IBD- Big picture for tomorrow's paper. I have the e-IBD - this was written after posted results for AAPL. Market in correction, but these guys are a little too conservative. Some great ideas, and very disciplined.
While Indexes End Mixed, Leaders' Action Worsens
By VICTOR REKLAITIS, INVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILY Posted 07:13 PM ET
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The main indexes finished mixed Tuesday, displaying relatively muted action, but many leading stocks took big hits.
The NYSE composite and S&P 500 rose 0.6% and 0.4%, respectively. The Nasdaq lost 0.3%, giving up an early gain of 0.3%.
A 2% slide by Apple (AAPL), which accounts for about 10% of the Nasdaq, weighed on the tech-heavy index. Volume fell from Monday's levels on both main exchanges.
While the indexes traded in narrow ranges compared with recent sessions, it was a different story for stocks that have been leading the market.
Ulta Beauty (ULTA) tumbled 7% in huge turnover, slicing through its 50-day moving average. Volume was the highest and the price loss the greatest since Ulta's January breakout. That's a sell sign.
Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG), VMware (VMW) and Lululemon Athletica (LULU) also slid under their 50-day lines in convincing trade, losing 3%, 4% and 5%, respectively.
Buffalo Wild Wings (BWLD) fell 6% in strong volume, selling off in the last hour of trading after the company released its first-quarter results earlier than expected. The restaurant chain slid even though profit beat views . Sales basically matched expectations, and the company backed its 2012 profit guidance.
After bucking Monday's negative trend with a 1% gain in fast turnover, GNC (GNC) dropped 2% in even faster down volume. Under Armour (UA), Herbalife (HLF) and Alexion (ALXN) were also among the leaders that dropped in strong volume.
While Apple fell during the regular session, closing under its 50-day line for the first time since Dec. 19, the stock rallied in after-hours trading after quarterly results crushed estimates.
Also on the upside, winners beat losers on both exchanges, and new 52-week highs outnumbered new lows. However, some stocks that hit highs staged negative reversals, such as GNC and Herbalife.
Economic reports came in mixed Tuesday. New-home purchases fell to 328,000 in March, but beat views. The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index slipped for a second straight month in April to 69.2, missing forecasts.
On a seasonally adjusted basis, the S&P/Case-Shiller home price index rose more than expected for February, but on a non-adjusted basis, it fell more than anticipated.
On Wednesday, Fed policymakers will wrap up their two-day monetary meeting. Market watchers expect no change in policy, but will parse the comments for any changes in tone.
As the market correction continues, don't get faked out by rallies in low volume. Note how some recent up days came in below-average turnover, such as April 12 and April 17 (1) on the Nasdaq.
Above-average volume kicked in on down days, such as April 10, and this past Thursday, Friday and Monday. (2) That tells you the environment remains bearish.
With its rebound earlier this month, the Nasdaq took back a little less than half of its decline from the March 27 high before it started falling again — another negative.
Starting with today's print and eIBD editions, The Big Picture column has moved next to the index charts. This makes it possible for the column to note specific points on the charts, as was done above.
In addition, the index charts will show the distribution days, noted with a "D" for distribution or "DS" for stalling, which is also a type of distribution.
