The Week In Review
10/26-10/30/09
October 30, 2009U.S. stocks open lower following a strong rebound yesterday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 53 points to 9,911. The S&P 500 shed 5 points to 1,060. The Nasdaq Composite fell 4 points to 2,092. Better than expected economic data and earnings reports are not helping this morning. A few stocks are higher following earnings including Hertz, Alliance Bernstein, Harmon, Genworth, and Cummins Engine. Harmon International is up 18%. Stocks trading lower following earnings include Sony, Tim Hortons, Duke Energy, Novatel Wireless, YRC Worldwide, NiSource, and Metlife. Metlife is down 6%. Novatel Wireless is down 25% even though Barrons last weekend promoted the stock. Oohs. After the first hour, the averages pushed lower. The Dow dropped 90 points. The Nasdaq declined 15 points. Part of the sell off is due to the rebound in the U.S. dollar. In the afternoon the Dow kept selling off giving back all of yesterday's gains. Nothing looks good anymore. An analyst indicated that Citigroup could write down $10 billion next quarter. Citigroup denied such a claim, but the damage had been done. In the last hour the Dow dropped 277 points, then rebounded, only to sell back off. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 249 points, or 2.5%, to end at 9,712, leaving it off 2.6% for the week and effectively flat for October. The hit was the worst single-day point drop for the blue chips since April 20. The S&P 500 declined 29 points, or 2.8%, to close at 1,036, a weekly loss of 4% and a 2% monthly decline. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 52 points, or 2.5%, to close at 2,045, down 5.1% from the week-ago close and off 3.6% for the month.
October 29, 2009
U.S. stocks opened solidly higher on Thursday, regaining some traction after a 4% slide in the last two weeks. A better than expected third quarter GDP number of 3.5% ease many fears of a slower than expected economic rebound. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 58 points to 9,820. ExxonMobil is one of the few Dow components trading lower following earnings. P&G is shooting up 3% on solid earning. The S&P 500 Index gained 7 points to 1,049 while the Nasdaq Composite rose 15 points to 2,075. Everything looks pretty good this morning. The financials are rebounding nicely. Lincoln Finanical is up 11% on better than expected earnings. Aflac is up 4% on solid earnings. Annaly Mortgage is up 3% on better than expected earnings. The techs are rebounding nicely. Symantec, Akamai, and Motorola are all up 10% following earnings. Intel and Texas Instruments were downgraded yesterday. Today they were upgraded. LSI Logic is up 7% thanks to better than expected earnings. After the first half an hour the Dow jumped another 50 points, now up 100 points. Nice rebound. The Nasdaq rose 30 points. Plenty of other earnings this morning from Apache, Kellogg, Noble Energy, Waste Management, Office Depot, Newmont Mining, Aetna, and Pride International. All are trading higher. A few stocks are modestly lower following earnings including Auto Nation, Burger King, and Sprint/Nextel. Through the morning the averages remained strong near the highs of the day. During the lunch hour the Dow jumped another 50 points, now up 150 points. Not bad. The Nasdaq rose 33 points. The insurance stocks are looking good. Metlife is up 6% ahead of earnings tonight. In the last hour the Dow pushed up another 50 points. Nice. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 199 points, or 2.1%, at 9,962 its greatest single-day point and percent gain since July 15. The S&P 500 Index rose 23 points, or 2.3%, to 1,066, snapping a four-day losing streak and leaving it slightly up for the not-yet-ended month. The Nasdaq Composite rose 37 points, or 1.8%, to close at 2,097.
October 28, 2009
U.S. stocks slipped at Wednesday's start, with energy and technology shares leading the decline, as investors grew cautious about the strength of the economic rebound. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 21 points to 9,860. The S&P 500 Index declined 3 points to 1,059 while the Nasdaq Composite Index lost 13 points to 2,103. Plenty of earnings this morning, but investors are more app to sell on the news today. Visa is the exception trading up 5% after beating estimates by 2 cents. Mastercard is higher in sympathy. Most of the financials are lower. Lazard is lower following earnings. In the commodity space earnings are flooding in from Petro China, Hess, Conoco Phillips, International Paper, Valero, Southern Company, and Arcelor Mittal. Most are lower. AK Steel was upgraded, but the stock is lower. In the retail space Owens Corning, Newell Rubbermaid, Travel Zoo, Peets Coffee, Goodyear Tire, Ashland, Buffalo Wild Wing, and Ace Limited reported earnings. Peets Coffee is up 14% while Goodyear is down 16%. Target is higher on an upgrade. In the tech sector more of the same. Intel, Nvidia, Texas Instruments, and Sandisk were all downgraded. It seems like the analysts just warmed up to these stocks only a few weeks ago. RF Micro Devices is up 5% on an upgrade. At 10 o'clock, weaker than expected housing data sent the major averages lower. After the first hour the Dow and the Nasdaq were both down 18 points. Through the morning and into the afternoon the averages moved lower. The Dow dropped 100 points. The Nasdaq declined 54 points. Defensive stocks are performing well like AT&T, Verizon, Altria, and Philip Morris. In the last hour no rebound. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished down 119 points at 9,762. The S&P 500 Index declined 20 points, or 2%, to 1,042, with the broad market gauge losing its gains for October. The Nasdaq Composite lost 56 points, or 2.7%, to close at 2,059.
October 27, 2009
U.S. stocks rebound today following a couple of down days in a row. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 46 points to 9,914. The S&P 500 Index gained 4 points to 1,071. The Nasdaq Composite rose 4 points to 2,146. The earning season is winding down. A number of retailers reported earnings this morning. Lululemon is up 8% following earnings while Dollar Thrifty and Under Armour are both down over 6% this morning. Commodity companies BP, AK Steel, Valero, U.S. Steel, and CF Industries all reported this morning. BP is up 3% while the rest are trading down. The casino business continues to struggle. Wynn Resorts is down 7% following earnings. In the financial sector, Ben Franklin and TD Ameritrade are down following earnings. A disappointing consumer confidence number out at 10 o'clock sent the major averages into the red. In the tech sector, Baidu is down 13% on weak guidance. Google and Yahoo are lower in sympathy. After the first hour the Dow was able to rebound into the green thanks to Chevron, ExxonMobil, Verizon, and JP Morgan. IBM pushed the Dow higher after announcing a $5 billion share buyback. The healthcare stocks are demonstrating some strength on a delay in the healthcare bill. Through the morning and into the afternoon the Dow remain in the green. The Nasdaq is clearly struggling, falling into the red. In the last hour more of the same. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 14 points to 9,882. The S&P 500 Index fell 3 points to 1,063. The Nasdaq Composite fell 25 points, or 1.2%, to close at 2,116.
October 26, 2009
U.S. stocks started Monday modestly higher, with energy and tech shares fronting the gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 24 points to 9,996. The S&P 500 Index gained 3 points to 1,082, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 9 points to 2,164. Barrons over the weekend was particularly positive on the tech sector. Riverbed Tech, Red Hat, 3Par, NetApps, and Juniper Networks are all higher on an article in Barrons indicating these companies are takeover targets. Wireless modem maker, Novatel is jumping 11% on a positive article in Barrons ahead of earnings on Thursday. Corning is higher following better than expected earnings this morning. Microsoft is up 2% on an upgrade. Chipmaker, Marvell is up 4% after raising guidance. Apple, Google, IBM, and Research in Motion are all higher. The commodities are all higher. Mosaic is higher after announcing a special one time dividend. The financials are mixed this morning. American Express is up 2% on an upgrade. The big banks are lower on regulation concerns. Fifth Third and SunTrust are lower on downgrades. After the first half an hour the Dow jumped 100 points. The Nasdaq rose 27 points. In the retail space, Radio Shack is up 13% following earnings. TJX is up 2% on a positive article in Barrons. This is a Barrons led rally. Through the morning the averages held firm until shortly before the lunch hour when the averages reversed course thanks to a rebound in the US dollar. The financials are weak. The techs are holding firm. During the lunch hour the Dow dropped 100 points for a 200 point reversal. The Nasdaq dipped modestly in the red. Through the afternoon the averages remained weak near the lows of the day. Nothing changed in the last hour. The Dow finished at 9,867.96, off 104 points, or 1.1%. The S&P 500 shed 12 points, or 1.2%, to close at 1,066, and the Nasdaq Composite declined 12 points, or 0.6%, to close at 2,141.