On A Positive Note
The major averages slopped
around in narrow ranges today as the Nasdaq and S&P 500 closed positive,
while the Dow was negative. Networking, semiconductor, and Internet stocks made
the biggest gains, with gold and silver, and biotechnology deepest in the red.
The
Dow Jones Industrial Average
(
$INDU |
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News |
PowerRating) closed down 0.22% to
10,403.94.
The S&P 500
(
$SPX |
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News |
PowerRating) closed up
0.24%
to 1147.39. The Nasdaq
(
$COMPQ |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) closed up 1.01% to 1845.36.
Stocks ended the year’s first
quarter on a positive note as more data came in to support a strong economy. The
Commerce Department reported that gross domestic product rose at a
revised 1.7% rate for last year’s first quarter. The previous estimate was for
1.4% as economists predicted no change would be made. Elsewhere in economic
news, the Labor Department reported a rise of 18,000 in initial jobless
claims as a two-month high of 394,000 was hit. Consensus estimates were for
373,000 claims.
Market breadth was positive,
with NYSE advancing issues over declining issues by a ratio of 1.23, and up–volume
over down–volume
by a 1.51 ratio. Nasdaq advancing issues over declining issues came in at 1.31,
and up–volume
beat down–volume
by a 2.10 ratio. The
VIX
was down 0.22 at 19.03. The TRIN
was down 0.04 at 0.81.
Below average volume moved the
Dow and the S&P 500 to test, then
fall below their 20-day MAs, while
the Nasdaq had its fourth consecutive close below its 20-day MA. The Semiconductor
Index
(
$SOX.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), down 0.74%, closed on its 20-day MA. The Broker/Dealer
Index
(
$XBD.X |
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Chart |
News |
PowerRating), up 0.78%, also closed on its 20-day MA.
Top
sectors of the day were the GSTI
Multimedia Networking Index
(
$XGIPX |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating),
up
3.57% at 99.78,
and the Networking
Index
(
$NWX.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating),
up 3.49% at 244.19.
Losing
sectors of the day were the Gold and Silver Index
(
$XAU.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating),
down 1.78% at 70.89,
and the S&P Banks Index
(
$BIX.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), down 0.94% to 682.70.
Internet infrastructure company Juniper
Networks (JNPR),
up 5.87% at 12.62, announced that it has reduced its first
quarter sales forecast
to $120 million to $125
million from previous expectations of $150 million to $155 million. Elsewhere in
the sector, Cisco Systems
(
CSCO |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) was
up 3.61% at 16.93.
It has been reported
that media
giant AOL Time Warner‘s (AOL),
up 0.21% at 23.65, Warner Entertainment venture with AT&T Corp. (T),
up 1.61% at 15.70, received $718 million in financing that did not appear on the
partnership’s balance sheet and allowed for some of the funds to go into
accounts receivable for licensing contracts.
In the telecommunications sector, Solectron
(
SLR |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), up 11.42% at
7.80, rose after it was announced that it agreed to make optical-networking gear
for Lucent
(
LU |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), up 8.98% at 4.73, for a three–year
deal worth $2 billion dollars.
Drug company Watson Pharmaceuticals
(
WPI |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), down 11.87% at 27.09,
fell after the Food and Drug administration denied certification to its patch to
treat overactive bladders
and requested more data.
Chip maker Taiwan Semi
(
TSM |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), up 4.58% at 20.75, increased its
capex spending by $1 billion,
which was significantly more
than Goldman Sachs expected. Elsewhere in the sector, Applied Materials
(
AMAT |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) was up 4.43% at 54.27,
Intel
(
INTC |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) was unch at 30.41, KLA-Tencor
(
KLAC |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) was up 3.38%
at 66.50, and Novellus
(
NVLS |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) closed up 3.89% at 54.13.
Communications equipment maker Sonus Systems
(
SONS |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), down 7.09%
at 2.62, warned that it expects to earn less for the first-quarter due to
continued weakness in the telecom sector.
Broadcasting and cable TV company Adelphia Communications
(
ADLAC |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), down 10.77% at 14.90, continued to fall from fears of off-balance
sheet arrangements as Bank of America downgraded the stock to Buy from
Strong Buy.