The stock market saw another gainful day despite a reading that consumer sentiment hit a year low. Portugal default fears grew and Japan saw what made for two years of price drops for its consumers. It was pretty impressive to see that most global markets rose on the day. Bond yields were higher and gold failed to reach yesterday's highs.
Here were today's unofficial closing bell levels:
Dow Jones 12,220.59 +50.03 (0.41%)
S&P 500 1,313.80 +4.14 (0.32%)
Nasdaq 2,743.06 +6.64 (0.24%)
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FeedClosing Bell: From No Worries to Euphoria (ACN, CVX, CLH, EWJ, ORCL, RIMM, S)
Continue reading Closing Bell: From No Worries to Euphoria (ACN, CVX, CLH, EWJ, ORCL, RIMM, S)
Closing Bell: Bulls Take a Breather (DG, EE, EWJ, NFLX, PRAN, S, T)
A great three day rally went from news and excitement to what was really just a dull quiet day for the market as a whole. Earnings and analysts drove some shares but the news of a downed airplane in Libya and more unrest growing in the Middle East region just failed to make markets move so much.
Here were the unofficial closing bell levels:
Dow Jones 12,018.63 -17.90 (-0.15%)
S&P 500 1,293.77 -4.61 (-0.36%)
Nasdaq 2,683.87 -8.22 (-0.31%)
Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades
Continue reading Closing Bell: Bulls Take a Breather (DG, EE, EWJ, NFLX, PRAN, S, T)
Losers of the AT&T T-Mobile Deal
Yesterday's announcement of the AT&T (T) and T-Mobile deal gives both companies a clear "win" in the telecommunications sector. Who are the "losers"?
The tower companies have experienced downward pressure today, with American Tower (AMT) currently trading down over 8%, SBA Communications (SBAC) currently down over 10%, and Crown Castle International (CCI) currently hovering down almost 5%.
Turnaround Expert: A Six-Pack of Rebound Buys
"Even when the market is up a lot, you can always find some good stocks that have been left behind but could be on the verge of a rebound," says George Putnam.
The editor of The Turnaround Letter explains, "That's where we suggest you focus your efforts right now. These eight stocks all have strong business franchises and have all significantly lagged the market over the last two years.
"In fact, several of them are still trading near or even below where they were in early 2009. Here, we look at Bank of America (BAC), Best Buy (BBY), Campbell Soup (CPB), Cisco Systems (CSCO), Microsoft (MSFT) and Sprint Nextel (S).
Continue reading Turnaround Expert: A Six-Pack of Rebound Buys
Analyst Calls: AB, BG, CMG, CSCO, DF, EXPE, JLL, MU, NLSN, S, SO ...
- Interpublic Group (IPG) to buy from hold at Deutsche Bank.
- Radware (RDWR) to outperform from perform at Oppenheimer.
- Fluor (FLR) and Waddell & Reed (WDR) to buy from hold, as well as AllianceBernstein (AB) to hold from sell, at Citigroup.
- MetroCorp (MCBI) and American Capital (AGNC) to outperform from market perform at Keefe Bruyette.
- International Flavors (IFF) to overweight from equal weight at Barclays.
- BioCryst (BCRX) and Southern Company (SO) to buy from neutral at BofA/Merrill.
- Bunge (BG) to overweight from neutral at HSBC.
Continue reading Analyst Calls: AB, BG, CMG, CSCO, DF, EXPE, JLL, MU, NLSN, S, SO ...
Week in Preview: Coca-Cola, Disney and Hasbro Earnings
Things look to be pretty quiet on the economic calendar this week. Here are the highlights:
- Tuesday: Weekly chain-store sales
- Wednesday: Federal budget balance for January
- Thursday: Wholesale trade data in December
- Friday: Trade balance in December and the weekly inflation survey
However, three iconic companies -- Walt Disney (DIS), Coca-Cola (KO) and Hasbro (HAS) -- highlight this week's quarterly results. Here's a look at what analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters are anticipating from these and others.
Continue reading Week in Preview: Coca-Cola, Disney and Hasbro Earnings
Analyst Calls: AEP, CCL, CNI, D, FDX, HAS, INFY, MAT, RCL, S, T, UPS, VZ ...
- Dominion (D) to buy from hold at Deutsche Bank.
- Corinthian Colleges (COCO) to outperform from underperform at RBC Capital.
- Canadian National (CNI) to sector outperformer from sector performer at CIBC.
- DragonWave (DRWI) to buy from hold at Jefferies.
- Infosys (INFY) to overweight from equal weight at Morgan Stanley.
- SL Green Realty (SLG), Lexington Realty (LXP) and Taubman Centers (TCO) to overweight from neutral at JPMorgan.
- Sunstone Hotel (SHO) to buy from neutral and Extra Space Storage (EXR) to buy from hold at KeyBanc.
Continue reading Analyst Calls: AEP, CCL, CNI, D, FDX, HAS, INFY, MAT, RCL, S, T, UPS, VZ ...
Closing Bell: Mixed Gains into Tax Vote (ATVI, AAPL, FONR, FCEL, S, TMO, DNEX)
There was more focus this Monday, it seemed, on China's growth and attention on the tax vote than other issues. Ahead of tomorrow's FOMC meeting, we briefly had 10-year Treasury Notes at the highest yields since June. The FOMC was reportedly looking for $110 billion in Treasury purchases over the next month.Here were today's unofficial closing bell levels:
Dow Jones 11,428.49 +18.17 (0.16%)
S&P 500 1,240.49 +0.09 (0.01%)
Nasdaq 2,624.91 -12.63 (-0.48%)
Top Analyst Calls
Continue reading Closing Bell: Mixed Gains into Tax Vote (ATVI, AAPL, FONR, FCEL, S, TMO, DNEX)
Sprint Nextel: For High-Risk Investors, Only
Is the tide starting to turn for much-maligned mobile phone service provider Sprint Nextel (S)? Perhaps, and the carrier is worth a review.
First, the most important warning: Sprint is a high-risk stock not suitable for low-risk or moderate-risk investors.
Don't consider Sprint if you can't tolerate a more than 50% to 70% loss or seeing your entire investment wiped out -- it could happen.
Continue reading Sprint Nextel: For High-Risk Investors, Only
Analyst Calls: BRCD, CCE, DPS, HOV, JOYG, KMB, KO, PEP, S, ...
- Sprint (S) was upgraded to neutral from underweight at Piper Jaffray.
- Cree (CREE) was upgraded to outperform from market perform at Morgan Keegan.
- Brocade (BRCD) was upgraded to outperform from market perform at JMP Securities.
- JPMorgan upgraded WuXi PharmaTech (WX) to overweight from neutral.
- Barclays upgraded ITC Holdings (ITC) to overweight from equal weight.
- Centene (CNC) was upgraded to outperform from underperform at Oppenheimer.
- Senior Housing (SNH) was upgraded to buy from hold at Jefferies.
- UBS upgraded Hovnanian (HOV) to neutral from sell.
- GeoResources (GEOI) was upgraded to accumulate from neutral at Madison Williams.
- Compellent (CML) was upgraded to hold from sell at Canaccord.
Continue reading Analyst Calls: BRCD, CCE, DPS, HOV, JOYG, KMB, KO, PEP, S, ...
Analyst Calls: A, CQB, DDR, DF, LDK, NOC, RIMM, S, STRA, TTM, WDC ...
- Barclays upgraded Western Digital (WDC) to overweight from equal weight.
- LDK Solar (LDK) was upgraded to buy from hold at Needham.
- Legg Mason (LM) was upgraded to outperform from neutral at Macquarie.
- Agilent (A) was upgraded to buy from hold at Stifel Nicolaus.
- Wells Fargo upgraded Dean Foods (DF) to outperform from market perform and Developers Diversified (DDR) to market perform from underperform.
- Deutsche Bank also upgraded Developers Diversified, to buy from hold.
- Northrop Grumman (NOC) was upgraded to sell from conviction sell at Goldman.
- MYR Group (MYRG) was upgraded to buy from hold at BB&T.
Continue reading Analyst Calls: A, CQB, DDR, DF, LDK, NOC, RIMM, S, STRA, TTM, WDC ...
Clearwire May Auction Parts of Wireless Spectrum
Clearwire (CLWR - option chain) shares are rising today on reports that the company will auction some of its wireless spectrum in order to raise $2.5 billion to $5 billion. According to Bloomberg, potential bidders for the spectrum include AT&T (T), Verizon (VZ), Deutsche Telekom, Time Warner Cable (TWC) and Sprint (S). If you think that the stock won't fall by too much in the coming months, then now could be a good time to look at a bullish hedged trade on CLWR.
Continue reading Clearwire May Auction Parts of Wireless Spectrum
Best Buy to Resell Clearwire's Mobile Broadband
Now that Best Buy Co., Inc. (BBY) has made mobile a clear strategic priority for the largest consumer electronics retailer in the U.S., why not private label a broadband internet service and sell it? That's precisely what Best Buy is doing with Clearwire Corporation (CLWR), as it is taking the latter's 4G wireless nationwide network and branding its "Best Buy Connect" with that network.Continue reading Best Buy to Resell Clearwire's Mobile Broadband
Shares of RIMM Rise as NTP Slaps Competitors with Lawsuits
NTP, a Richmond, VA.-based company, has filed lawsuits against Apple (AAPL), Motorola (MOT), Microsoft (MSFT), Google (GOOG) and others, claiming that they all violate the patents this company holds. NTP, in recent years, has made a business out of suing wireless companies.The beneficiary? Research In Motion (RIMM) , whose stock rose 7% on the news.
Continue reading Shares of RIMM Rise as NTP Slaps Competitors with Lawsuits
Closing Bell: Dramatic Dow Drop of Nearly 1,000 Before Bounce Back (BAC, C, S, ORCL, MU)
The DJIA dropped almost 1,000 points just after 2.30 PM EST. The market briefly traded below 10,000 before quickly recovering by 400 points. Trading became so unsettled that Procter & Gamble (PG) lost 21% of its value in a matter of minutes and traded back to even after several more minutes had passed.The market may have been driven down by rumors that Germany might leave the Eurozone or that Europe's banks had stopped extending credit. Some traders said there may have been a breakdown in software at the NYSE. The firm denied it.
The few minutes between 2.30 and 2.45 are ones most traders will never forget.
Todays closing bell numbers:
Dow 10,519.79 -348.33 (-3.21%)
S&P 500 1,128.11 -37.76 (-3.24%)
Nasdaq 2,319.64 -82.65 (-3.44%)
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