From Briefing.com: 4:20 pm : There wasn't a lot of excitement in the stock market today and there is nothing wrong with that. After rallying in broad-based fashion on Friday, the major indices stood their ground (for the most part) amid a lack of conviction from buyers and sellers alike.
Today wasn't a case so much of the stock market going up as it was a case of some influential stocks going up to keep the major indices on a winning path. In fact, decliners were just about even with advancers at the NYSE and led by a 3-to-2 margin on the Nasdaq.
Apple (AAPL 566.43, +6.41) and Google (GOOG 1078.14, +8.27) were key drivers of the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite while ExxonMobil (XOM 95.84, +0.19), Chevron (CVX 123.34, +1.05), and Goldman Sachs (GS 167.67, +0.46) were key drivers specifically of the price-weighted Dow Jones Industrial Average.
Another distinction in today's market is that the small-cap sector generally sat this one out as evidenced by the underperformance of the Russell 2000 (-0.2%).
The S&P 500 made an attempt to switch into a higher gear, but it was rebuffed after peaking its head above the 1811 level. That area was a technical line in the sand that was tried and trumped on three separate occasions. The last time was around 1:25 p.m. ET. From that point forward, the broader market trended lower in a choppy trade, yet there was never a cascade of selling interest.
Three Federal Reserve Bank Presidents -- Lacker (Richmond), Bullard (St. Louis), and Fisher (Dallas) -- gave speeches today that touched on their economic views, but ultimately none of them surprised the market with their thinking.
On a related note, the Federal Reserve released a report today that showed household net worth hit a record high $77.3 tln in the third quarter. The stock market took that news and sat with it. Despite the encouraging statistic, it did little to add to household net worth today.
From a sector standpoint, there wasn't a single sector that moved up, or down, at least 1.0%. The biggest gainer today was the materials sector (+0.5%), which also happens to be one of the lowest-weighted sectors in the S&P 500. A decent showing by the financial (+0.4%) and industrials (+0.3%) sectors helped carry more of today's performance load. The utilities (-0.6%) and the consumer discretionary (-0.1%) sectors were the only sectors to end the day in red figures.
McDonald's (MCD 95.72, -1.08) was a notable blue chip laggard following the company's report that comparable sales in its US business declined 0.8% in November (they were up 0.5% overall). Separately, food services company Sysco (SYY 37.62, +3.31) enjoyed a strong day with investors applauding its decision to buy US Foods for a total consideration of $8.2 bln.
Aside from stocks, the bond market also stood its ground today after Friday's advance. The 10-yr note added two ticks, leaving its yield at 2.85%.
Tomorrow's economic calendar features the Wholesale Inventories and JOLTS - Job Openings reports for October. Neither is known for having market-moving potential.
Nasdaq +34.7% YTD
Russell 2000 +32.7% YTD
S&P 500 +26.8% YTD
DJIA +22.1% YTD
DJ30 +5.33 NASDAQ +6.23 SP500 +3.28 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1051/1.59 bln/1521 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1498/684 mln/1483
3:35 pm : Commodities ended the day mixed with energy lower, except for natural gas, metals mixed with gold and copper higher and silver fell.
Crude oil futures lost some steam near the end of today's session and fell to a new LoD of $97.27 just a couple minutes before the end of floor trading. At the end of the session, Jan crude oil ended $0.30 lower at $97.40. Jan natural gas gained 11 cents to $4.23/MMBtu.
Precious metals gained some steam in the early hours of electronic trading and continued to extend gains throughout the day. Feb gold rose $5 on today's session to $1234.10/oz, while Mar silver fell $0.17 to $19.07/oz. Both gold and silver hit new session highs in electronic trade here, about 15 minutes ago.DJ30 +7.13 NASDAQ +2.78 SP500 +2.60 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1014/1336.7 mln/1594 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1418/389 mln/1562
3:00 pm : The final hour is upon us. Stocks are showing modest gains and the 10-yr note is now unchanged for the session. To be sure, dynamic is not a word that would be used to describe today's trading action in either the stock or bond market. Resilient is probably the better fit.
Neither the stock nor the bond market has caved to selling interest after Friday's advance.
There wasn't any economic data out of the US that affected trading today. Tomorrow is light with the Wholesale Inventories and JOLTS - Job Opening reports for October the only items on the calendar. The big data points on the calendar this week are the Retail Sales report for November and the Initial Claims report for the week ending December 7. Each of those reports is out on Thursday.
6:06PM FormFactor confirms Q4 rev guidance of $46-50 mln vs $48.55 mln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate (FORM) 5.26 +0.06 : Co confirmed its Q4'13 guidance of a revenue range between $46 million to $50 million (vs $48.55 mln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate), non-GAAP gross margin to be in the range of 10% to 15%, non-GAAP operating expenses to be approximately $19 million to $20 million, and Q4 cash usage of $12 to $16 million. The company announced it will hold a conference call to provide a mid-quarter update on key programs tomorrow, December 10, 2013, at 6:00 a.m. PST, or 9:00 a.m. EST.
6:02PM Arch Coal announces it has begun operating its longwall mining system (ACI) 4.55 +0.28 : Co announced that Tygart Valley's Leer mine in northern West Virginia has begun operating its longwall mining system, representing a major milestone in the development of the overall mining complex. The Leer mine is expected to ramp up production during the first quarter of 2014, and to produce more than 3 million tons of coal on an annualized basis thereafter. The majority of the output will be sold into domestic and international metallurgical coal markets for use in the production of steel.
4:53PM NXP Semi: Selling shareholders commence 25 mln share secondary offering of common stock (NXPI) 43.55 -0.68 : Co announced that certain of its principal stockholders, including affiliates of funds managed or advised by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. L.P., AlpInvest Partners B.V., Apax Partners LLP, Bain Capital Partners, LLC and Silver Lake Technology Management, L.L.C., have commenced a registered secondary offering of 25,000,000 shares of common stock pursuant to NXP's shelf registration statement on Form F-3. NXP will not receive any proceeds from the sale of shares in the offering. Barclays Capital Inc. and Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC are acting as joint book-running managers for the offering.
4:45PM Diodes raises fourth quarter 2013 gross profit margin guidance (DIOD) 20.53 -0.01 : Co stated that it is raising its gross profit margin guidance for the fourth quarter of 2013. Diodes is maintaining its fourth quarter revenue guidance expectations to range between $205 million and $220 million (vs $213.03 mln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate), or down 2 to 9 percent sequentially and is raising its gross profit margin guidance from 28.0 percent, plus or minus 2 percent, to 28.6 percent, plus or minus 2 percent. Diodes is maintaining its prior guidance for operating expenses, income tax rate and shares used to calculate GAAP EPS, which is operating expenses are expected to be 22.7 percent of revenue, plus or minus 1 percent; income tax rate to range between 18 and 24 percent, and shares used to calculate GAAP EPS to be approximately 48.3 million. In addition, Diodes is currently performing its annual test for impairment of goodwill. Preliminary findings suggest that during the fourth quarter the Company may be required to take a one-time, non-cash charge for impairment relating only to the goodwill from the Eris Technology Corporation acquisition.
4:30PM Texas Instruments Mid Quarter Update- Tightens EPS guidance range to $0.44-0.48, Capital IQ consensus $0.46; tightens revenue range to $2.92-3.04 bln, CapIQ consensus $2.98 bln (TXN) 43.58 +0.09 : Preliminary Q3 Guidance issued on October 22 was for GAAP EPS of $0.42-0.50 and revenue guidance in the range of $2.86-3.10 bln.
4:15PM Marvell Technology Group Ltd. Announces Appointment of Interim Chief Financial Officer (MRVL) 13.42 -0.18 : Co announced the appointment of Michael Rashkin as Interim Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Rashkin has been with the Company since 1999 and prior to this appointment served in a variety of roles in the finance organization. Mr. Rashkin also served as Interim Chief Financial Officer of Marvell from July 2007 to January 2008.
4:03PM Aehr Test Systems announces $1 mln follow-on order for its FOX-15 wafer level burn-in and test system and WaferPak full-wafer contactors (AEHR) 3.05 +0.14
4:00PM Finisar announces proposed $200 mln convertible Senior notes offering due 2023 (FNSR) 22.60 +0.78 : Co announced its intention to offer $200 million aggregate principal amount of convertible senior notes due 2033 in a private placement to qualified institutional buyers pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. Finisar also expects to grant the initial purchaser of the Notes a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional $30 million aggregate principal amount of the Notes solely to cover over-allotments.
Large Cap Gainers
SYY (38.63 +12.59%): Co and US Foods announced an agreement to merge; Sysco to pay ~$3.5 bln for the equity of US Foods
IBN (40.42 +4.88%): Stregth in Indian markets and related stocks
CELG (172.35 +3.56%): Co and Acceleron reported that interim sotatercept data from the ongoing phase 2 trial demonstrate dose dependent increases in hemoglobin in non-transfusion dependent beta-thalassemia patients
Large Cap Losers
WDAY (79.05 -2.93%): Mentioned cautiously in Wall Street Journal article
CLR (102.46 -2.91%): Downgraded to Hold from Buy at Detusche Bank
NBL (68.21 -1.85%): Downgraded to Hold from Buy at Detusche Bank
Mid Cap Gainers
IOC (60.03 +8.16%): Mentioned positively in blog article; Morgan Stanley sees potential for upside but lowered target to $85
WWAV (22.57 +3.60%): Announced it has agreed to acquire Earthbound Farm from its existing shareholders led by Kainos Capital and founders Drew & Myra Goodman, for approximately $600 million in cash
SAPE (16.53 +3.31%): Target raised to $19.50 from $18 at Stifel
Mid Cap Losers
EW (62.56 -5.63%): Reaffirmed FY13 EPS guidance of $3.00-3.10 ex items vs $3.05 estimate; sees FY14 EPS around $3.00 vs $3.50 estimate, revs of $2.05-2.25 bln vs $2.20 bln estimate
SGEN (42.22 -4.80%): Presented interim Phase 1 clinical data from SGN-CD19A, an antibody-drug conjugate in development for the treatment of B-cell malignancies, including acute lymphoblastic leukemia; co also announced updated overall survival data from wo ADCETRIS (brentuximab vedotin) pivotal Phase 2 clinical trials in relapsed/refractory Hodgkin lymphoma
NFX (25.39 -3.93%): Updated production and capital investment outlook for 2014-2016; domestic liquids production expected to grow 30% in 2014. Company plans to invest ~$1.6 bln in 2014, focused on liquids growth
Broadcom (BRCM) introduced the BCM47531, a Global Navigation Satellite System chip that generates positioning data from five satellite constellations simultaneously.
7:41AM Qualcomm announces next-generation mobile health solutions for preventative, transitional and complex care management; announces availability of its Gimbal proximity beacons to enable customer engagement based on micro location (QCOM) 73.76 : Co has made its Gimbal proximity beacons commercially available as part of the Gimbal context aware, proximity platform. Gimbal proximity beacons, available in two models, are accurate down to one foot and work indoors and outdoors. Gimbal is a comprehensive context aware, proximity platform for brands to engage their customers' mobile devices with highly relevant communications using a powerful combination of physical location, activity, time and personal interests.
Co is also is collaborating with leading enterprise health care ecosystem participants who are leveraging the 2net and HealthyCircles Care Coordination Platforms to enable wireless connectivity and develop reliable solutions to seamlessly capture, transfer and share valuable health data from hospital to home.
7:27AM Trina Solar statement on decision of definitive anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties and price undertaking in European Union (TSL) 12.57 : "On December 5, 2013, the European Commission announced its decision to accept the price undertaking offered by Chinese export producers with the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products (CCCME) in connection with the AD and AS proceedings. Chinese solar panel exporters that participate in the price undertaking, including Trina Solar, are exempt from the AD and AS duties as described below. The Council of the European Union announced its final decision imposing AD and AS duties on imports of crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells and modules originating in or consigned from China. An average duty of 47.7%, consisting of both AD and AS duties, will be applied for a period of two years beginning on December 6, 2013 to Chinese solar panel exporters who cooperated with the European Commission's investigations."
7:02AM Canadian Solar signs loan agreement with Harvest North Star Capital for the development of its solar power projects in Japan (CSIQ) 27.57 : Co announces that it has signed a $40 million loan agreement with Harvest North Star Capital. The loan facility is split into 3 tranches, with the drawdown of the first tranche expected in December of 2013. The loan facility will be used to finance the development of several ground-mounted solar power projects in Japan totaling around 145.1 MWdc, with ~40-50 MWdc expected to start construction during the first half of 2014.
5:18AM Canadian Solar supplies 8.7 MW of solar modules for EOSOL MEXICO Project in Durango, Mexico (CSIQ) 27.57 : Co announces it is the supplier of 8.7 MW of its MaxPower CS6X Solar Modules to EOSOL Mexico. The ground mounted solar project is located in Durango, Mexico and represents Mexico's second largest Photovoltaic project to date. The formal ribbon cutting celebration is scheduled for an unannounced date in first quarter of 2014.
OSI Systems (OSIS) announced that its security division, Rapiscan Systems, provided an update on the delivery order recently terminated by the U.S. Transportation Security Administration. The Company believes the termination resulted from Rapiscan's use of an upgraded component in the AT-2 detection systems. While the component change was vetted by Rapiscan's internal quality assurance, it did not meet the contractual requirement of obtaining TSA's approval in advance. When Rapiscan leadership discovered the error, they proactively informed TSA of the configuration change, the related procedural lapse and proposed a course for corrective action. The Company stated that the recent proposal that resulted in TSA's award to Rapiscan of the delivery order in question called out to TSA that Rapiscan would use X-ray generators manufactured in China and TSA subsequently awarded the delivery order to Rapiscan. The new generator is manufactured by Shanghai Advanced Non-Destructive Testing, a China-based company. SANDT supplies X-ray generators to many leading suppliers of security X-ray systems, including many of Rapiscan's competitors. As a long-standing supplier to the industry, SANDT has thousands of X-ray generators in use in security systems around the world. According to TSA's own preliminary test results, the SANDT manufactured generator shows comparable detection capability and false alarm rates.
ReneSola (SOL) announced it will deliver 6.8MW of its high efficiency Virtus II 72-cell 300W polycrystalline photovoltaic (PV) modules to one of California's leading project developers, Pristine Sun. Panasonic is providing the construction financing and performance guarantee, while Mosaic will provide take-out financing. The 6.8MW order is being installed by several contractors, resulting in a complex project with challenging schedules. This ground-mount project will consist of single-axis trackers, and is part of a portfolio of 75MW of similar projects being developed by Pristine Sun in California.
Analysts Intl (ALNY) announces that it has presented new pre-clinical data with ALN-CC5, a subcutaneously administered RNAi therapeutic targeting complement component C5 for the treatment of complement-mediated diseases. These data demonstrate that subcutaneous administration of ALN-CC5 in non-human primates led to an up to 98% knockdown of serum C5 and an up to 94% inhibition of hemolytic activity. Alnylam believes that ALN-CC5 -- part of the company's "Alnylam 5x15" product strategy -- represents a novel approach for the treatment of complement-mediated diseases, with a potentially competitive profile compared with intravenously administered anti-C5 monoclonal antibody therapy. In addition, Alnylam presented two separate posters with new pre-clinical data on ALN-TMP, an RNAi therapeutic targeting TMPRSS6 for the treatment of beta-thalassemia and iron-overload disorders. Alnylam is continuing to optimize its C5-targeted siRNA lead candidate, and now expects to identify its final Development Candidate for ALN-CC5 in early 2014 and to file an Investigational New Drug (IND) application or IND equivalent in early 2015.
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