Looking Back On October, Plus, 2 Things To Remember This Weekend
Stocks were mixed Friday, the
last trading day of the month. Â It
was a
mixed picture as traders focus on the upcoming
election, hoping for a clear outcome.
Economic news was mixed.
GDP came in at +3.7%, below expectations but above the previous quarter. Chicago
PMI was 68.5 for October vs 61.9 for September. A reading above 50
indicates expansion. The University of Michigan consumer sentiment index
improved to 91.7 from 87.5 earlier in the month.
For the month, the Nasdaq rose 4%, the Dow fell
0.5%, and the transports made a new high. Software was up 10%, networkers gained
+9%, hardware rose +7%, and semis rose 6%. Oil rose 5% for the month.
At these levels, Google’s market cap of $53
billion is greater than that of Disney ($52B), Merrill Lynch ($50B) and Yahoo
($49B).
Today is the 75th
anniversary of Black Tuesday–the most well-known day of the 1929 crash. The Dow
fell 23.9% in two days–Monday and Tuesday–and fueled a panic that resulted in
the Great Depression. Those two days were actually the third and fourth largest
one-day percentage losses for the Dow. The largest crash was actually in 1914,
followed by the 1987 crash when the Dow lost 508 points, or 22.6%.
Don’t forget, “Fall Back” this Sunday morning, as
daylight saving time
ends. And, pick up a little candy for the
Trick-or-Treaters Sunday night.
| Dow | +22.93 | 10027.47 |
| S&P 500 | +2.74 | 1130.18 |
| Nasdaq | -0.75 | 1974.99 |
Strong sectors were: Gold
(
XAU.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) +1.78%, Oil Services
(
OSX.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) +1.62%, Oil
(
XOI.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) +1.28%.
Weak sectors were:Â Airlines
(
XAL.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
-2.66%, Internet
(
GIN.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) -1.83%, Brokers
(
XBD.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) -0.44%.
The dollar was -0.36 at
84.85
Gold was +2.20 at 428.10
Crude Oil was +0.83 at 51.76
1.62 billion on the Nasdaq.
Market breadth was mixed.
| NYSE | Issues | |
| Advancing | 1871 | Up Vol 781 |
| Declining | 1409 | Down Vol 563 |
| Ratio | 1.32 | 1.38 |
| Nasdaq |
||
| Advancing | 1543 | Up Vol 753 |
| Declining | 1564 | Down Vol 819 |
| Ratio | 1.01 | 1.08 |
Stocks in the News
Bristol Myers
(
BMY |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) beat by 0.05 and reaffirmed guidance.
Avon
(
AVP |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) beat by 0.03 and raised year guidance.
Anadarko Petroleum
(
APC |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) reported 1.87 vs an estimate of 1.65.
Clear Channel
(
CCU |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) beat by a penny at 0.04; a year ago the
company earned 1.03.
Allstate
(
ALL |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) said it received a subpoena from the Connecticut
attorney general.
Merck
(
MRK |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) received an ‘approvable’ letter from the FDA for its
Arcoxia application.
Aon
(
AON |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) said quarterly earnings fell because of “softening market
conditions.”
Gateway
(
GTW |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) reported its first operating profit in nearly three
years.
Brice Wightman