EMC, Merrill Say “Be Bullish”

Better-than-expected earnings from EMC and Merrill Lynch have pared some of
the early morning futures losses, but stocks look headed for a marginally lower
open Tuesday as earnings season shifts into high gear.

The Nasdaq futures are down 6 points, and the Dow futures are down 18 points.

The S&Ps look to open down 1.9 points while the yield on the 10-year
Treasury is down slightly to 5.21%.

Tuesday Movers

Storage leader EMC
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posted earnings of 25 cents per share which
topped First Call/Thomson Financial estimates by 2 cents. EMC closed Monday down
13/16 to 77.

Related storage companies are looking up as well, as Storage Technologies
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has risen to 30 in pre-market activity after closing at 28 1/2 on Monday.

Also topping analyst expectations was Merrill Lynch
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, which posted
earnings of 93 cents per share that beat the Street by 5 cents. Merrill gained 1
1/4 to 75 1/8 on Monday and is within a sliver of last week’s all-time high 75
7/8.

Wireless infrastructure play Openwave
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, which gained 4 3/8 to 59
on heavier-than-average volume Monday looks to continue higher Tuesday and is
currently trading up to 59 in pre-market activity.

News that the Federal Trade Commission has ended its probe into the privacy
practices on online advertising leader DoubleClick
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has taken some
pressure off the beleaguered Internet ad sector. DCLK closed Monday flat at 15
1/4 and is currently trading up to 16 1/4 in pre-market action.

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