18 points to 13,214. The S&P 500 Index shed a point to 1,403. The Nasdaq Composite declined a point to 3,053. We'll start as usual with Apple up over a percent just under its' all time high thanks in part to their comments and record ipad sales over the weekend. Qualcomm is higher thanks to a positive Barrons article. Fairchild Semi is higher on an upgrade. Google also looks good, but the rest of the techs are under some pressure. Ebay is lower by a percent on a downgrade. Sprint is down 4% on a downgrade as more companies struggle to compete with Apple. The financials and housing stocks continue to lead the market. Capital One is higher by 2% on an upgrade. Plenty of news in the retail space. Gap is trading at a new high on an upgrade. Yum Brands is modestly higher on an upgrade. Panera Bread was upgraded, but the stock is lower. Target issued a new share buyback and dividend, but the stock is lower. Dunkin Donuts is lower after issuing new shares. Through the morning the major averages improved moving into the green thanks to the financials and Apple. The energy space is higher. Devon Energy and Nucor are up 2% on upgrades. The materials also look good. Even the transports look good. UPS is up 3% after agreeing to acquire a European delivery company. All is well in the market. Amazing start to the year. Through the morning and into the afternoon the averages kept improving thanks to the financials, energy, and techs like Apple. In the last hour the Dow pulled back in part to Bank of America rumors of a secondary coming down the road. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 6 points at 13,239. The S&P 500 added 5 points to 1,409. The Nasdaq Composite rose 23 points, or 0.8%, to 3,078.