Naz Snaps Streak
The Nasdaq snapped its streak of seven consecutive losing weeks with a 2%
gain for the week that left it slightly below the ominous-sounding point level
of 1929. Strength in select technology stocks helped the Nasdaq book a 1.6% gain
Friday, and while the positive finish pleased bulls, there was little to
celebrate given the Nasdaq is still 64% below its all-time high.
Strength in financials helped the blue chip averages bounce from their
harrowing plunges, as the Dow gained 1.2% and the S&P 500 added 2.0% for the
day. For the week, the Dow ended up losing just 3.2% and the S&P declined
just 1%.Â
Volume remained heavy, as 1.36 billion shares traded on the NYSE and 2.28
billion shares traded on the Nasdaq. Â
“I think that Thursday represents a mini-selling climax, however, I
doubt seriously that that’s a final low. Bear markets tend to have a series of
selling climaxes, and we’ve seen several already over the last
year,” said Rick Harrington, Technical Analyst, Wachovia Securities.
“There were some missing elements yesterday. We saw relatively mild
put/call readings, and we did have a slightly better relative strength in the
Nasdaq. The Volatility Index rose to its highest level in a couple of years, but
we still have not seen the type of sentiment change that is probably a prerequisite
to bottom in this market,” he added.
According to preliminary numbers, the Dow rose 115.30 to 9504.78, the Nasdaq
gained 33.98 to 1928.68, and the S&P 500 added 22.32 to 1139.90.
Top sectors of the day included banks
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$BKX.X |
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PowerRating), up 5.5%, biotechnology
(
$BTK.X |
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PowerRating), up 4.0%, broker/dealers
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$XBD.X |
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PowerRating), up 3.7%, and
semiconductors
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Weaker sectors included gold and silver
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PowerRating), down 1.2%, and
integrated oils
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PowerRating), down 0.3%.
Tech winners included Gemstar-TV Guide
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PowerRating), up 6 1/4 to 35 3/16 and
McDATA
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PowerRating), up 6 3/32 to 29 15/16.
Microsoft
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PowerRating) got a nice bounce of 2 9/16 to 56 9/16 on
heavier-than-average volume. Microsoft is just 2 points below its 50-day moving
average.
Dow winners included J.P. Morgan
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PowerRating), up 7.2%, General Electric
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PowerRating),
up 6.0%, American Express
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AXP |
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PowerRating), up 6.0%, and Honeywell
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PowerRating), up 5.6%.
Dow losers were Home Depot
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HD |
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PowerRating), down 2.7%, and Procter & Gamble
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PowerRating),
down 4.0%.
Looking ahead, the existing home sales report will be released Monday at
10:00 AM ET, and analysts expect a figure of 5.0 million.