DAILY WRAP-UP
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Wall Street averages were sharply lower Wednesday after a surprise
production cut announcement from OPEC fuelled worries that the economic
turnaround could be stifled by higher energy costs. The announcement
prompted investors to take profits off the table. Technology, financial and
biotech issues were weakest.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average forfeited 150.53 points or 1.57% to
9425.51, and the Nasdaq composite surrendered 58.02 points or 3.05% to
1843. 70. The broader S&P 500 gave up 19.65 points or 1.91% to 1009.38.
Volume on the NYSE improved to 1.543 billion shares. At the Nasdaq, some
2.207 billion shares traded hands.
Investors were caught out by the news that the organization of petroleum
exporting countries elected to curb oil output by 3.5% in order to boost
flagging oil prices. At its regularly scheduled meeting in Vienna, the
cartel announced it would slash its oil output ceiling by 900,000 barrels
per day, beginning November first.
Viacom (NSYE: VIA.B) shares dimmed 3.58% to $38.83 after the parent of CBS,
Nickelodeon and MTV cut its outlook for earnings and sales for 2003. The
media firm cited slow local advertising markets for its lowered guidance.
Viacom shares slid % to $
Oil services stocks and exploration firms were higher after the decision
was announced in Vienna. Murphy Oil (NYSE: MUR), a mid-tier explorer,
producer, refiner and marketer of oil and gas, rallied 3.93% to $59.75.
Transocean (NYSE: RIG), the largest offshore oil driller, surged 5.79% to
$20.10.
Shares of Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO) bounced around and finished down
3.92% to $20.32. The networking giant announced Tuesday that its board had
authorized up to $7 billion in fresh funds for its stock repurchase program.
Tech stocks were broadly lower. Oracle (NASDAQ: ORCL) slid 3.08% to $11.66
and Applied Materials (NASDAQ: AMAT) slumped 5.84% to $18.54.
Genentech (NYSE: DNA) stumbled 5.21% to $82.85 after Lehman Brothers (NYSE:
LEH) issued a downgrade on the drug developer to "equal weight" from
"overweight" on valuation concerns.
Not all biotech issues were down on the session. Cell Therapeutics (NASDAQ:
CTIC) said clinical trial data showed "encouraging" preliminary result for
its Xyotax ovarian cancer treatment. The company, which also makes the
leukemia therapy Trisenox, climbed 4.08% to $12.24.
Forest Labs (NYSE: FRX) received a crucial endorsement for its new
Alzheimer's disease treatment called memantine. An FDA advisory panel
unanimously found the drug to be a safe and effective treatment for
moderate to severe indications of the disease. The drug could win final FDA
clearance as soon as the new year. Shares of the company raced 6.09% higher
to $51.70.
Dow member McDonald's (NYSE: MCD) nosed ahead 0.13% to $23.93 after the
fast food giant said it would boost its annual dividend by 70% to 40 cents
per share.
Flextronics (NASDAQ: FLEX) could slide when it re-opens for trading. A
California jury ordered the company to pay a $934 million award to Beckman
Coulter (NYSE: BEC) for breach of contract, economic distress and fraud.
Flextronics had been contracted to supply circuit boards to Beckman
Coulter, but a dispute interrupted the relationship. Beckman's shares rose
2.08% to $46.70.
In small cap trading, the Russell 2000 slumped 11.50 points or 2.21% to
507.86, while the S&P600 index gave up 4.7 points or 1.89% to 243.49.
Some of the small cap stocks making big moves included Ultralife Batteries
(NASDAQ: ULBI). The company surged 23.28% to $14.30 on volume of 962,886
after it announced a contract win with the U.S. Army. Ultralife will garner
$3.1 million for the purchase of manufacturing equipment to expand its
battery-making capabilities.
Exult (NASDAQ: EXLT) tumbled 11.58% to $8.40 on volume of 5,955,704 after
the maker of process management software announced plans to sell $100
million in convertible senior notes. The offering has an over-allotment for
the sale of an additional $10 million in notes.
In commodities trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, November crude
oil futures gained $1.11 to $28.24. November natural gas futures added 5.5
cents to $4.752. December gold futures were up $1.40 to $388.40.
Canadian markets were lower as falling tech and health issues countered
rising energy stocks. Investors elected to take profits after the sharp
rise on the TSX Tuesday.
The TSX composite slid 41.70 points or 0.55% to 7602.34, and the small cap
Venture index gained 12.74 points or 0.92% to 1402.36.
In the energy sector PennWest Petroleum (TSX: T.PWT) gained 1.63% to $46.74
and Imperial Oil (TSX: T.IMO) advanced 2.37% to $51.00. Ivanhoe Energy
(TSX: T.IE) surged 22.56% to $3.64 after announcing it was readying to
drill its first development well at the Dagang field in China.
News of the OPEC production cut buoyed shares of Talisman Energy (TSX:
T.TLM) shares. The company also announced that it had begun pumping oil at
its Blake Flank North Sea project. Talisman, which is the number two
Canadian oil explorer, gained 2.62% to $64.81.
Quebec's Aeterna Laboratories (TSX: T.AEL) tumbled 34.64% to $5.85 after
the company reported Phase III trials of its Neovastat kidney cancer drug
failed to meet a key endpoint of improving patient survival. Drug maker
Biovail (TSX: T.BVF) retreated 3.63% to $52.05.
Information technology stocks slumped 3.59%. The group was pulled down by
Zarlink Semiconductor (TSX: T.ZL), which announced late Monday that it
would not meet previous earnings targets. The company said it would record
a wider-than-anticipated loss as the result of lower sales and a
restructuring charge. Zarlink shares gave back 16.42% to $5.75.
Placer Dome (TSX: T.PDG) announced that U.S. gold producing giant Newmont
Mining (NSYE: NEM) would take a 25% interest in its Turquoise Ridge gold
mine in Nevada. Placer Dome will continue to operate the mine, which
started up in April; and Newmont will buy up to 1800 tonnes of ore per day.
The company's CEO said that the joint venture agreement would reduce
capital expenses, lower operating costs, and result in a more efficient use
of resources. Placer Dome's shares edged 0.15% higher to $19.60.
Elsewhere in the gold group, Wheaton River (TSX: T.WRM) fell 3.46% to
$2.79. The Vancouver-based junior miner announced it would raise $100
million in a bought deal offering of units. The company said the proceeds
would be allocated to development of its properties and used for potential
purchases.
In earnings news, AGF Management (TSX: T.AGF.B) reported narrower third
quarter profits as volatile markets crimped management and advisory fees
for the fund manager. The company said net earnings amounted to $21.8
million or 23 cents per share, versus year ago earnings of $30.7 million or
34 cents a share. Revenues shrank to $138.1 million from $156.6 million in
the year before quarter. AGF shares dipped 0.06% to $17.00.
Cascades (TSX: T.CAS) gave up 0.52% to $13.40 after the company announced
it would restate earnings for its second quarter as the result of a
mistaken calculation of foreign exchange. The paper maker said the
restatement would cut its profit from 49 cents a share to 36 cents a share.
The composite leading index of future economic activity rose more than
expected in August, according to Statistics Canada. The index gained 0.5%
last month outpacing expectations for a rise of 0.4%. Seven of the ten
components in the index advanced, while three retreated.
The Canadian dollar was worth US$0.7403.
TODAY'S HIGHLIGHTS
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Market Summary At 5:15:48 P.M. ET
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Symbol Close Change Change(%) Market Name
DJI 9425.51 -150.53 -1.57 DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL
NYA 5712.62 -81.60 -1.41 NYSE COMPOSITE
COMP 1843.70 -58.02 -3.05 NASDAQ COMPOSITE
XAX 999.70 -1.07 -0.11 AMEX COMPOSITE INDEX
SPX 1009.38 -19.65 -1.91 S&P 500
SML 243.49 -4.70 -1.89 S&P 600 SMALLCAP
RUT 507.86 -11.50 -2.21 RUSSELL 2000
NDI 216.99 -3.76 -1.70 INDIVIDUAL INVESTORS 500
IV.JX 1402.36 12.74 0.92 S&P/TSX VENTURE
COMPOSITE INDEX
IT.TSXCI 7602.34 -41.70 -0.55 S&P/TSX COMPOSITE
Small Cap Most Active Stocks At 5:15:48 P.M. ET
(Market Capitalization Between $10,000,000 and $750,000,000)
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NASDAQ / OTC
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Symbol Volume Close Change Company Name
BIKO 81054000 0.00 0.00 BICO Inc.
AKLM 39076400 0.98 0.08 Acclaim Entertainment
WCOEQ 35741400 0.07 -0.01 WorldCom Group
APPI 30568900 0.04 0.01 Advanced Plant Pharmaceut
GERN 23198900 13.83 -0.97 Geron Corporation
AMEX
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Symbol Volume Close Change Company Name
HEC 11404400 0.63 0.06 Harken Energy Corporation
VRA 7719500 0.30 -0.01 Viragen Inc.
UAX 5521300 0.21 -0.01 USURF America Inc.
AVR 3107500 0.20 0.00 Avitar Inc.
EAG 2605900 0.49 -0.03 Eagle Broadband Inc.
TSX
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Symbol Volume Close Change Company Name
T.ZL 10101400 5.75 -1.13 Zarlink Semiconductor Inc.
T.AEL 4084300 5.85 -3.10 Aeterna Laboratories Inc.
T.MWA 3727900 0.13 -0.00 McWatters Mining Inc.
T.IW 3671800 0.38 -0.06 Infowave Software Inc.
T.DY 3214400 1.18 -0.03 Dynatec Corporation
TSX-V
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Symbol Volume Close Change Company Name
V.ECU 3697400 0.15 0.04 ECU Silver Mining Inc.
V.CD 1621900 0.09 -0.01 Cantex Mine Development Corp.
V.PTM 948500 0.80 0.18 Platinum Group Metals Ltd.
V.APC 870000 1.10 0.14 Apac Minerals Inc.
V.SPQ 755000 0.11 0.02 Spider Resources Inc
Small Cap Top Percent Gainers At 5:15:48 P.M. ET
(Market Capitalization Between $10,000,000 and $750,000,000)
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NASDAQ / OTC
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Symbol Volume Close Change %Gain Company Name
DRUG 600200 1.10 0.36 48.65 Dragon Pharmaceutical
SSVC 4300 2.05 0.55 36.67 Star Services Group Inc.
HDGC 127800 1.50 0.40 36.36 Halsey Drug Company Inc.
CBQI 67700 0.04 0.01 25.00 CBQ Inc.
ULBI 962800 14.30 2.70 23.28 Ultralife Batteries Inc.
AMEX
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Symbol Volume Close Change %Gain Company Name
PYR 164800 0.62 0.09 16.98 PYR Energy
GEB 1052700 1.14 0.16 16.33 Genetronics Biomedical Co
CFS 497600 0.70 0.08 12.90 COMFORCE Corporation
EMA 388300 1.69 0.19 12.67 eMagin Corporation
BDE 997100 0.67 0.07 11.67 Brilliant Digital Enterta
TSX
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Symbol Volume Close Change %Gain Company Name
T.BSW 1000500 0.60 0.20 50.00 Black Swan Resources Ltd.
T.CCU 544000 0.07 0.02 40.00 Constellation Copper
Corporation
T.AXO 515800 0.50 0.11 28.21 AltaRex Corp.
T.MIS 15000 0.65 0.14 27.45 MIST Inc.
T.IE 2123000 3.64 0.67 22.56 Ivanhoe Energy Inc.
TSX-V
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Symbol Volume Close Change %Gain Company Name
V.MNO 63500 0.18 0.08 80.00 Mano River Resources Inc.
V.LOO 175900 0.15 0.05 50.00 Loumic Exploration Inc.
V.ECU 3697400 0.15 0.04 38.10 ECU Silver Mining Inc.
V.PTM 948500 0.80 0.18 29.03 Platinum Group Metals Ltd.
V.IPC 367100 1.50 0.25 20.00 IPC Financial Network Inc.
Small Cap Top Percent Losers At 5:15:48 P.M. ET
(Market Capitalization Between $10,000,000 and $750,000,000)
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NASDAQ / OTC
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Symbol Volume Close Change %Loss Company Name
AELA 5259900 4.30 -2.17 -33.54 AEterna Laboratories Inc
MNHG 2000 1.75 -0.55 -23.94 Millenium Holding Group
PWAV 10545700 7.38 -1.59 -17.72 Powerwave Technologies
ADST 140000 1.68 -0.35 -17.24 AdStar Inc.
IPLY 336200 0.13 -0.03 -16.67 Interplay Entertainment C
AMEX
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Symbol Volume Close Change %Loss Company Name
CVM 1973400 0.88 -0.20 -18.52 CEL-SCI Corporation
MEM 669000 0.95 -0.20 -17.39 MCF Corp.
NSO 333700 0.82 -0.12 -12.77 nStor Technologies Inc.
AND 1077400 0.69 -0.09 -11.54 Andrea Electronics Corpor
HRT 55200 6.02 -0.78 -11.47 Arrhythmia Research Techn
TSX
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Symbol Volume Close Change %Loss Company Name
T.AEL 4084300 5.85 -3.10 -34.64 Aeterna Laboratories Inc.
T.ZL 10101400 5.75 -1.13 -16.42 Zarlink Semiconductor Inc.
T.MSF 267500 0.53 -0.10 -15.87 MedcomSoft Inc.
T.IW 3671800 0.38 -0.06 -13.64 Infowave Software Inc.
T.WRX 981400 1.70 -0.25 -12.82 Wireless Matrix Corporation
TSX-V
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Symbol Volume Close Change %Loss Company Name
V.EIH 17000 0.30 -0.09 -23.08 Events International
Holding Corporation
V.GNO 87200 0.18 -0.03 -12.50 Genoil Inc.
V.HGM 63000 0.26 -0.04 -12.07 Holmer Gold Mines Limited
V.AZD 335000 0.53 -0.07 -11.67 Azure Dynamics Corporation
V.STU 59500 2.01 -0.24 -10.67 San Telmo Energy Ltd.
AI
