Today Wall Street managed yet another day of gains. It seems that the confirmation of Tim Geithner as Treasury Secretary offset all of the negative data. Financials also had a decent day that seemed to trump all of the dismal earnings announcements from other giant companies. Here are today's unofficial closing bell levels:
Top Analyst Downgrades
Texas Instruments Inc. (NYSE: TXN) rose after the chip maker gave earnings that were only "about as disappointing" as expected. The company is trimming costs and cutting about 3,400 jobs. Shares were up over 4% at $15.39 before the close.
American Express Inc. (NYSE: AXP) saw a sharp rise today after posting a drop of almost 80% in its net income for the quarter. Despite softer credit conditions and higher charge-offs, none of the losses were so bad that they would seem unmanageable by the credit card giant. Shares were up over 10% at $16.74 right before the close.
Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) was one of the better earnings surprises out there. It turns out the company is somewhat of a recession-beneficiary play as it posted a 45% gain to quarterly profits and cut its expenses. Shares were up about 16% at $34.97 before the close.
Valero Energy Corp. (NYSE: VLO) took it right on the chin, and shares were down 6% at $24.25 right before the close. The company beat its earnings estimates from operations, but the headline data spooked anyone with any sense. The company posted a loss of multi-billions after charges due to impairments and writedowns.
CV Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: CVTX) was up 36% at $15.54 at the end of the day after Astellas sent a letter taking a $16.00 cash takeover price.
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