Here’s What’s Putting A Slide In Stocks

September 24, 2003
Vincent Mao

Stocks are
lower this midday. The major indices are
modestly lower as rising oil prices and worries over earnings are weighing on
the averages. OPEC agreed to reduce oil production by 900K barrels a day
starting Nov. 1. Oil service issues are higher by 2%. Crude oil for November
delivery is up 1.07 to 28.20. Rising energy costs for companies could slow their
rate of growth. Dow component Boeing
(
BA |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) is off by 2.25% after the world’s
largest airplane maker said it expect snext year’s order to be about the same as
this year’s levels. Medical device maker Biosite
(
BSTE |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) dropped 12% after
lowering its fiscal 2003 forecast. Deutsche Bank also downgraded the stock from
“Buy” to “Hold”. Both the Dow and S&P took out their 20-day moving averages at
9499 and 1020, respectively. The next support for the Dow comes in at 9361. Mean
the tech-heavy Nasdaq ignored Cisco’s
(
CSCO |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) $7 billion buyback
announcement and is currently testing its 20-day average at 1858.

No economic reports today.

The 10-year U.S. Note
is +080 at 112 170.

The dollar is -0.23 at
94.11.

Gold is +0.50 at 387.30.

Crude Oil +1.20 at
28.33.

Volume is 841,000,000 on
the NYSE, and 1,200,000,000 on the Nasdaq.

Market breadth is negative,
with NYSE declining issues over advancing issues by 1.82 and down over up volume
by 3.96; Nasdaq declining issues over advancing issues at 2.02, and down volume
over up volume at 2.82.

Top Dow stocks are:

Stocks in the news:

Drug maker American
Pharmaceutical Partners
(
APPX |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) is higher by nearly 7% after the company
and its privately held partner American Biosciences’ experimental cancer drug,
Abraxane, was found to be more effective and less toxic than Taxol, which is
widely used to treat breast and ovarian cancer.

Biopharmaceutical company
Cell Therapeutics
(
HB |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) is higher by 11% after announcing positive
results in clinical trials of its Xyotax drug for ovarian cancer. The company
said that Xyotax with platinates showed a tumor response rate of 68%. The
results support the company’s current phase III trial, the results of which will
be released later this year.

Chip maker ESS Technology
[ESST|ESST|] is higher by 12.80% after the company raised its third-quarter
outlook. Due to stronger-than-expected demand, the maker of chips used in DVD,
VCD, and other digital media players now expects a smaller-than-expected loss.
The company now sees revenues between $44 to $48 million compared to its prior
forecasts of $37 to $41 million. It now expects a loss between 8 to 13 cents a
share compared to its previous forecast of 13 to 18 cents a share.

Medical diagnostic device maker
Biosite
(
BSTE |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) is lower by 11% after the company warned the
full-year 2003 results would come in below prior forecasts. Due to weak sales of
its heart-failure-detection devices, the company now sees earnings between 38 to
41 cents a share compared to current consensus estimates of 44 cents a share.

If you have any comments or
questions, please feel free to email me.

Vincent Mao

vincentm@tradingmarkets.com

Here’s What’s Putting A Slide In Stocks

BUY THE FEAR, SELL THE GREED

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