Overheard On The Street
Here’s what they’re saying at mid-day:
Charles Payne, President,
WallStreetStrategies.com: "Last week earnings were mixed at best, but after
the Gateway report, obviously, there was hope that maybe investors would start
embracing these numbers more favorably. Unfortunately, I think there’s still not
enough grand slams, and we’re just seeing earnings beat estimates by only 1 or 2
cents. The Street still hasn’t been as harsh as it’s been, but it’s still
apparent they’re looking something dynamic and extraordinary. We saw the
reversal in the financial stocks despite some pretty good numbers, and we see
continued pressure in the semiconductor index, which really is going to make it
tough. There’s no way the Nasdaq can have a sustainable rally without the help
of the semis."
Bryan Brown, Principal, Spectrum Equity
Services LLC: "This market’s in a reset mode. The Nasdaq rally last week
was incredibly powerful, and for that reason alone, even though it wasn’t volume
driven, it needs to be treated as if it’s serious. The odds favor a fourth
quarter rally because we’ve seen three things occur: one is that funds continue
to flow into the mutual fund complex; the second is that money market influxes
continue to rise; and there are significant differences in the manner in which
electric utilities and REITs are trading. The differences argue that money has
been parked in the electric utilities pending use in more growth-oriented
portions of the market.
"The key here is that managers are clearly interested in trying to
participate in a fourth-quarter rally, and it’s clear that they’re not going
take earnings exposure. As we enter the peak earnings season, I think they will
patiently wait until we see positive surprises, and then I think what you’ll see
is money come out of those three areas and into a fairly narrow, very liquid
small group of stocks, S&P 500, and Nasdaq 100 stocks. I think the key
component of which ones are the net beneficiaries will be whether or not they
surprise to the upside with third-quarter earnings."
Edward Wedbush, President, Wedbush Morgan
Securities: "It appears to me that the chip equipment makers and the
computer stocks in general are still leading this market down, and it looks to
me, on reflection, that the market rise we had on Friday was a quick, knee-jerk
reaction that included a lot of short covering. So, I’m expecting the market to
go a little bit lower."