The Week In Review
9/14-9/18/09
September 18, 2009U.S. stocks open higher once again on this triple witching day, with the major indexes on track for weekly gains of more than 2%, continuing the market's recent rise to new highs for the year. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 56 points to 9,840. P&G is up 3% on an upgrade. The S&P 500 Index climbed 5 points to 1,070, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 8 points to 2,135. Plenty of upgrades once again. In the tech sector Apple, Google, IBM, and Redhat were all upgraded. All four are higher. Texas Instruments is modestly higher after raising their dividend a penny. Palm is one of the few losers in the Dow, down 4% on disappointing earnings guidance. The financials are quiet this morning. Deutsche Bank was upgraded while Charles Schwab was downgraded. Both are lower. Discover, E-trade, and Lincoln Financial are modestly higher on upgrades. The homebuilders are modestly higher on a sector upgrade at JP Morgan. In the retail space Bed Bath & Beyond and Callaway are higher on upgrades. After the first hour the averages remain quiet. The Dow remained in the green by 20 points. The Nasdaq was unchanged. Through the morning and into the afternoon the averages improved. No sell off. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 36 points to end at 9,820, and up 2.2% for the week. The S&P 500 Index climbed 2 points to 1,068, for a weekly advance of 2.5%. The Nasdaq Composite rose 6 points to 2,132, for a weekly gain of 2.5%.
September 17, 2009
U.S. stocks sputter at the start following mostly upbeat economic data and earnings reports. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 12 points to 9,804. The S&P 500 inched up fractionally to 1,069 while the Nasdaq Composite held steady at 2,133. Plenty of upgrades as the analyst community warms up to the stock market. Within the financials Citigroup, US Bancorp, Bank of New York, Genworth, Suntrust, and PNC Financial were all upgraded. Citigroup is up 2%. Discover had solid earnings, but the stock is modestly lower. Within the tech sector Google, Intel, and AMD were upgraded. All three are higher. Oracle is lower by 3% following earnings last night. In the retail space Home Depot is up a percent on an upgrade. Pier One is up 9% after beating estimates. Dress Barn and Herman Miller are both down over 6% following earnings beats. FedEx is down a percent on in line earnings. In the commodity space, Nucor and Potash are higher on upgrades. After the
first half an hour, the averages received a jolt thanks to better than expected manufacturing data. The Dow jumped a quick 50 points. The Nasdaq moved into the green. After the first hour, the rally fizzled with the averages retreating to the unchanged level. Through the rest of the morning and into the afternoon, the averages hovered around the unchanged level. A select number of stocks are performing well like the oil refiner, Valero up 6%, Citigroup is up 5%, Bank of America is up 2%, and tech stocks Apple and Google keep pushing higher. In the last hour, the averages finished in the red, but not by much. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished down 7 points at 9,783. The S&P 500 Index declined 3 points to 1,065 while the Nasdaq Composite shed 6 points to 2,126.
September 16, 2009
U.S. stocks open modestly higher with a positive reading on industrial production in August helping fuel gains led by the energy and materials sectors. The industrial production has risen in back-to-back months for the first time since December 2007. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 38 points to 9,721. Caterpillar and GE have been on fire the last couple of days. Both are up 2% this morning. The S&P 500 gained 5 points to 1,057. The Nasdaq Composite rose 8 points to 2,111. Plenty of upgrades once again. In the tech sector Amazon, Broadcom, and Ebay were upgraded. All three are higher. Google, Apple, and Research in Motion push higher. Adobe is down 5% after beating earnings by a penny last night. Corning is modestly lower after announcing a $400 million acquisition of a bioscience firm. The financials are modestly higher this morning. Blackrock, American Express, and Capital One are modestly higher on upgrades. Wells Fargo is talking positively
on their merger with Wachovia. Legg Mason is higher after saying their assets under management have improved. KB Homes is up 2% after resuming operation in the Mid-Atlantic States. After the first half an hour the averages remain in the green. Through the morning and into the afternoon, the averages slowly built momentum pushing higher. Entering the last hour, the Dow was up 100 points. The Nasdaq improved by 27 points. Things are looking better and better. In the last hour the averages moved back toward the highs of the day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 108 points, or 1.1%, to finish at 9,791. The S&P 500 Index rose 16 points, or 1.5%, to 1,068 while the Nasdaq Composite jumped 30 points, or 1.5%, to close at 2,133.
September 15, 2009
U.S. stocks edged slightly higher after Tuesday's start, tentatively extending gains into a second day, as a healthy rise in U.S. retail sales in August helped lift investor sentiment. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 10 points to 9,637. The S&P 500 Index added a point to 1,050 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 3 points to 2,095. The retail sector looks good except for Best Buy which is down a percent after missing earnings estimates. Netflix is up 2% on an upgrade. The dog of the day goes to Kroger down 7% after missing earnings by 5 cents. The tech stocks are performing well. Ebay, Apple, Xerox, Yahoo, and Seagate are all higher on upgrades. Other upgrades this morning include Aetna, Carnival, and Norfolk Southern. The financials opened higher, then sold off. Citigroup is lower on news they want to raise more money to pay off part of the government's position. After the first half an hour, the rally fizzled. The Dow dropped as much as 40 points
into the red, but it didn't last. Through the morning the averages hovered around the unchanged level. Fed Chairman Bernanke declared the recession is over. That's good. In the afternoon, the averages crept into the green. Within the Dow, Caterpillar is up 5%, GE is up 4%, and DuPont is up 2%. In the last hour the Dow rose 80 points above 9700 before pulling back into the close. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 56 points at 9,683. The Nasdaq Composite gained 10 points to 2,102 while the S&P 500 gained 3 points to close 1,052. Today was the highest closes for the Dow and S&P 500 since October 6th of last year.
Sept 14, 2009
U.S. stocks on Monday started lower, with energy and financial shares down the most, as worries about a trade dispute weighed after news of U.S. tariff actions on Chinese tires. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 59 points to 9,546. The S&P 500 Index shed 6 points to 1,036, and the Nasdaq Composite declined 9 points to 2,071. In the commodity space, the fertilizer stocks are lower on downgrades. Teva Pharmaceuticals is lower on a downgrade. Campbell Soup is lower on an upgrade and downgrade. Plenty of upgrades this morning. In the tech sector Microsoft, Motorola, LSI Logic, and Computer Science were all upgraded. Only LSI is lower. Sycamore Networks is lower even though they beat earnings estimates. Other upgrades this morning include E-Trade, UPS, Under Armour, and Dreamworks. Only UPS is lower. In the healthcare space, Tenet Healthcare is higher after raising guidance. The good news seems to be helping. After the first half an hour, and through
the morning, the averages slowly recovered. In the afternoon, the remained in the red, but not by much. In the last hour, the resilient averages clawed their way into the green. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 21 points at 9,626. The S&P 500 Index rose 6 points to 1,049 while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 10 points to end at 2,091.