From Briefing.com: The tech sector was dominated by Amazon (AMZN 533.60, +51.42) quarterly results, reported last night. Tech/online retail name AMZN rallied big in after-hour trade last night, and continued that strength into early trade, making all-time highs. It was an impressive quarter by all means, reporting an EPS profit to the tune of $0.19 per share. Revenues were also strong for the company, ending the three month period up 19.9% over last year at $23.18 billion. The stock gave up most of the early-trading gains, though, and ended the session off the intraday highs but still in the green +9.80%.
Today/overnight in the technology space, there were earnings aplenty. Shares of many tech names saw either the highest of highs or the lowest of lows following quarterly results. Specifically, names like NetGear (NTGR 33.85, +5.10) and NetSuite (N 99.73, +7.71) traded higher following upbeat earnings. The lowest of lows came to the tune of names like Unisys (UIS 16.55, -3.20) and Constant Contact (CTCT 25.86, -3.67).
Among tech bellwethers, shares of CSCO and FB were relatively strong on no particular news. CSCO, a top weighted component of the HACK ETF, which was also notably strong today, ended the session up by about 1.54%. Social media giant FB traded higher today ending the session +1.63%; FB was mentioned positively last night by Cramer on Mad Money.
Also in social media, shares of Twitter (TWTR 35.42, -0.77) ended about 2.14% down following the company's announcement that it would introduce event based ad targeting. Twitter will report Q2 earnings this coming week on July 28, after the market closes.
Of broader importance, Semis were notably weak today. The SOX and SMH indexes were notably weak today and ended the session down 1.99% and 2.31% respectively. Among semi stocks, MXIM reported Q4 results last night after the close - ending a mixed quarter with EPS of $0.43 and revenues of $582.51 million. Also in semis, SWKS reported better than expected Q3 results, yet traded most of the day notably lower than the sector. Some analysts were out today noting better than expected earnings across the space, and that we may be seeing some profit taking.
In late action, the AT&T (T 34.30, +0.39)/DirecTV (DTV 93.55, +1.35) merger was approved by the FCC. This was largely expected as earlier this week, FCC Chairman passed along an approval recommendation to the FCC Commissioners.
It has been a rough week for equities, and the weekend couldn't come soon enough. The Nasdaq, S&P 500 and Dow all ended notably lower on the week. The XLK, SMH, and SOX mirrored the broader market weakness, as the first busy week in quarterly earnings draws to a close.
Notable news/earnings among Nasdaq 100 components:
DIRECTV (DTV 93.41, +1.22) -- FCC releases statement of commissioner Michael O'Rielly on the AT&T (T 34.30, +0.39)/DTV merger application; says 'process should not have taken this long'
Vodafone PLC (VOD 36.91, +0.72) reported Q2 revenues of EUR 10.113 bln -0.9% on reported basis. India: Service revenue increased 6.9% (Q4: 11.7%), with the growth rate slowing due to the impact of regulation, including an MTR cut. Excluding MTRs, service revenue grew by 10.6%* (Q4: 13.2%), with continued customer base growth and an acceleration in the take-up of 3G offsetting continued pressure on voice pricing.The company also reaffirmed certain FY16 outlook guidanceAltera (ALTR 49.10, -0.33) -- reported Q2 (Jun) earnings of $0.23 per share on revenues fell 15.7% year/year to $414.2 mln
Intel (INTC 28.09, -0.50) - reports were out last night that discussed INTC might be a possible suitor for Qualcomm's (QCOM 61.65, -0.12) chip unit.QCOM, on July 22, announced a plan outlining strategic alternatives aimed at reviewing alternative for the corporate and financial structureYahoo! (YHOO 38.83, -0.38) in late trade, reports surfaced mentioning YHOO would introduce a new consumer product on July 29.
Other news in the tech space:
WAVX ( 0.24, -0.03) filed a hearing request before the NASDAQ Listing Qualifications Panel regarding the Company's continued non-compliance with the minimum $1.00 bid price requirement.
CLS (12.82, +1.14) entered into an agreement for the sale of its property located in Toronto, Ontario, which includes the site of Celestica's corporate headquarters and its Toronto manufacturing operations. If the transaction is completed, the purchase price will be ~CDN$137 million.
SFE (17.21, -0.97) disclosed receipt of a Civil Investigation Demand-Documentary Material from the DOJ regarding its relationship with Advanced BioHealing.
LQDT (9.25, -0.35) announced the appointment of Jorge Celaya as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (CFO), effective August 10, 2015.
Notable analyst moves:
JNPR was upgraded to Neutral from Sell at MKM Partners,
INFY was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Macquarie,
MXIM was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at BofA/Merrill; CTCT was downgraded at Oppenheimer and Robert W. Baird, TRUE was downgraded at Craig Hallum, Goldman, RBC Capital Mkts, and JP Morgan
Weekly Recap - Week ending 24-Jul-15We saw more of the same this week, which is to say the equity market couldn't maintain the momentum of the prior week's strong gains. To wit, the S&P followed up a 2.4% gain last week with a 2.2% decline this week.
This roller-coaster action has been the modus operandi this year as market participants have grappled with valuation concerns, volatility in the economic data, and the Federal Reserve's stated hope to be able to raise the fed funds rate before the end of the year.
In the five sessions completed this week, there was only one that resulted in gains for all three major indices. That was Monday and the gains were quite modest with the Dow Jones Industrial Average adding 14 points, the Nasdaq Composite increasing 9 points, and the S&P 500 jumping just 2 points. Over the remaining four sessions, the Dow, Nasdaq, and S&P 500 would shed a total of 531, 130, and 49 points, respectively.
Those declines flowed primarily from a series of earnings reports from widely-held companies that were deemed either not good enough, disappointing, or really disappointing.
Apple (AAPL) fit the first bill. Its fiscal third quarter results actually exceeded consensus expectations for both revenue and earnings per share, yet the margin by which the company beat was not as large as quarters past; moreover, Apple followed its traditional form and issued conservative revenue guidance for its fiscal fourth quarter.
That combination took the wind out of its stock, which had risen ten points, or 9%, in the eight sessions leading up to its report.
Apple essentially fell victim to runaway expectations and felt the brunt of some profit taking following its report. In fact, Apple declined as much as 7% on the day of its earnings report. It would eventually pare some of those losses, but it still ended the week 4.0% lower, which was a major drag on the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 considering it is the most heavily-weighted stock in both indexes.
Fellow Dow components Caterpillar (CAT) and 3M (MMM) dropped into the realm of posting disappointing results and/or guidance.
IBM (IBM), though, took the Dow cake in terms of producing really disappointing results. Big Blue dropped 10 points alone on Tuesday following its report, which featured the 13th straight year-over-year decline in quarterly revenue. That loss spearheaded a 181-point decline in the Dow on Tuesday. For the week, IBM fell nearly 13 points or 7.4%.
IBM's weakness paled in comparison to leading biotech company Biogen Idec (BIIB). It plummeted 22% on Friday after the company provided the really disappointing update that it is cutting its FY15 revenue and EPS guidance below current consensus estimates because of a moderation in demand for its multiple sclerosis drug TECFIDERA.
Biogen took the wind out of the biotech group's sales as valuation concerns kicked in following Biogen's disappointment. The iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF (IBB) fell 4.0% on Friday and 5.0% for the week.
There were a decent number of pleasing earnings reports, too. Amazon.com (AMZN), Visa (V), Starbucks (SBUX), and Juniper Networks (JNPR) fit that bill to cite a few examples.
Still, their encouraging results and price gains at the end of the week weren't enough to overcome the shroud of disappointment that set in when the S&P 500 once again failed to break out to the upside and confirm the new high set previously by the Nasdaq Composite.
The understanding that Apple -- perhaps the most loved and widely-held stock around -- couldn't do that heavy lifting after its otherwise very good earnings results pretty much put a lid on buyers' enthusiasm the remainder of the week -- an enthusiasm that was tamped down further by some disappointing economic data late in the week, namely the Flash PMI report out of China, which hit a 15-month low, and the New Home Sales report for June in the U.S., which showed a 6.8% decline in sales to 482,000 units.
To be fair, the Existing Home Sales report for June on Wednesday was stronger than expected, with sales hitting their highest level since February 2007. That is the more important of the two housing reports this week since existing home sales account for roughly 90% of all home sales, yet the negative tone had been cast on Friday by Biogen and the Chinese PMI data by the time the new home sales results hit the wires, leaving market participants one more reason to take some money off the table.
The best report of the week, however, was the initial claims report. It can be stated as such knowing that the 255,000 initial claims for the week ending July 18 were the lowest level of initial claims since November 1973!
That good news got glossed over though due to the continued fallout in commodity prices, which some pundits feel are a harbinger of future economic weakness that has not been accounted for in stock prices. Crude futures for one fell 4.8% for the week to $48.45 per barrel and are in a bear market having fallen more than 20% now from their June peak. Gold futures, meanwhile, declined 4.0% to $1085.60/troy ounce.
In closing, then, the stock market had a tough week this week as economic growth and valuation concerns weighed on investor psychology.
Index Started Week Ended Week Change % Change YTD %
DJIA 18086.45 17568.53 -517.92 -2.9 -1.4
Nasdaq 5210.14 5088.63 -121.51 -2.3 7.4
S&P 500 2126.64 2079.65 -46.99 -2.2 1.0
Russell 2000 1267.09 1225.99 -41.10 -3.2 1.8
4:20 pm Closing Summary: Economic Growth and Valuation Concerns Clip Market (:WRAPX) : It can't be said that the week closed on a high note -- certainly not for the broader market anyway. There were some individual standouts like Amazon.com (AMZN 530.50, +48.32), Visa (V 74.80, +3.05), Starbucks (SBUX 57.32, +0.76), and Juniper Networks (JNPR 27.54, +1.05), which impressed investors with their earnings results, yet there were far more losers on Friday than winners as economic slowdown concerns and valuation concerns got the better of market participants.
The slowdown concerns were rooted in a variety of factors:
The Flash PMI reading for China dropping to a 15-month low of 48.2 in July and signaling a contraction in manufacturing activityWeaker than expected PMI readings out of Germany and France that pointed to a deceleration in growth momentumThe continued drop in crude futures ($48.13, -0.26), which traded further into bear market territory having fallen more than 20% from their June peak; andThe disappointing report on new home sales in the U.S., which declined 6.8% in June to 482,000 units (Briefing.com consensus 550,000)The valuation concerns, meanwhile, revolved in large part around two factors:
Biogen Idec (BIIB 299.85, -85.20) cutting its FY15 revenue and EPS guidance, which unleashed a wave of selling interest in that stock and peer companies in the highflying biotech group; andThe weak economic data, which raised questions about future earnings prospectsThe early strength in Amazon.com helped the market stand its ground for a bit, yet selling interest picked up steadily after the New Home Sales report at 10:00 a.m. ET. For most of the day thereafter, the major indices logged a progression of new lows before the steady selling activity subsided entering the final hour of trading.
There was some chatter that a proposal by Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton to raise the short-term capital gains tax on top-bracket payers was responsible for today's negative price action.
While such a headline might have contributed to the negative sentiment that was already in place in the wake of Biogen's warning and the disappointing economic data, it would be overstating things to list that proposal as the cause of today's weakness. That's because Mrs. Clinton hasn't even been elected president, let alone won her party's nomination. Moreover, passage of such a proposal is no sure thing if there is a Republican-controlled Congress on the other side of the 2016 presidential election.
The worst-performing areas of the day were a manifestation of the two bigger issues noted above. To that end, the health care sector (-2.5%) topped the list of losers as the weight of losses in the biotech space, evidenced by a 4.0% drop in the iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF (IBB 378.01, -15.74), weighed heavily.
In turn, the economic worries showed up in the underperformance of the materials (-2.2%), energy (-2.0%), and industrials (-1.3%) sectors, as well as the front end of the Treasury yield curve, which is most sensitive to rate hike expectations.
Longer-dated maturities were little changed, but the 2-yr note saw its yield drop two basis points to 0.68%.
Elsewhere, gold futures settled down 0.8% at $1085.60/troy ounce, but ran back to $1100/troy ounce in extended action on short-covering interest before losing momentum.
NYSE volume was on the light side today at just 645 million shares. The lopsided nature of today's trade was seen in the A/D line, which favored decliners by a better than 2-to-1 margin at the NYSE and a 3-to-1 margin at the Nasdaq.
The earnings results will continue pour in next week, but economic data and the Federal Reserve will also be in the limelight with the Federal Open Market Committee policy decision on Wednesday and the advance estimate for Q2 GDP on Thursday.
3:34 pm Earnings Preview for the week of July 27 - 31 (:SUMRX) : Of the companies reporting earnings for the week of July 27 - 31 some of the bigger names include:
Monday:
Pre Market - PHG, NSC, RPM, MGLN, QSR, POL, ROP, LECO
After Hours - HIG, BIDU, EMN, OMI, WRB, PRE, RE, SWFT, TMK, SWN, RCII, AMKR
Tuesday:
Pre Market - AUO, BP, F, UPS, PFE, MRK, LYB, DD, ARW, CNC, SVU, CMI, PCAR, NOV, IR, ECL, TXT, MMC, JEC, DHI, GLW, RAI, PCP, MAS, LH, AGCO, AKS, JBLU, NLSN, BTU, AXE, WYN, ARG, ALLY, SIRI
After Hours - ESRX, GILD, AFL, CHRW, X, APC, AIZ, NCR, AJG, AXS, WSH, GAS, CTXS, PNRA, EW, TWTR,
Wednesday:
Pre Market - UMC, SPIL, ANTM, HUM, GD, EXC, NOC, IP, ETN, PAG, MO, SO, GT, PCG, TRI, HUN, HLT, PX, HSIC, GIB, MA, CBG, LVLT, BEN, FDML, JAH, SPR, HES, ROK, AVY, JLL, BAH, HSP, AMT
After Hours - MCK, MET, SU, FB, MAR, WFM, LNC, WDC, UNM, BAX, PPC, ORLY, WMB, FNF, OI, NXPI, CNW, LRCX, AEL, NSIT, ASH, THG, FISV
Thursday:
Pre Market - SNE, RDS.A, FCAU, CAH, VLO, MPC, PG, BG, YNDX, BUD, EPD, COP, CI, TMUS, MDLZ, AZN, TWC, TEVA, FMS, CL, DLPH, OXY, ALU, PBF, NOK, CVE, LLL, SWK, ADP, XEL, APD, BLL, BWA, CCE, AVP, TEX, OSK, POT, ERJ
After Hours - BSAC, IM, INT, AMGN, FLR, MOH, EIX, UHS, BRCM, ES, EXPE, HBI, EEP, WU, YRCW, EVHC, FLS, LNKD, EA
Friday:
Pre Market - HMC, XOM, CVX, PSX, MT, ENB, FE, AON, STX, TYC, TRP, PEG, RCL, WY, RLGY, NWL, AEE, BERY
11:51 am Stocks/ETFs that traded to new 52 week highs/lows this session- New lows (97) outpacing new highs (14) (:SCANX) : Stocks that traded to 52 week highs: AMZN, CIEN, FTNT, JNPR, LGF, PANW, PLL, QLIK, SBUX, SPLK, TWC, UNM, V, VRX
Stocks that traded to 52 week lows: AA, ABX, AMAT, AMX, APA, ASX, AU, AUY, AVP, AXLL, BBD, BBRY, BEN, BHP, BSMX, BVN, CAT, CIG, CMI, CNP, COG, COH, COP, CSAL, CTL, CVX, CX, DAR, DD, DOV, DVN, ECA, EGO, EMR, EOG, ESV, FCX, FLR, FLS, FTR, GFI, GG, GGB, GOL, GPOR, HES, HTZ, HUN, INTC, ITUB, JOY, KGC, KORS, L, MDU, MON, MRD, MRO, MT, MUR, NBL, NE, NEM, NSC, OAS, OI, OXY, PBI, POT, PPC, PX, RDC, RIO, RXN, RYN, S, SFM, SID, SLW, SNI, SVU, SWN, TAHO, TLN, TSU, TTM, TYC, URI, VALE, VALE.P, VIAB, VIV, WLL, WPX, WY, X, XOM
ETFs that traded to 52 week highs: FDN, KIE, RTH, XLY
ETFs that traded to 52 week lows: AFK, DBC, DIG, DJP, EPU, EWA, EWC, EWY, EWZ, FXA, FXC, GDX, GDXJ, GLD, GSG, IAU, IDX, IEO, IGE, ILF, IXC, IYE, IYM, KOL, REMX, SGG, SIL, SIVR, SLV, SLX, THD, URA, UYM, XLE, XME
Note: To reduce the list of stocks making 52 week highs/lows to a manageable size we have filtered out stocks below $2 bln in market cap and below 1 mln average volume. Without this filter 63 stocks made 52 week highs and 532 stocks made 52 week lows.
6:14 am Nokia receives approval from the European Commission for its pending acquisition of Alcatel-Lucent (ALU) (NOK) : The proposed transaction was notified to the European Commission on June 19, 2015 and was cleared today without conditions following a Phase 1 review. The transaction remains subject to approval by Nokia shareholders, Nokia holding over 50.00% of the share capital of Alcatel-Lucent on a fully diluted basis upon completion of the public exchange offer, receipt of other regulatory approvals and other customary conditions. The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2016.
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