4:30 pm : The stock market's inability to hold above a key technical level for the second straight session provided participants with an excuse to dump stocks in high volume for the worst single-session slide in five months.
Early attention was focused on the fourth quarter GDP report. It indicated that gross output increased at annualized rate of 3.2% from October through December. It was partly helped by a 7.1% spike in real final sales. Real final sales haven't made such a sharp climb since 1984.
While fourth quarter growth was actually above potential and greater than the 2.6% rate recorded for the third quarter, economists polled by Brieifng.com had expected, on average, fourth quarter growth of 3.2%.
There was only a minor reaction to news of the slower-than-expected growth. In fact, stocks actually benefited from minor buying in the first few minutes of trade. The morning bid was strong enough to take the S&P 500 back above 1300 to its highest level since September 2009. The broad market measure's failure to hold its ground above 1300 for the second straight session provided traders who had already argued that the stock market had become near-term overbought the opportunity to take profits. Selling pressure only accelerated as stocks slid through near-term support levels.
An interest in selling left many to shrug off the final January Consumer Sentiment Survey from the University of Michigan. The Survey improved to 74.2 from the preliminary reading of 72.7. It had been widely expected to improve to just 73.2.
Earnings were of little interest to broad market participants. And in light of the drastically soured sentiment, any blemishes on quarterly reports were treated as egregious offenses that commanded aggressive selling. Amazon.com (AMZN 171.14, -13.31) actually posted an upside surprise, but that was overshadowed by a tepid forecast. Its shares recorded their worst daily percentage drop in almost seven months to finish at a two-month low. Its weakness weighed heavily on the Nasdaq, which suffered an outsized loss after outperforming in the past few sessions.
Ford (F 16.27, -2.52) shares fell precipitously following a deep earnings miss. Honeywell (HON 55.32, -0.60) had in-line results and fell. Even San Disk (SNDK 46.80, -4.52) was dumped, despite an upside earnings surprise.
Energy stocks escaped some of this session's selling effort. The sector shed just 0.5%, thanks partly to a 4% spike in oil prices amid concerns about a spillover of social unrest in Egypt.
At 1.3 billion shares, trading volume on the NYSE was the strongest in more than a month. Volatility was stoked by this session's high-volume sell-off. Specifically, the Volatility Index, often euphemistically dubbed the Fear Gauge, soared 24% for its sharpest move since May.
The spike in volatility sent some participants into Treasuries, which made solid gains, but nothing overly impressive. The dollar benefited, too; it advanced 0.5% against a collection of competing currencies.
3:30 pm : Commodities caught a nice bid today. The CRB Commodity Index responded with a 1.2% spike, which helped it achieve a 0.4% weekly gain.
Oil prices rallied sharply to wipe out losses earlier in the week. Weekly lows were set at $85.11 per barrel, which also marked a two-month low. However, concern about potential spillover of social unrest in Egypt helped spur buying this session. The energy component settled pit trade with a 4.3% gain at $89.34 per barrel. Natural gas attracted less support, but still ended up for the day. Contracts closed pit trade 0.2% higher at $4.33 per MMBtu.
Precious metals prices pushed higher, too. Specifically, gold gained 1.5% to $1337.70 per ounce while silver settled 3.3% higher at $27.92 per ounce. The strong gains followed a few sessions of relative weakness, in which both metals closed lower for three of the previous four sessions. Just yesterday gold prices put in their lowest level in almost four months, just below $1310 per ounce. Silver prices actually put in a one-month low near $26.70 per ounce early this morning. DJ30 -173.20 NASDAQ -69.57 SP500 -23.00 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 415/2.01 bln/2220 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 506/992 mln/2489
3:00 pm : Selling has taken its toll on the Russell 2000 Small-Cap Index, which is currently down 2.1%. More than 90% of the members in the Russell 2000 are in the red.
Despite such pronounce weakness this session, small caps still aren't at their weekly lows, which were set Tuesday in the wake of a pull back from the three-year high that the Russell 2000 set in the previous week. The pullback by the Russell 2000 and the subsequent failure to rebound to new highs alongside broader market measures like the S&P 500 could suggest that participants have started to rotate out of riskier equity issues. DJ30 -156.93 NASDAQ -63.61 SP500 -20.11 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 425/1.84 bln/2194 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 528/903 mln/2454
2:30 pm : The consumer discretionary sector has been hit hard this session. It is down 3.0%, which makes it the worst performing sector of the day. Amazon.com (AMZN 169.80, -14.65) is a primary source of weakness in the sector following the Internet retailer's disappointing forecast.
Weakness in shares of AMZN has also undercut the Nasdaq, which has taken a much harder beating than its counterparts. Heading into this session the Nasdaq was actually up 2.4% for the week while the S&P 500 and Dow were up 1.3% and 1.0% for the week, respectively. With this session's slide, the Nasdaq is headed for a 0.2% weekly gain while both the S&P 500 and the Dow are now down 0.2% for the week. DJ30 -148.79 NASDAQ -63.05 SP500 -19.55 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 413/1.73 bln/2201 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 506/830 mln/2471
2:00 pm : Stocks are stuck at session lows with almost 95% of the issues in the S&P 500 in the red. Dover Corp (DOV 62.02, +2.54), Salesforce.com (CRM 133.58, +5.34), and Hess (HES 81.86, +2.61) are a among the few that have mustered gains amid widespread weakness. Of the three, only Dover recently issued a quarterly report. It featured an upside earnings surprise.
Monster Worldwide (MWW 16.49, -4.93), Ford Motor (F 16.54, -2.25), and SanDisk (SNDK 46.72, -4.60) are among the heaviest drags in the broader market. Monster Worldwide has seen one-fifth of its market cap evaporate after posting a light revenue figure in its latest quarterly report and issuing a rather mixed forecast. Ford missed the consensus earnings estimate by a wide margin, but SanDisk actually reported a better-than-expected bottom line and a solid top line. DJ30 -139.22 NASDAQ -61.25 SP500 -18.25 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 391/1.62 bln/2206 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 493/766 mln/2460
1:30 pm : The major equity averages have eased back toward session lows after attracting some support right about noon ET.
The Volatility Index, often euphemistically dubbed the Fear Gauge, is now up 19%. That makes for its sharpest single-session spike since June 4, 2010.
Amid the weakness in stocks and the spike in volatility the dollar has benefited from safety buying. In turn, the Dollar Index is up 0.6%. Still, the greenback's gain hasn't been enough to take it back to weekly highs. After all, the Dollar Index set a two-month low yesterday. DJ30 -158.31 NASDAQ -66.24 SP500 -20.79 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 374/1.51 bln/2206 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 446/710 mln/2498
1:05 pm : The stock market's inability to hold its ground at key technical levels following the fourth quarter GDP report brought about a wave of selling that has stocks on pace for their worst loss in two months.
Early participants had a relatively muted response to fourth quarter GDP, which increased at an annualized rate of 3.2%. While that was up from the 2.6% rate recorded in the second quarter, economists polled by Briefing.com had expected fourth quarter growth closer to 3.7%.
The only other item on the economic calendar was the final January Consumer Sentiment Survey from the University of Michigan. It was released shortly after the open and came in at 74.2, up more than expected from the preliminary reading of 72.7.
Traders shrugged off the consumer sentiment reading. Their attention was focused on the inability of the S&P 500 to hold its ground above 1300 for the second straight session. Once participants saw it wobble, they began to pile in. Aggressive selling has left the broad market measure down more than 1% and the Nasdaq down more than 2%.
Amazon.com (AMZN 169.11, -15.34) has been a heavy drag on the Nasdaq. The stock's 8% drop comes in response to a tepid forecast, which has overshadowed better-than-expected earnings. Microsoft (MSFT 27.64, -1.23) has also been a heavy drag, though it posted an upside earnings surprise shortly before the prior session's close.
Shares of Ford (F 16.56, -2.23) are in some of the worst shape of any widely-held issue. The stock plummeted in response to a deep earnings miss.
Energy stocks have managed to limit their losses this session; the sector is down just 0.2%. Most of that is because oil prices have spiked 4.0% to trade at $89.10 per barrel amid unrest in Egypt, although Egypt is not a major global oil exporter.DJ30 -148.95 NASDAQ -62.95 SP500 -19.11 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 383/1.41 bln/2176 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 470/652 mln/2449
12:30 pm : Stocks have stabilied, at least for now. Losses remain steep, though.
Treasuries are up nicely amid this session's sell-off. The benchmark 10-year Note had been down in the early going, but it is now up 13 ticks so that its yield is at 3.33%. DJ30 -142.25 NASDAQ -63.44 SP500 -18.50 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 363/1.28 bln/2192 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 426/589 mln/2479
12:00 pm : Stocks have descended deeper into negative territory. For now, the S&P 500 has found support at the 1280 line, more than 20 points below its session high, while the Nasdaq sits at 2690.
Oil prices have extended their rally amid concern about unrest in Egypt, although Egypt is not a major global oil exporter. Oil prices are up 4.2% to $89.25 per barrel. Oil's strength has helped limit losses in the energy sector, which is down a relatively tame 0.6%. DJ30 -135.66 NASDAQ -65.22 SP500 -18.78 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 355/1.07 bln/2165 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 438/501 mln/2438
11:30 am : Selling pressure has stoked volatility this session. In turn, the Volatility Index is presently up 11% to its 50-day moving average. The move makes for its sharpest single-session surge in two months.
Weakness is widespread -- 87% of the S&P 500 is in the red -- but airline stocks are in some of the worst shape. In turn, the Amex Airline Index is down 2.9%. Airline shares certainly haven't been helped by news that oil prices have spiked 2.6% gain to $87.90 per barrel. DJ30 -81.93 NASDAQ -43.49 SP500 -12.41 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 405/870 mln/2084 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 504/415 mln/2312
11:00 am : Selling pressure has intensified to take the major equity averages deeper into the red. The Nasdaq, which had been having dissemination issues earlier this monring, has fallen the most. The Nasdaq actually outperformed its counterparts in recent sessions.
Amazon.com (AMZN 169.41, -15.04) is one of the heaviest drags in the Nasdaq. The stock has dropped more than 8% in the wake of its latest quarterly announcement, which featured a tepid forecast that has overshadowed better-than-expected earnings. DJ30 -72.43 NASDAQ -38.50 SP500 -10.79 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 435/701 mln/2008 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 556/334 mln/2255
10:30 am : The dollar index rallied in recent trade, putting slight pressure on commodities. However, energy markets and precious metals are higher.
March crude oil rallied for about $1.50 per barrel over the last hour and a half, pushing to new session highs of $87.48 per barrel. Currently, crude is trading 1.7% higher at $87.06 per barrel. March natural gas is back in positive territory, now up 0.3% at $4.33 per MMBtu.
Precious metals spent all session in the red before its recent rally, which pushed gold and silver into positive territory. March gold gained about $12 from an hour ago, pushing into positive territory and new session highs of $1321.90 per ounce. March silver followed gold, rising to its own fresh highs on the session of $27.42 per ounce. Gold is currently 0.3% higher at $1323.30 per ounce, while silver is up 1.3% at $27.39 per ounce.DJ30 -41.21 NASDAQ -23.18 SP500 -7.02 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 458/520.7 mln/1919 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 593/249.3 mln/2162
10:00 am : For the second straight session the S&P 500 has failed to hold its position above the 1300 line. That has invited selling pressure, which has dropped the broader market into the red.
Selling comes in the face of a surprisingly strong consumer sentiment survey. The final January Consumer Sentiment Survey from the University of Michigan came in at 74.2, up from the preliminary reading of 72.7. The consensus among economists polled by Briefing.com had been pegged at 73.2.
09:45 am : The broad market is up slightly in early trade, but the Nasdaq is currently having an issue that is affecting the dissemination of indexes, according to CNBC.
Financials, up 0.6% at the moment, are showing strength for the third straight session. That has helped the sector more than offset steep slides earlier this week; the financial sector is now on pace for a 1.0% weekly gain.
Telecom is weak again. The sector has already shed 1.0%. DJ30 +19.07 NASDAQ +0.00 SP500 +2.66 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 989/172 mln/1167 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1298/110 mln/1304
09:15 am : S&P futures vs fair value: +1.70. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +1.50. The S&P 500 heads into Friday with a 1.3% week-to-date gain. Such strength took the S&P 500 to 1300 yesterday for the first time in more than two years. However, stock futures point to a flat start to Friday, so it is unclear whether the benchmark index will be able to push past the psychologically significant line. The fourth quarter GDP report has failed to generate any substantial buying interest. Growth of 3.2% from October through December is stronger than the 2.6% growth recorded for the third quarter, but economists had generally expected more in the fourth quarter. As for earnings, they continue to be of little motivation to the broader market. Microsoft (MSFT) posted an upside surprise late in the prior session, but held its press conference after the close. Chevron (CVX) reported this morning a bottom line beat of its own. Amazon.com (AMZN) also beat, but disappointed with is outlook. Ford (F) reported a deep miss. The only other item on today's docket is the final Consumer Sentiment Survey for January from the University of Michigan at 9:55 AM ET.
09:00 am : S&P futures vs fair value: +0.50. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -0.50. Domestic stock futures are back at the flat line. Germany's DAX is up a mere 0.2% at the moment. Automakers BMW and Volkswagen have provided support amid an earnings miss by American competitor Ford (F). Daimler (DAI) has fallen out of favor, though. France's CAC is currently flat. Financials are strong for the second straight session. As such, Societe Generale and BNP Paribas are up nicely. In contrast, Sanofi-Aventis (SNY) is under stiff pressure after the firm reported that reports in a drug trial did not meet specified criteria. Britain's FTSE is up from its session low, but still 0.8% in the red. Weakness is relatively widespread following a disappointing January Gfk report for the United Kingdom. Pressure is most pronounced against GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), which recently received a Complete Response Letter from the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. AstraZeneca (AZN) has attracted some support, though.
Overnight action in Asia saw Japan's Nikkei fall to a 1.1% loss as participants there reacted to news that S&P downgraded the country's debt to AA- from AA. About 86% of the issues in the Nikkei fell; they were led lower by Fanuc Corp, Advantest (ATE), and Fast Retailing. Kyocera (KYO) and Komatsu managed to muster gains, though. Mainland China's Shanghai Composite mustered a 0.1% gain amid strength in SAIC Motor, China United, and Sany Heavy Industry. However, heavyweights PetroChina (PTR), China Petroleum (SNP), and Industrial & Commercial Bank were drags. Hong Kong's Hang Seng shed 0.7% as CNOOC (CEO), Cheung Kong, and Hutchison Whampoa weighed on action. HSBC (HBC) and China Mobile provided some support to the broader market.
08:35 am : S&P futures vs fair value: +1.40. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +1.00. The advance fourth quarter GDP report was posted a few minutes ago. Stock futures initially reacted with a bit of a slip, but they have since rebounded so that they now trade near morning highs with a narrow lead over fair value. According to data, gross output in the fourth quarter increased at an annualized rate of 3.2%, which is not as strong as the 3.7% increase that had been generally expected among economists polled by Briefing.com. Still, fourth quarter growth is stronger than the 2.6% annualized rate that had been recorded for the third quarter. Personal consumption increased 4.4% in the fourth quarter, up from 2.4% in the third quarter. Core personal consumption expenditures increased 0.4% quarter over quarter after a 0.5% quarter-over-quarter increase. The chain deflator increased 0.3% in the fourth quarter; it had been widely expected to increase 1.5%.
08:05 am : S&P futures vs fair value: flat. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -3.30. Stock futures have worked their way out of the red to trade flat. The move mirrored the climb made by the German DAX and the French CAC, both of which started Friday in the red, but are now narrowly higher. Britain's FTSE is still down 1% following a disappointing January Gfk reading for the United Kingdom. As for action in Asia, Japan's Nikkei fell more than 1% in reaction to S&P's downgrade of Japan's debt to AA- from AA. China and Hong Kong saw mixed interest. Morning participants are preparing for the advance fourth quarter GDP reading, which is coming up at 8:30 AM ET. The final consumer confidence survey for January from the University of Michigan is the only other item on today's economic calendar; it is due at 9:55 AM ET. The latest round of earnings announcements have been a bit more mixed than those of previous days. Ford (F), American Electric (AEP), and Dominion (D) announced misses, but Amazon.com (AMZN) and San Disk (SNDK) both beat. Honeywell (HON) had in-line results.
06:29 am : [BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: -0.60. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -6.50.
06:28 am : Nikkei...10360.34...-118.30...-1.10%. Hang Seng...23617.02...-162.60...-0.70%.
06:28 am : FTSE...5920.37...-44.70...-0.80%. DAX...7164.56...+9.00...+0.10%.
http://finance.yahoo.com/marketupdate/update 5:42PM Standard & Poor's Announces Change to U.S. Index (INDXCH) : Getty Realty (GTY) will replace Applied Signal Technology (APSG) in the S&P SmallCap 600 index after the close of trading on February 2. Applied Signal Technology is being acquired by S&P 100 & 500 constituent Raytheon (RTN) in a deal expected to be completed soon.
5:38PM Interline Brands announces acquisition of Northern Colorado Paper; expects to be accretive in 2011 (IBI) 21.30 -0.85 : Co announced today that it has acquired substantially all of the assets of Northern Colorado Paper, a distributor of janitorial and sanitation supplies for ~$9.5 million in cash. Co expects this acquisition to be accretive to earnings in 2011 by $0.01 to $0.02 per share.
5:36PM Perry Ellis estimates 2012 revs derived from the Rafaella assets of ~$120 mln; expected to be accretive to fiscal 2012 earnings per share by ~$0.40 (PERY) 28.37 -0.70 : Co currently estimates that total revenue derived from the Rafaella assets during fiscal 2012 will be approximately $120 million. In addition, the acquisition of the Rafaella assets is currently expected to be accretive to fiscal 2012 earnings per share by ~$0.40.
5:14PM Pall Corp chairman and CEO intends to retire (PLL) 48.66 -1.41 : Co announced that Eric Krasnoff, Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer and President, intends to retire in March 2012, or earlier, on the identification of his successors in those positions. The Board of Directors plans to begin an executive search in the coming weeks.
5:01PM Angiotech Pharm obtains court order in connection with previously announced CCAA Proceedings (ANPI) 0.07 -0.10 : Co has voluntarily commenced proceedings under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act (the "CCAA") in order to continue implementation of its previously announced recapitalization transaction, having obtained an Initial Order from the Supreme Court of British Columbia. As discussed in Angiotech's news release earlier today, the CCAA proceedings were undertaken in order to implement a pre-packaged financial restructuring supported by holders of over 84% of the aggregate principal amount of outstanding Subordinated Notes. Co is currently negotiating the terms of a plan of compromise or arrangement in respect of the claims of holders of the Subordinated Notes and certain other creditors (the "Plan"), which will be filed with the Court.
5:00PM Exterran increases cash distribution of $0.4725 per limited partner unit, prior $0.4675 per limited partner unit (EXLP) 26.94 -0.32 :
4:40PM Alliant Energy unit files request for reconsideration (LNT) 36.94 -0.28 : Interstate Power and Light Company, a subsidiary of Alliant Energy, filed a Request for Reconsideration on a limited number of specific points within the Iowa Utilities Board's (IUB's) written decision order on IPL's 2009 test year electric rate case issued on January 10, 2011. The request asks the Board to clarify and/or provide further guidance on several discreet items in its order. The reconsideration request is not expected to result in a material change to the revenue requirements set by the IUB. The IUB's final decision may impact the regulatory related charges and credits previously recorded and disclosed by IPL. The IUB has 30 days to render its decision on IPL's, or any other parties, request for reconsideration.
4:30PM Smithfield Foods announces sale of Texhoma hog production operations (SFD) 19.98 -0.69 : Co announced that it completed the sale of its hog production operations located in Texhoma, Oklahoma to Prestage Farms. Specific terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The Texhoma operations house 20,000 sows and contain 71,000 nursery and 172,000 finishing spaces. "Although vertical integration continues to be a key point of difference for Smithfield, these farms do not supply any of the company's pork processing plants."
4:26PM CCA Industries will report a loss for the fiscal year due to two unusual events (no ests) (CAW) 5.97 +0.22 : Co says it will report a loss for the fiscal year due to two unusual events, which were the settlement of an advertising lawsuit and the voluntary recall of three shipments of one of our products. If not for these two events, co would have reported a profit for 2010
4:16PM Ultrapetrol shareholders approved the issuance of up to 13,100,000 shares of common stock (ULTR) 5.44 -0.19 : Co's shareholders approved the issuance of up to 13,100,000 shares of common stock if and when holders of the Company's $80,000,000 7.25% Convertible Senior Notes due 2017 elect to convert their Notes pursuant to the terms of the offer. The conversion rate of the Notes, which is subject to adjustment, will not exceed 163.1321 shares of common stock per $1,000 principal amount.
4:05PM Valspar announces price increases for their liquid coil and extrusion coatings product line effective April 1 and March 1, 2011 (VAL) 36.91 -0.42 : The increases range from 6-10% depending on the product type. The increases are the result of rising costs of raw materials.
4:02PM Navios Maritime announces expiration of consent payment deadline in tender offer for its 9 1/2% senior notes due 2014 (NM) 4.87 -0.03 : Co accepted for payment, and paid for, all 2014 Notes validly tendered and not validly withdrawn prior to the consent payment deadline, comprising $274,991,000 in aggregate principal amount of outstanding 2014 Notes.
4:01PM ADA-ES announces filing of shelf registration statement on Form S-3 ADA the ability to offer and sell up to $140 mln of its securities (ADES) 11.91 +0.01 : Co announces that it has filed a universal shelf registration statement on Form S-3 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The shelf registration statement, when declared effective by the SEC, would give ADA the ability to offer and sell up to $140,000,000 of its securities consisting of common stock, preferred stock, warrants, units or a combination thereof.
3:53PM Kraft Foods confirms U.S. District Court for its request for a preliminary injunction against Starbucks (SBUX) (KFT) 30.58 +0.04 : Co announces that the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York denied Kraft's request for a preliminary injunction against Starbucks Coffee Company. Kraft Foods intends to appeal the decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit on an expedited basis. "We're disappointed the judge decided not to grant a preliminary injunction. While we've always acknowledged that there are certain legal hurdles for obtaining a preliminary injunction, we avidly believe this case justifies an injunction and will argue that point vigorously on appeal."
3:35PM Roche Hldg's Genentech and and Biogen Idec (BIIB) announced FDA approved Rituxan as maintenance treatment for patients with advanced follicular lymphoma (RHHBY) 38.13 -0.37 : The cos announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Rituxan(R) (rituximab) as a maintenance treatment for patients with advanced follicular lymphoma who responded to initial treatment with Rituxan plus chemotherapy (induction treatment). This milestone follows the clearance of Rituxan for this indication by the European Commission in October 2010.
3:27PM Dow -176 sets fractional new low, S&P -22 hovering just above, Nasdaq Comp -68 lags on the day but has more room before a retest (SPY)
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