TradingMarkets Mid-Day Movers
Stocks started the day
on a positive note following the release of third quarter GDP. The
Commerce Department revealed that Gross Domestic Product grew at an annual rate
of 3.8% in the July-to-September quarter. This was an acceleration from the 3.3%
growth rate shown during the previous 3-month period (more
analysis). The US Dollar Index is trading higher, Treasuries are slightly
lower and energy futures are lower with the exception of Unleaded Gasoline.
The airline sector remains one of the most
notable gainers today, climbing by about 1.8%. The HMO sector finished near the
flat line on Thursday after falling on earnings news during the previous couple
sessions. The sector is showing strength on Friday, advancing by 1.4%. Retail
stocks are another contributor to Wall Street’s early strength.
The semiconductor sector remains the most
conspicuous mover to the downside and is now showing a loss of 2.6%. There are
modest losses also coming from gold and Internet stocks.
Immediately after the release of company’s
quarterly results, shares of Microsoft
(
MSFT |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) suffered a decline in
Thursday’s after-hours trading, as traders responded to disappointing
projections for the next fiscal period. Sentiment turned around during the
Friday’s pre-market period and the stock rose at the start of trading. Microsoft
is now the best performing Dow component, up by about 2.2%.
Home Depot
(
HD |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), Altria
(
MO |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), Hewlett-Packard
(
HPQ |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), Merck
(
MRK |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
and Disney
(
DIS |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) are other major supports to the Dow, each rising by more
than 1.5%.
IBM
(
IBM |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) is the worst performer of 4 Dow components showing losses at this
point. The stock is down 1.4%. Exxon Mobil
(
XOM |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), Alcoa
(
AA |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) and
Honeywell
(
HON |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) are showing slight-to-modest losses.
Stocks On The Move
Coinstar
(
CSTR |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) is one of the best
performers in the early going on quarterly results released after the close on
Thursday. The stock is currently posting an advance of 20%.
Universal American Financial
(
UFCO |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) is seeing the opposite reaction to its
quarterly results, with the stock putting in one of the morning’s worst
performances. Shares of Universal American Financial are currently down 32%.
Â
| Dow |
+104.06 | 10,334.01 |
| NASDAQ |
+17.14 | 2080.95 |
| S&P 500 |
+11.80 | 1190.70 |
| NYSE | NASDAQ | |
| Volume |
1,007,397,000 | 876,972,000 |
| Advances |
2024 | 1747 |
| Declines |
1029 | 1034 |
| Up Volume |
618 | 474 |
| Down Volume |
238 | 333 |
| New Hi’s |
33 | 28 |
| New Lo’s |
116 | 81 |
|
|
Weakest Sectors |
| Airline ( XAL | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
Semiconductor ( SOX | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
| Natural Gas ( XNG | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
Internet ( INX | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
| Retail ( RLX | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
Multimedia Networking ( GIP | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
Ashton Dorkins