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Weekly Recap - Week ending 22-Apr-16The past week saw the S&P 500 notch a fresh high for the year before registering its second consecutive weekly gain. The benchmark index added 0.5% for the week while the Nasdaq underperformed, shedding 0.7%.

From Briefing.com: Investors did not receive any market-moving data during the past week, which kept the Atlanta Fed's GDPNow forecast for the first quarter unchanged at 0.3%. The advance estimate of first-quarter GDP will be reported on Thursday at 8:30 ET, a day after the Federal Open Market Committee announces its latest policy decision.

The Fed meeting will be the highlight of next week, but the fed funds futures market remains convinced that there is just a 1.0% chance of a rate hike being announced on Wednesday.

Investors received the first heavy batch of first-quarter earnings during the past week and the results have been mixed relative to lowered expectations. Disappointing results from Alphabet (GOOG) and Microsoft (MSFT) kept the Nasdaq behind the S&P 500 while economically-sensitive rail carriers like Union Pacific (UNP) and Norfolk Southern (NSC) topped market expectations, masking year-over-year declines in revenue.

The advance in stocks was accompanied by some selling in the Treasury market that sent the benchmark 10-yr yield to 1.88% from the previous week's settlement at 1.75%.

Index Started Week Ended Week Change % Change YTD %
DJIA 17897.46 18003.95 106.49 0.6 3.3
Nasdaq 4938.22 4906.23 -31.99 -0.6 -2.0
S&P 500 2080.73 2091.63 10.90 0.5 2.3
Russell 2000 1130.92 1143.10 12.18 1.1 0.6

Trading ended the week with a tepid Friday session split. Action was mostly sideways, save for the first hour and a half of the day which took us into negative territory. The remainder of the day, the three major US indices climbed out of lows eventually ending mixed. Leading the modest advance, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 21.23 points (+0.12%) to 18003.75. The S&P 500 ended little changed, higher less than a point (+0.00%) to 2091.58. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite on the other hand, was a notable underperformer as the index spent most of the day well under action in the other two indices, ultimately ending down 39.66 points (-0.80%) to 4906.23. This week's action takes the three major US indices -0.3%, -0.4% and -0.7% respectively.

Action in the Technology (XLK 43.49, -0.72 -1.63%) sector capped off the week with a negative session. Component Alphabet (GOOG 718.77, -40.37 -5.32%) was an underperformer today following the company's worse than expected Q1 results - specifically, GOOG reported EPS of $7.50 on revenues which rose 17.4% versus last year to $20.26 billion. Other sectors as measured by the S&P ended Friday IYZ +1.48%, XLE +1.45%, XLF +0.94%, XLU +0.89%, XLB +0.70%, XLP +0.37%, XLI +0.25%, XLV +0.21%, XLY -0.20% with Telecoms and Energy leading the advance and Tech posting the worst losses.

In the S&P 500 Information Technology (722.71, -14.00 -1.90%) sector, Friday trading was notably to the downside. Component Microsoft (MSFT 51.78, -4.00 -7.17%) was the worst performing name in the space following the company's worse than expected Q3 EPS and in-line revenues; additionally, the company guided Q4 revenues worse than expected. Other names in the space which felt the Friday pressure included RHT -1.68%, ADBE -1.64%, CTXS -1.34%, EBAY -1.17%, CA -1.08%, INTC -1.03%, ADSK -0.88%, CRM -0.87%, ORCL -0.71%, AVGO -0.67%.

Other notable news items among sector components:

In addition to reporting quarterly results, Visa (V 79.11, -1.68 -2.08%) reached a preliminary agreement to amend transaction with Visa Europe, cash consideration payable in transaction increased by 1.75 billion.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE 17.49, +0.02 +0.14%) was awarded about $443 million contract from the US Air Force.

Accenture (ACN 113.95, -0.53 -0.46%) filed about a 28.4 million common stock offering on behalf of selling shareholders.

Elsewhere in the tech space:

In addition to reporting quarterly results, Advanced Micro (AMD 3.99, +1.37 +52.29%) announced a JV with THATIC to develop SoCs tailored to the Chinese server market that will complement AMD's own offerings. The $293 million licensing agreement is a meaningful step in AMD's IP monetization strategy intended to accelerate AMD's growth and better monetize its valuable assets. Payments are contingent upon the JV achieving certain milestones. AMD also expects to receive royalty payments from the JV's future product sales.

NIDEC (NJ 17.76, +0.03 +0.17%) to acquire about 94.8% of the shares of ANA IMEP S.A. from its major shareholder. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Orange (ORAN 16.88, -0.12 -0.74%) to acquire a 65% stake in Groupama Banque. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Baidu.com (BIDU 190.76, -1.98 -1.03%) formed a self-driving car team in Silicon Valley focused on research, development and testing.

In reaction to quarterly results:

Microsoft (MSFT) reported worse than expected Q3 EPS of $0.62 on in-line revenues which rose 1.6% versus last year to $22.08 billion. Additionally, MSFT guided Q4 revenues worse than expectations on the conference call -- By segment, MSFT sees Productivity and Business Processes revenues of $6.5-6.7 billion, Intelligent Cloud segment revenues of $6.5-6.7 billion, Personal Computing revenues of $8.7-9.0 billion. The total of these suggests total Q4 revenues of $21.7-22.4 billion -- the company also expect FX to negatively impact YoY growth in Q4 by 3 points.

Alphabet (GOOG) reported worse than expected Q1 EPS of $7.50 on in-line revenues which rose 17.4% versus last year to $20.26 billion. Additionally, GOOG announced aggregate paid clicks for Q1 were up 29% with paid clicks on Google websites up 38% in Q1.

Visa (V) reported better than expected Q2 EPS of $0.68 on in-line revenues which were up 6.4% versus last year to $3.63 billion. The company also lowered guidance for net revenue growth to 7-8% (prior guidance was for growth in the high single-digit to low double-digit range on a constant dollar basis). Additionally, V lowered EPS growth guidance to low double-digits on a constant dollar basis, with an expectation of about 4 percentage points of negative foreign currency impact (prior guidance for EPS growth was in low-end of the mid-teens range on a constant dollar basis, with an expectation of about 4 percentage points of negative foreign currency impact).

Maxim Integrated (MXIM 37.31, +0.79 +2.16%) reported worse than expected Q3 EPS of $0.41 on in-line revenues which fell 3.8% versus last year to $555 million. MXIM also guided Q4 EPS and revenues in-line at $0.45-0.51 and $555-595 million, respectively.

Advanced Micro (AMD) reported better than expected Q1 EPS and revenues - loss per share of $0.12 and revenues which fell 19.2% versus last year to $832 million. AMD also guided Q2 revenues better than expected at growth of 12-18% sequentially to about $932-982 million.

Proofpoint (PFPT 56.78, +3.09 +5.76%) reported a better than expected Q1 loss per share of $0.09 on revenues which also came in ahead of expectations and rose 36.8% versus last year to $79 million. PFPT also guided Q2 EPS in-line at ($0.08)-($0.07) and revenues ahead of expectations at $83.5-84.5 million. Additionally, PFPT guided FY16 EPS and revenues ahead of expectations at ($0.15)-($0.13) and $350.5-353.5 million, respectively.

Analyst actions:

AMD was upgraded to Buy at MKM Partners and Craig Hallum and to Neutral at Exane BNP Paribas,
CHU was upgraded to Buy from Reduce at Nomura,
CHT was upgraded to Hold from Reduce at HSBC Securities;
UTEK was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at DA Davidson

4:48 pm SunEdison (:SUNEQ): U.S. Bankruptcy Court approves first day motions (SUNE) :

The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York has granted the relief requested by the Company in key first day motions related to ordinary course business activities. This includes the continuation of employee wages and benefits, work on ongoing projects, and certain vendor payments. Some of these motions were granted on an interim basis and the Bankruptcy Court has scheduled a final hearing for May 10, 2016.

The Court also granted interim approval for the Company to access up to $300 million in debtor-in-possession (:DIP) financing from a consortium of first and second lien lenders in support of continuing business operations.

4:11 pm Closing Market Summary: Indices Mixed as Tech Slumps to End Week (:WRAPX) :

The stock market ended a mixed week on a wobbly note as disappointing earnings results from the likes of Alphabet (GOOG 718.77, -40.37) and Microsoft (MSFT 51.78, -4.00) weighed on the technology (-1.9%) sector. The major averages ended off their lows as crude oil extended its recent rally and the heavyweight financial sector (+1.0%) outperformed. The Nasdaq Composite lost 0.8%, ending the week lower by 0.7% while the S&P 500 (UNCHF) locked in a weekly gain of 0.5%.

Equity indices spent the bulk of their trading day in negative territory, pressured by heavily-weighted technology (-1.9%) and consumer discretionary (-0.3%). The two sectors traded behind the market for the entire session and helped waylay a larger rebound attempt. For its part, crude oil added support to the broader market as the energy component finished the day higher by 1.4% ($43.77/bbl).

The major averages would carve out new session lows in the late morning, spurred on by growing losses in the heavyweight health care space (+0.2%). However, the broader market would stage a recovery in the afternoon, as eight sectors extended their gains. By the end of the session, energy (+1.3%), financials (+1.0%), utilities (+0.9%), and telecom services (+0.8%) topped the leaderboard. Meanwhile, technology (-1.9%) and consumer discretionary (-0.3%) finished with the only losses.

In the technology space (-1.9%), Alphabet (GOOG 718.77, -40.37) fell 5.3% after it disappointed investors with a bottom-line miss in the first quarter. Particularly, participants focused on rising investments in its mobile search platform and increasing traffic acquisition costs. Meanwhile, Microsoft (MSFT 51.78, -4.00) fell 7.2% as slowing consumer PC sales and weaker than expected fourth-quarter revenue guidance preyed on investor confidence. The broader sector trimmed its 2016 gain to 0.2%.

The consumer discretionary space (-0.3%) also suffered from some unsatisfactory quarterly results as large cap Starbucks (SBUX 57.68, -2.96) fell 4.9% after missing comparable store sales growth forecasts. The coffee chain did report in-line results for the first quarter though. Elsewhere, Dow component McDonald's (MCD 125.50, -0.29) ended its session lower despite reporting top-and-bottom-line results that came in above analysts' estimates. The company saw global comparable sales rise 6.2%, which was also above estimates.

In the energy space (+1.3%), independent oil and gas companies outperformed as crude oil extended its weekly gain to 8.3%. On the flipside, oilfield service name Schlumberger (SLB 79.93, -0.34) underperformed the sector as participants weighed falling global activity against largely in-line results. Schlumberger noted that total North American revenue fell 25.0%, while its U.S. land rig count declined by 31.0%.

The financial sector (+1.0%) extended its weekly gain to 2.8% as better than expected results from E*TRADE (ETFC 26.14, +0.80) and SunTrust Banks (STI 41.96, +2.09) capped off a strong week.

On the currency front, the U.S. Dollar Index (95.11, +0.51) ended its day broadly higher as the yen and euro weakened against the greenback. The dollar/yen pair jumped 2.0% (111.63) after comments from Japanese officials alluded to the possibility that the Bank of Japan may apply negative interest rates to bank loans. For its part, the euro/dollar pair fell 0.6% to 1.1226.

Treasuries ended the day lower with the yield on the 10-yr note rising two basis points to 1.88%. This represents a 13-basis point gain from last Friday's settlement at 1.75%.

Today's trading volume was strong with more than one billion shares changing hands at the NYSE floor.

There was no economic data of note released today.

Monday's economic data will be limited to March New Home Sales (Briefing.com consensus 521k), which will cross the wires at 10:00 ET.

Dow Jones +3.3% YTDS&P 500 +2.3% YTDRussell 2000 +0.8% YTDNasdaq Composite -2.0% YTDWeek in Review: S&P 500 Continues Higher While Nasdaq Lags

The past week saw the S&P 500 notch a fresh high for theyear before registering its second consecutive weekly gain. The benchmark indexadded 0.5% for the week while the Nasdaq underperformed, shedding 0.7%.

Investors did not receive any market-moving data during thepast week, which kept the Atlanta Fed's GDPNow forecast for the first quarter unchangedat 0.3%. The advance estimate of first-quarter GDP will be reported on Thursdayat 8:30 ET, a day after the Federal Open Market Committee announces its latestpolicy decision.

The Fed meeting will be the highlight of next week, but thefed funds futures market remains convinced that there is just a 1.0% chance ofa rate hike being announced on Wednesday.

Investors received the first heavy batch of first-quarter earningsduring the past week and the results have been mixed relative to loweredexpectations. Disappointing results from Alphabet (GOOG) and Microsoft (MSFT) kept theNasdaq behind the S&P 500 while economically-sensitive rail carriers like Union Pacific (UNP) and Norfolk Southern (NSC) topped marketexpectations, masking year-over-year declines in revenue.

The advance in stocks was accompanied by some selling in theTreasury market that sent the benchmark 10-yr yield to 1.88% from the previousweek's settlement at 1.75%.

4:01 pm Rubicon Tech shareholder Paragon Technologies initiates a proxy contest to elect two directors to Board (RBCN) :

Paragon's director candidates would replace Don N. Aquilano and Donald R. Caldwell, the two directors up for election on Rubicon's five-member staggered board. Paragon states, "In our meetings with members of the board, we did not hear answers to these questions. We were shocked to encounter a complacent attitude, hope instead of plans for a better future, and an acknowledgement that the company's current path is a "Hail Mary" pass. We repeatedly heard the directors passively express the hope that the stock will not "go to zero."

3:38 pm Ultratech comments on notice received from an affiliate of Neuberger Berman (UTEK) :

Ultratech issued a statement in response to a notice received from an affiliate of Neuberger Berman that it intends to nominate two nominees for election to Ultratech's Board of Directors at the Company's 2016 Annual Meeting of Stockholders. The statement is as follows:

'The Board and management of Ultratech are committed to strong corporate governance and maintaining an open dialogue with our stockholders and welcome constructive input. We are disappointed by Neuberger's nominations, especially in light of our willingness to work cooperatively with them. The Company has engaged in numerous discussions with Neuberger over the past several months in order to understand Neuberger's views and recommendations. Based on input from Neuberger, we have taken action on succession planning and are in the process of refreshing the Board based upon a plan approved by the Board.''Our Board's Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee has met with and thoroughly vetted Neuberger's proposed candidates. However, neither candidate had the applicable business and industry expertise that would be relevant to a semiconductor capital equipment company. The Committee is currently looking to add a Director who has more relevant semiconductor capital equipment and related industries experience and/or operational experience with the Company's key customers. Based on referrals from other stockholders, the Company is currently in the final stages of selecting a Director candidate who meets these criteria.''The Ultratech Board and management team remain focused on enhancing shareholder value. The Company is very pleased with the first quarter 2016 financial results that were reported yesterday, and the guidance given for the second quarter of 2016. Following the earnings report issued yesterday morning, Ultratech's stock price reached an intra-day 52 week high of $22.97, and through the year to date is up by 11.91%, as compared to the SOXX index which is up by 0.63% and the Russell 2000 index which is down by 0.01%.

'1:46 pm Benchmark Electronics updated investor presentation Highlighting the merits of its strategy and proven track record (ongoing proxy battle) (BHE) :

Benchmark's presentation highlights the strategic actions the Company's Board of Directors and management have taken to enhance shareholder value. These actions include a continued shift of Benchmark's portfolio towards higher value, higher margin markets, to deliver sustainable growth and higher profit margins which in turn generate higher returns on capital for its shareholders. Furthermore, the presentation addresses Engaged Capital's misleading calculations regarding the value creation potential of its "plan". Not only does Engaged Capital continue to promote its flawed working capital analysis as the cornerstone of its "plan," but it demonstrates a troubling lack of understanding of basic corporate finance principles and takes credit for potential benefits from the company's existing operational plan and working capital initiatives.

12:38 pm Intel drops back to new session low near this week's trough and its 200 day sma at 31.25/31.22 -- session low 31.25 (INTC) : The SMH opened on a firmer note but has been working steadily lower off the first hour highs with INTC weighing on the action. The 50 day sma comes into play below at 31.06.