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From Briefing.com: Weekly Recap - Week ending 26-Apr-13

Dow +11.75 at 14712.55, Nasdaq -10.73 at 3279.25, S&P -2.92 at 1582.24

The major averages entered the weekend on a mixed note as the S&P 500 slipped 0.2% while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.1%.

The final session of the week began on a cautious note as downbeat overseas trade and mixed corporate earnings pressured equity futures. In addition, a disappointing first quarter GDP report contributed to the lower open.

According to the advance report, first quarter GDP grew at an annualized rate of 2.5%. That was up from a 0.4% gain in the final quarter of last year, but below the Briefing.com consensus expectation of a 2.8% gain.

A deeper look into the data sets the tone for a likely severe deceleration in trends during the second quarter.

Just about all of the gains in the first quarter came from consumption and inventories, both of which are likely to experience a pullback over the next three months. Furthermore, government spending, which fell 4.1% in the first quarter after declining 7.1% in Q4 2012, is set to fall by a larger amount during the second quarter as the effects of the sequestration become more pronounced.

With below-consensus growth, the growth-sensitive materials sector was the weakest performer of the day as steelmakers weighed. The Market Vectors Steel ETF (SLX 41.35, -0.71) settled lower by 1.7%. Metal prices also saw a decline as gold slipped 0.4% to $1456.60 per troy ounce while silver declined 1.2% to $23.86 per troy ounce. Also of note, copper futures fell 1.8% to $3.180 per pound.

While the sluggish GDP report weighed on producers of basic materials, the materials sector was the only group which slumped more than 1.0%. Meanwhile, the second weakest sector, financials, ended with a loss of just 0.4%.

Although first quarter economic growth missed expectations, the broader market appeared unconcerned as market participants are well aware of the Federal Reserve's commitment to maintain its accommodative monetary policy for as long as conditions warrant continued easing. As such, the disappointing report resulted in a morning dip, which was met with enough afternoon buying interest to bring the S&P back to its flat line. Those levels held until the final 20 minutes when sellers reemerged and pushed the benchmark average back into the red.

As mentioned earlier, quarterly earnings were in focus this morning. The discretionary sector underperformed as retailers displayed some weakness. Amazon.com (AMZN 254.81, -19.89) lost 7.2% after its above-consensus results were overshadowed by disappointing operating income guidance.

In addition, Starbucks (SBUX 60.00, -0.50) shed 0.8% after its revenue fell short of the Capital IQ consensus estimate. Guidance was also a point of concern as the company lowered its third quarter earnings expectations below consensus.

On the upside, the industrial sector outperformed the broader market as Dow components, Boeing (BA 92.85, +1.18) and General Electric (GE 22.21, +0.26) ended with respective gains of 1.3% and 1.2%. Shares of Boeing rallied following reports indicating Japan will allow the 787 Dreamliner to return to service after the jet experienced battery problems in recent months.

Transportation-related stocks also traded ahead of the broader market. The Dow Jones Transportation Average added 0.1% with airlines providing the leadership. Delta Air Lines (DAL 16.81, +0.52) rose 3.2% after the House of Representatives passed a bill to end sequester-related Federal Aviation Administration furloughs.

Today's economic data also included the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index, which was revised up to 76.4 from 72.3 in the final April reading. That is still down from 78.6 in March and the weakest reading since January. The Briefing.com consensus expected the sentiment index would be essentially unchanged at 72.4.

On Monday, March personal income, personal spending, and core PCE prices will all be reported at 8:30 ET while March pending home sales will be announced at 10:00 ET.

Week in Review: Stocks Attempt to Shake off Recent Weakness

On Monday, the S&P 500 settled higher by 0.5% despite enduring some intraday weakness while the Dow added 0.1%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.9%. Technology stocks led from the start with Microsoft (MSFT 31.79, -0.15) providing considerable support after ValueAct announced a $2 billion stake in the software company. Other tech shares also displayed strength as Apple (AAPL 417.20, +8.82) climbed 2.1%. Although most large tech names ended with gains, IBM (IBM 194.31, +0.36) shed 1.1% to follow Friday's earnings-driven 8.3% drop.

Tuesday's session ended with strong gains as the S&P 500 climbed 1.0%. Financials and technology led the advance with bank stocks outperforming notably. The SPDR Financial Select Sector ETF (XLF 18.56, -0.08) settled higher by 1.8% after Discover Financial Services (DFS 43.92, -0.36) and Dow component Travelers (TRV 85.15, -0.12) reported better-than-expected earnings.

The major averages ended Wednesday's session on a mixed note as the Dow shed 0.3% while Nasdaq and S&P 500 ended flat. Consumer staples lagged after Procter & Gamble (PG 77.10, +0.52) reported revenue below the Capital IQ consensus estimate. In addition, the company issued cautious fourth quarter earnings and revenue guidance. The top performing sector of the year, health care, declined steadily throughout the day after Amgen (AMGN 108.38, -0.28), Edwards Lifesciences (EW 64.17, -1.22), and Eli Lilly (LLY 56.46, +0.03) all reported below-consensus revenues.

Thursday saw equities settle with modest gains. The S&P 500 climbed 0.4% as materials outperformed throughout the session. Miners were among top sector components as precious metals rallied. Gold futures advanced 2.8% to $1462.80 per troy ounce while silver futures spiked 6.2% to $24.25 per troy ounce. Also of note, copper rose 2.8% to $3.247 per pound.

 
 Index	   Started Week	  Ended Week   Change  % Change   YTD % 
 DJIA	     14547.51	  14712.55     165.04	  1.1	 12.3 
 Nasdaq	      3206.06	   3279.26	73.20	  2.3	  8.6 
 S&P 500	1555.25	   1582.24	26.99	  1.7	 10.9 
 Russell 2000   912.50	    935.27	22.77	  2.5	 10.1

10:33 am Technology sector trading -0.2% lower today along with broader market
The tech sector is trading just lower today, along with modest losses in the broader market. Semiconductors are showing relative weakness with the SOX trading 1.1% lower. Within the chip index, KLAC (-9.7%) is a notable laggard. Among other major indices, the SPY is trading 0.2% lower today, while the QQQ is down 0.5% and the NASDAQ is trading 0.4% lower on the session. Among tech bellwethers, FB (+3.3%) is showing notable strength, while MSFT (-1.2%) is under pressure.


Qualcomm (QCOM) reported second quarter earnings of $1.17 per share, excluding non-recurring items, in-line with the Capital IQ consensus of $1.17, while revenues rose 23.9% year/year to $6.12 billion versus the $6.08 billion consensus. Q2 Key Business Metrics MSM chip shipments: 173 million units, up 14 percent y-o-y and down 5 percent sequentially. December quarter total reported device sales: ~$61.1 billion, up 18 percent y-o-y and 15% QoQ. December quarter estimated 3G/4G device shipments: ~279 to 283 million units, at an estimated average selling price of approximately $214 to $220 per unit. The company issued in-line guidance for the third quarter with EPS of f $0.97-1.05, excluding non-recurring items, versus the $1.04 Capital IQ consensus and revenues of $5.8-6.3 billion versus $5.88 billion Capital IQ consensus. The company issued guidance for FY13, raises EPS to $4.40-4.55, excluding non-recurring items, from $4.25-4.45 versus the. $4.53 Capital IQ consensus. The company raised revenues to $24.0-25.0 billion from $23.4-24.4 billion versus the $24.1 bln Capital IQ consensus.

F5 Networks (FFIV) reported fourth quarter earnings of $1.07 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.01 better than the Capital IQ consensus of $1.06, while revenues rose 3.1% year/year to $350.2 million versus the $350.19 million consensus. The company issues downside guidance for Q3, sees EPS of $1.06-1.09, excluding non-recurring items versus the. $1.11 Capital IQ consensus and revenues of $355-365 million versus the $366.89 million Capital IQ consensus. The company also announced today that its board of directors had authorized an additional $200 million for the company's common stock share repurchase program. This new authorization is incremental to the $81.3 million currently in the existing program which was initially authorized in October 2010.

Western Digital (WDC) reported third quarter earnings of $2.10 per share, $0.34 better than the Capital IQ consensus of $1.76, while revenues rose 24.0% year/year to $3.76 billion versus the $3.61 billion consensus. "Strong execution by our HGST and WD subsidiaries drove outstanding results in the March quarter as we continue to capitalize on the secular growth of digital data. Overall industry demand was in line with our expectations. In our business, we saw strength in enterprise, stable performance in client and consumer electronics, and some anticipated seasonal softness in Branded Products."