Closing bell or warning bell -- it tolls for thee!

Once again the Dow is up and the NASDAQ is down. Yesterday I posted Dow up, NASDAQ down -- the run to quality continues and today it looks like more of the same. The Dow closed at 13,383.84, up 37.06, and the NASDAQ closed down 21.15 to 2,525.29.

Although the Dow was up, my own portfolios had more losers than winners, even though I do not have many tech or internet plays. The good thing about that: I may be able to pick up some stocks that are on my watch list that have been just out of the range but now look like more of a bargain. Value investors should all be doing the same thing; watch your watch list and, if you do not have one, create one.

I think it is not just Dow stocks that did well, but also very large companies that are doing better. While the Dow consists of large cap dividend-paying companies, it also includes two NASDAQ stocks: Intel Corp (INTC), down $0.11 to $22.01, and Microsoft Corp. (MSFT), up $0.03 to $30.90, so even that presents a mixed message.

If I was an analyst I would be writing that this market; with each of the indices heading down a different path; is in search of some 'leadership' or 'conviction'. In the absence of such we are drifting and muddling along without a rudder. To me that is another indication that things may be topped out. Still, I maintain that all that is just Wall Street lingo, and I am not an analyst, so I say just stick to watching stocks one by one strictly investing on a fundamental basis.

Those of you who are new to BloggingStocks can check out my other stories and read Chasing Value or Serious Money to find more potential opportunities and verify my track record as well.

Sheldon Liber is the CEO of a small private investment company and the vice president for design and research at an architecture & planning firm. Check out his other posts for BloggingStocks here.