Overheard On The Street
Here’s what they’re saying at mid-day:
Ricky Harrington,
Senior Vice President and Technical Analyst, Wachovia Securities:
"Earnings are the problem right now, but I think that currency upheaval and
currency turmoil could be a problem in the months to come. I think you’ve got to
be very cautious in the month of October. September lived up to its image as the
worst month of the year, and October is a close second to that, although October
tends to be a turnaround month. I think until we see the bulk of third quarter
earnings you’ve got to be very cautious about this market.
"Anytime negative announcements like occurred with Eastman, Apple or
Intel can do the damage that was done in those stocks, you’ve got to be careful
that it can happen in any of the other big companies. A weak earnings report in
any of the big companies could really send this market down significantly. The
problem in the market right now is no leadership, poor breadth, and the fact
stocks react negatively to any kind of news."
John Roque, Vice President, Arnhold and
S. Bleichroeder: "There are some important changes taking place that
suggest the end of the decline is near. First, the last bastion of strength
often corrects near the end of the decline. The AMCC’s, BRCD’s, BRCM’s, ORCL’s,
PMCS’s, RATL’s, SUNW’s, and VRSN’s of the world are correcting and correcting
sharply. This action may not put the fear of God in owners of these stocks, but
it should force them to consider whether or not they’ve committed mortal or
venial sins lately. Secondly, another bastion of strength, the biotech grouping,
is also correcting."
Buzzy Geduld, President, Herzog Heine
Geduld: "We’ve been seeing stocks for sale most of the day. It’s a little
better now, but we’re really not seeing any strong conviction on the upside.
Nothing specific is standing out. Volume is up, and it’s a busy day."