Set Your Clock For 2:00 PM ET Today…Here’s Why

June 26, 2003
Vincent Mao

Stocks
are modestly higher this midday.Â After some early morning weakness
brought on by the mixed economic reports, the major indices are rallying back.
The Dow did briefly break below the psychological 9,000 level, but is currently
back above it. Upgrades in AMR
(
AMR |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) and Morgan Stanley
(
MWD |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) help
inspire some buying. Tech stocks are outperforming the major averages today with
Internet, telecom, and semiconductors in the lead. Yesterday stocks sold off
after the Fed lowered the Federal Funds rate to a 45-year low of 1%. At 2:00 pm
EDT, the FOMC will release its FOMC minutes which could provide further insights
into the condition of the economy. Bonds are continuing to sell off while the
Dollar is stronger.Â

In economic news, Weekly
Initial Jobless Claims came in at 404K compared to estimates of 415K. This
was the lowest level since late-March. The four-week moving average fell by
5,250 to 428,250. First quarter GDP was downwardly revised from 1.9% to
1.4%.

The 10-year U.S. Note
isÂ -102 at 117 120.

The dollar is -0.85 at
95.40.

Gold is -5.40 at 344.30.

Crude Oil -0.78 at
29.17.

Volume is at 712,000,000
on the NYSE, and at 816,000,000 on the Nasdaq.

Market breadth is positive,
with NYSE advancing issues over declining issues by a ratio of 1.50, and up
volume over down volume by a 2.20 ratio. Nasdaq advancing issues over declining
issues at 1.80, and up volume over down volume is at a 3.74 ratio.

Top Dow stocks are:

Stocks in the news:

AMR Corp.
(
AMR |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) is
higher by 1% after CSFB upgraded the stock from “neutral” to “outperform”. CSFB
based the upgrade on the company’s positive cash flow which resulted from costs
reduction and improved sales.Â Â

CNET
(
CNET |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) is
higher by 15% on heavy volume after Smith Barney upgraded the stock from “under
perform” toÂ “Outperform”. The firm based the upgrade on the belief that CNET
will produce better-than-expected revenue growth due to the company’s cost
control procedures. Smith Barney also set a 12-month target price of $8.Â

Esperion Therapeutics
(
ESPR |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
is higher by 20% on extremely heavy volume after the company reported positive
results of its phase II study of its ETC-216 cute coronary syndrome treatment.
Esperion noted that the trial met its goal of showing “statistically significant
regression of atherosclerosis”.Â

Conagra Foods
(
CAG |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
is trading lower by 2% after the company reported worse than expected fourth
quarter estimates. The food producer earned 29 cents a share compared to 34
cents a share during the same period a year ago. Analysts had expected the
company to earn 41 cents a share.

Snap On
(
SNA |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) is
offÂ by 5% on heavy volume after the company warned that second quarter results
would come in below previous estimates. The tool maker now expects earnings
between 36 to 40 cents a share compared to consensus estimates of 49 cents a
share. The company cited weakness in its commercial and industrial businesses.Â

Â vincentm@tradingmarkets.com

Set Your Clock For 2:00 PM ET Today…Here’s Why

BUY THE FEAR, SELL THE GREED

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