From Briefing.com: The markets ended the last day of the week in positive territory. The Nasdaq Composite led all three major US indices with gains of 80.69 points (+1.74%) to end the day 4707.77. The S&P 500 followed that strength with gains of 27.54 (+1.43%) to 1951.35. The Dow Jones Industrial Average also ended with notable gains, up 200.36 points (+1.23%) to 16472.37. The indices traded red-to-green when at about 1:30 p.m. ET, all three indices popped above flat lines to close near session highs.
A disappointing Nonfarm Payrolls report for September put pressure on the markets in early trade. Per the report, only 142,000 jobs were added in the month. In addition to the poor report, last month's numbers were revised down to 136,000 from 173,000. On top of that, the report also showed no growth in hourly earnings while the expectations were for a slight increase.
Technology (XLK 40.08, +0.56 +1.42%) names which outperformed the broader market today included SNDK +6.56%, FSLR +6.51%, YHOO +6.19%, JNPR +4.34%, QCOM +3.55%, FTR +3.39%. The sector followed broader market action on the session, going red-to-green around 12 p.m. ET. Outperformance among arguably the most recognizable tech name, Google (GOOG 626.91, +15.62 +2.56%), stemmed from the news on the company's investor relations website which stated that the company's reorganization into Alphabet will be completed after the market closes today.
Strength was experienced in every technology subsector today, led by the Social Media (SOCL 17.92, +0.59 +3.40%) space. In the sector, names like WB +12.10%, YOKU +10.91%, YELP +7.24%, TWTR +6.60%, CYOU +6.34% outperformed the broader market. Twitter (TWTR 26.32, 9+1.64 +6.65%) posted notable gains on the session, as premarket the company was assumed with a Neutral recommendation at Wedbush. The analyst gave a $30 price target on the name, a roughly 13% premium to current prices.
In the S&P 500 Information Technology (673.35, +10.09 +1.52%) sector, notable strength from Micron (MU 15.91, +1.14 +7.72) came after the company reported fiscal fourth quarter results which beat on the top and bottom lines of expectations. The company also gave tepid Q1 guidance on the conference call following the results, attributing the outlook to pricing pressure among the company's DRAM offerings. Other names in the sector which outperformed included MU +7.72%, PYPL +4.29%, TDC +3.20%, QRVO +3.05%, HPQ +2.84%, MCHP +2.82%.
Other notable news items among sector components:
Apple (AAPL 110.38, +0.80 +0.73%) according to reports has acquired speech technology firm VocalIQ.
Blucora (BCOR 13.64, +0.27 +2.02%) and its InfoSpace subsidiary enter into a Mutual Termination Agreement with Yahoo! (YHOO 30.71, +1.80 +6.23%) pursuant to which their Yahoo! Publisher Network Contract will terminate effective Dec. 31, 2015.
Microsoft (MSFT 45.57, +0.96 +2.15%) and ASUSTek (ASUUY 44.23) announced the expansion of an earlier patent licensing agreement. Microsoft (MSFT) also acquired 3D physics provider Havok from Intel (INTC 30.51, +0.51 +1.70%). Financial terms of said deal were not disclosed. IBM (IBM 144.58, +0.99 +0.69%) announced that Charter Communications (CHTR 183.14, +1.37 +0.75%) is implementing its rules-based construction workflow and tracking system in the cloud
Google (GOOG) announced that its Alphabet reorganization is expected to complete after the close of business today. Will retain GOOG/GOOGL tickers.
Elsewhere in the technology space:
Cartesian (CRTN 2.25, -0.24 -9.64%) appointed John Ferrara as CFO effective Oct. 15, 2015. Ferrara just yesterday announced his resignation from TheStreet.com (TST 1.65, +0.02 +1.23%).
Frontier Communications (FTR 4.88, +0.16 +3.39%) signed an agreement with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. The agreement is an important step forward in the process to complete Frontier's planned $10.54 Billion acquisition of Verizon's wireline business and assets in California, Florida and Texas.
RigNet (RNET 26.66, +1.62 +6.47%) announced the agreement with Inmarsat to offer Fleet Xpress, the maritime version of the Global Xpress service, to the oil and gas maritime sector.
InterCloud Systems (ICLD 1.71, +0.04 +2.40%) was awarded a $2.2 million contract for professional services in connection with the deployment of an SDN network platform.
XO Group (XOXO 14.19, +0.18 +1.28%) acquired GigMasters for $8.5 million and announced a strategic partnership with Jetaport for a minority equity ownership for $1.5 million in cash.
Barracuda Networks (CUDA 17.91, +2.02 +12.71%) announced that its Board of Directors has authorized the purchase of up to $50 million of common stock through Sept. 30, 2017.
New Relic (NEWR 39.43, +2.18 +5.85%) announced that current Chief Revenue Officer Hilarie Koplow-McAdams has been promoted to the role of President.
Travelzoo (TZOO 8.66, +0.35 +4.21%) announced Holger Bartel as global CEO. Current CEO, Chris Loughlin, will leave Dec. 31, 2015 to pursue other opportunities.
Citrix Systems (CTXS 71.57, +1.47 +2.10%) implemented an incentive program for certain executive officers and other employees to further its strategic and operational initiative.
OSI Systems'(OSIS 78.30, +1.88 +2.46%) Rapiscan Systems was selected as a supplier on a 5-year Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency valued at up to $293 million to provide Medium Energy Cargo and Vehicle Inspection (CVI) Systems.
Wowo (WOWO 7.80, +0.29 +3.86%) Co-CEO Jianguang Wu tendered his resignation effective September 30. The Company also announced that on September 28, 2015, Yongming Zhang tendered his resignation as a member of the board of directors of the Company, effective on September 28, 2015.
Advanced Micro (AMD 1.83, +0.09 +5.17%) adopted a restructuring plan involving a workforce reduction of about 5%. The plan includes outsourcing IT services and application development. The plan also anticipates a charge for the consolidation of certain real estate facilities. As such, restructuring charges of $42 million, $41 million of which are expected to be realized through 3Q15, $31 million of which will be severance charges. In all, the company expects to save about $58 million in FY2016.
Autobytel (ABTL 19.11, +2.81 +17.24%) acquired AutoWeb in an all-stock and warrant transaction. In accordance with the deal, ABTL increased its fiscal 2015 revenue guidance to range between $132 million and $134 million, representing an increase of about 24% to 26% from 2014. The company has also revised its fiscal 2015 non-GAAP diluted EPS guidance to range between $1.17 and $1.23, an increase of about 41% to 48% from 2014. ABTL expects the acquisition to be accretive to its non-GAAP diluted EPS in 2016.
In reaction to earnings:
CalAmp (CAMP 18.20, +2.55 +16.29%) reported Q2 EPS and revenues which beat expectations. The company saw EPS in the period of $0.27 on revenues of $69.81 million. The company also issued in-line guidance for Q3; CAMP expects Q3 EPS of $0.26-0.30 on revenues of $71-76 million. The company also issued in-line FY16 guidance for revenues of $281-289 million.
Micron (MU) reported Q4 EPS and revenues which beat expectations. The company saw EPS of $0.37 and revenues of $3.6 billion. The company also issued guidance for Q1 which was worse than expected at revs of $3.35-3.60 billion on EPS of $0.20-0.26.
Progress Software (PRGS 23.00, -2.63 -10.26%) reported Q3 EPS which beat and revenues which missed expectations. The company saw EPS in Q3 of $0.39 on revenues of $100.7 million. PRGS also issued guidance for Q4 to the tune of EPS of $0.47-0.51 on revenues of $113-118 million.
Analyst actions:
PMCS was upgraded to Positive from Neutral at Susquehanna;
TKAGY was downgraded to Hold from Buy at HSBC Securities
Weekly Recap - Week ending 02-Oct-15Dow +200.36 at 16472.37, Nasdaq +80.69 at 4707.77, S&P +27.54 at 1951.35
The stock market ended the week on an upbeat note despite stumbling at the start. The S&P 500 turned a 30-point loss into a 28-point gain to end higher by 1.4% while the Nasdaq Composite (+1.7%) outperformed. For the week, the S&P 500 jumped 1.0% while the Nasdaq added 0.5%.
The opening dive occurred after the release of the Nonfarm Payrolls report for September, which disappointed on all fronts. According to the report, only 142,000 jobs were added, which was a far cry from the Briefing.com consensus, which expected a reading of 205,000. Adding insult to injury, the prior month's job growth was revised down to 136,000 from 173,000 and hourly earnings showed no growth.
In sum, the weak nature of the report caused the market to reconsider its rate-hike expectations. Bond traders were quick to show their doubt about the likelihood of a rate hike before 2016, evidenced by a surge in Treasuries. The 10-yr note jumped more than a point immediately after the report, narrowing its gain to 16 ticks by the close with the 10-yr yield falling five basis points to 1.98%.
Elsewhere, the Dollar Index (95.93, -0.25) dropped to late September levels in the morning, but erased more than half of its decline by the close, ending lower by 0.3%. Most notably, the dollar/yen pair dove below the 119.00 mark in the morning, but returned above 119.00 around 10:30 ET and continued climbing into the afternoon. The pair ticked above 120.00 during the final hour of action, which is a level that has been in focus throughout the week. The 120.00 level will deserve attention going into next week considering dips below that mark have been congruent with a risk-off attitude while rallies north of 120.00 have coincided with strength in equities.
Nine of ten sectors ended in the green with energy (+4.0%) finishing well ahead of other groups. The sector received a boost from crude oil, which climbed 1.8% to $45.55/bbl. Thanks to today's spike, the energy sector gained 2.8% for the week while only two other groups-health care and materials-added more than 2.0% since last Friday.
Although the energy sector was a clear standout, the outperformance in the health care sector (+2.1%) was more notable since biotechnology powered that move. The iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF (IBB 315.40, +10.44) spiked 3.4%, ending the week higher by 1.7% after being down almost 8.0% at its lowest point on Monday.
Biotechnology's outperformance helped the Nasdaq finish in the lead while large cap technology listings like Apple (AAPL 110.38, +0.80), Google (GOOGL 656.99, +14.99) also contributed to the Nasdaq's strength. For its part, the technology sector gained 1.5%.
On the downside, the financial sector narrowed its loss to 0.1% after showing a 2.0%+ decline in the early going in response to the disappointing jobs report.
Today's participation was well above average with more than a billion shares changing hands at the NYSE floor.
Economic data included Nonfarm Payrolls and Factory Orders:
Nonfarm payrolls increased by 142,000 while the Briefing.com consensus expected a reading of 205,000
August nonfarm payrolls revised to 136,000 from 173,000
July nonfarm payrolls revised to 223,000 from 245,000
Private sector payrolls increased by 118,000 (Briefing.com consensus 200,000)
August private sector payrolls revised to 100,000 from 140,000
July private sector payrolls revised to 195,000 from 224,000
Unemployment rate held at 5.1%, which is what the consensus expected
The U6 unemployment rate, which accounts for the total unemployed plus persons marginally attached to the labor force and the underemployed, slipped to 10.0% from 10.3% in August
Average hourly earnings were unchanged (Briefing.com consensus 0.2%) after an upwardly revised 0.4% increase (from 0.3%) in August
The labor force participation rate ticked down to 62.4% from 62.6%
Factory orders declined 1.7% in August after increasing a downwardly revised 0.2% (from 0.4%) while the Briefing.com consensus expected a 1.0% drop
That was the largest decline since a 3.7% drop was registered in December 2014
The weakness in the manufacturing sector comes as a strong dollar has curtailed export demand and low oil prices have reduced demand for drilling equipment
Monday's data will be limited to the 10:00 ET release of the ISM Services report for September.
Week in Review: Volatile Action Continues
The trading week got off to a very poor start for the major indices, which experienced steady selling pressure from the opening bell in a trend-down day. The S&P 500 lost 2.6%. Global growth concerns were at the heart of Monday's pullback along with another dastardly performance by the biotechnology sector. The growth concerns were triggered anew by a caustic research note on the business prospects for commodity producer Glencore (GLCNF 1.07, -0.41), an 8.8% year-over-year decline in China's industrial profits, a disappointing 1.4% monthly decline in pending U.S. home sales for August, and a declaration from International Monetary Fund (IMF) head Christine Lagarde that the IMF's forecasts for global growth of 3.3% this year and 3.8% next year are no longer realistic due principally to the weakness in emerging markets.
The market ended Tuesday on an uninspiring note after surrendering the bulk of its intraday gain. The S&P 500 (+0.1%) added two points after showing an eight-point gain during the opening hour. Equity indices rallied at the start, but the rebound from Monday's 2.6% dive in the S&P 500 hit resistance right beneath the 1,900 level, at which point most sectors began backing away from their morning highs. The health care sector (+0.9%) held the lead throughout the day, but the influential group also retreated from its high as market-wide selling pressure grew heavier during the afternoon.
The stock market ended the midweek session on a higher note, but could not avoid its second consecutive monthly decline. The S&P 500 gained 1.9% on Wednesday, but surrendered 2.7% in September. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (+2.3%) outperformed, but lost 3.3% for the month. The Wednesday session also marked the end of the third quarter, during which the S&P 500 fell 6.9% versus a 7.4% decline in the Nasdaq. The end of Q3 meant that quarter-end positioning and portfolio rebalancing likely played a part in the advance. Equity indices began the trading day with solid gains after index futures rallied alongside markets in Europe. The S&P 500 built on its opening spike, notching a session high just before 10:30 ET; however, that move was followed by a pullback into the middle of the day's trading range, which occurred alongside rally in the yen that briefly dropped the dollar/yen pair below the 120.00 level. The short-lived swoon in the dollar/yen pair was followed by a rebound into the 120.00 area while stocks climbed to new highs.
Thursday ended on a modestly higher note after the key indices climbed off their intraday lows. The S&P 500 (+0.20%) settled within four points of its unchanged level while the Dow and Nasdaq settled not far behind. Equities began the first session of Q4 just above their flat lines after a pre-market retreat caused S&P 500 futures to surrender a 25-point gain. The early morning slide from pre-market highs gathered steam following a Bloomberg report indicating the Bank of Japan does not plan to introduce additional stimulus at this time. In addition to pressuring stocks, the report gave a boost to the yen, sending the dollar/yen pair to a session low near 119.50; however, the currency pair was able to claw its way back into the 120.00 range in the afternoon while stocks also climbed off their lows.
Index Started Week Ended Week Change % Change YTD %
DJIA 16314.67 16472.37 157.70 1.0 -7.6
Nasdaq 4686.50 4707.77 21.27 0.5 -0.6
S&P 500 1931.34 1951.36 20.02 1.0 -5.2
Russell 2000 1122.79 1114.12 -8.67 -0.8 -7.5
4:06 pm Canadian Solar closes on the purchase of three operating solar projects totaling 59.8 MW AC from KKR (CSIQ) : The total approximate enterprise value of this transaction is $203.7 mln. In conjunction with this acquisition, Canadian Solar also closed a USD$50 Million loan with Credit Suisse, who also acted as sole financial advisor on the transaction.
4:02 pm Action Semi purchases 83,999,299 shares at $2.30/ADS share, under its previously announced 84 mln share tender offer (ACTS) :
3:47 pm Earnings Preview for the week of October 5 - 9 (:SUMRX) :
Of the companies reporting earnings for the week of October 5 - 9 some of the bigger names include:
Monday:
After Hours - TCS
Tuesday:
Pre Market - PEP
After Hours - YUM, TISI
Wednesday:
Pre Market - MON, STZ, RPM, AYI, GPN
After Hours - MG, RECN
Thursday:
Pre Market - DPZ, ISCA
After Hours - AA, HELE, RT, ANGO
3:24 pm Agilent subsidiary Dako announces FDA approval for its PD-L1 IHC 22C3 pharmDx diagnostic assay, to reveal whether a patient with advanced NSCLC is likely to respond to a new form of treatment (A) : Co announced the U.S. FDA approval of a new companion diagnostic assay that can reveal whether a patient with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (:NSCLC) is likely to respond to a new form of treatment. Dako developed PD-L1 IHC 22C3 pharmDx in partnership with Merck & Co (MRK)
11:52 am Stocks/ETFs that traded to new 52 week highs/lows this session - New lows (437) outpacing new highs (11) (SCANX) : Stocks that traded to 52 week highs: CUBE, FCVA, HRB, JE, LKOR, PULB, SLP, TACT, TYL, UCBA, ULBI
Stocks that traded to 52 week lows: A, AAVL, ABAC, ACAT, ACPW, ACTA, ADAP, ADSK, ADT, AEGR, AFT, AGTC, AI, AIMC, AIN, AIRM, AIT, AJX, ALDX, AMBC, AMG, ANGO, ANH, APAM, ARDC, ARNA, ARTW, ASCMA, ASEI, ASTE, ASYS, AT, ATRO, AVID, AVK, AVL, AXE, AXLL, BAS, BAX, BBBY, BBEP, BBRG, BBT, BCC, BCEI, BDC, BDE, BEL, BEN, BGT, BGX, BKE, BLIN, BLT, BLX, BOBE, BOI, BOJA, BRKR, BSL, BSPM, BUFF, BV, BW, BWINB, BZH, CATB, CBK, CBL, CCCR, CDI, CDRB, CF, CFX, CG, CGG, CGI, CGNT, CIF, CIT, CKH, CLMS, CMA, CMI, CMLS, CNA, CNS, CNSL, CNV, COG, COHR, CPSI, CRR, CSG, CSLT, CSPI, CST, CTG, CTL, CUB, CVGI, CYCC, DAR, DCA, DCIX, DDD, DDS, DE, DEL, DEX, DFS, DHG, DHRM, DISCA, DISCK, DNAI, DO, DSCI, DSL, DSU, DX, ECC, ECHO, EFF, EHI, EMG, EMO, EMR, ENTL, ENV, ERA, ESL, ESV, EV, EYES, FAST, FBRC, FCO, FDEU, FDML, FEIC, FENX, FHY, FLDM, FLR, FLXN, FNGN, FNSR, FOE, FORR, FOSL, FRGI, FSTR, FWM, FWRD, GARS, GBL, GCO, GDL, GDO, GEN, GEOS, GHL, GI, GKOS, GLBL, GLDD, GLO, GLYC, GMLP, GMT, GNK, GNRC, GPS, GPT, GRIF, GRMN, GSIT, GSVC, GVA, HCCI, HCLP, HGR, HGSH, HOS, HSNI, HSTM, HTR, HWAY, HWCC, HY, HYB, HYF, HYI, I, IBM, ICFI, IDN, IDT, IGA, IGT, IID, IILG, IMMY, IMN, INO, IR, IRC, IRDM, ISH, ITT, IVZ, JASN, JBHT, JEC, JGH, JOY, JRI, JSD, JVA, JW.A, KAMN, KEG, KERX, KEYW, KHI, KKD, KND, KNX, KSS, KTOS, KYN, L, LADR, LDP, LECO, LITE, LM, LMNR, LOCO, LORL, LPLA, LPSN, LUK, LWAY, LXU, MANT, MAT, MBUU, MC, MCRB, MED, MFRM, MG, MIND, MNKD, MOS, MPW, MS, MSM, MTB, MYRG, NANO, NAV, NAVI, NC, NCV, NCZ, NE, NES, NEWP, NHS, NM, NNI, NOR, NRX, NSL, NSM, NSPR, NTRA, NVLS, NWHM, NWS, NXTD, OCIP, OESX, OPTT, ORIG, ORN, OSGB, OTIC, OXGN, OZM, PCAR, PCH, PDFS, PEB, PEBO, PERF, PFIS, PGH, PGN, PH, PHH, PHI, PHII, PHMD, PICO, PIR, PJC, PNR, POL, POT, PRGN, PRGS, PRSN, PRU, PSIX, PTC, PTEN, PVA, QUAD, R, RAX, RBC, RCG, RCII, RDNT, RELV, RES, RESI, RF, RFP, RGLS, RIBT, RICE, RJF, RLJ, RLOC, ROG, ROK, ROYT, RRTS, RST, RTK, RXN, SAAS, SAVE, SB, SBAC, SBH, SBLK, SBRA, SCON, SEM, SF, SFE, SFLY, SFY, SGI, SGNT, SHLO, SIFY, SKBI, SKY, SLB, SLCA, SLM, SMRT, SMT, SPN, SPPI, SSE, SSYS, STDY, STT, SVU, SWFT, SYMC, SZC, TAL, TBBK, TBPH, TC, TDC, TDY, TEF, TESO, TGI, THC, THR, TIME, TIVO, TLN, TNDM, TPRE, TRCO, TROW, TTGT, TUMI, TV, TWI, UAMY, UCP, UEIC, UNT, UNTD, UNVR, USAP, UTIW, VGGL, VHI, VICL, VLT, VMI, VRNS, VRTS, VSI, VTA, VVR, WAIR, WCC, WDR, WGO, WING, WPRT, WSTC, WWD, WWW, WY, X, XHR, XRX, YPF, ZBH, ZINC
ETFs that traded to 52 week highs: IEI
ETFs that traded to 52 week lows: HYG, JNK, PPLT, UNG, XES
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