Spotlight Now On Earnings
Following Friday’s nearly 8% Nasdaq run, stocks turned in a mixed performance
Monday, with the Nasdaq dipping by 0.8%, the Dow gaining 0.5%, and the S&P
500 finishing flat. All eyes from this point on will focus on earnings, and a
lot of pressure is on Intel and Microsoft which report Tuesday and Wednesday,
respectively.
Volume eased 12% from Friday’s level on the Nasdaq, as 1.77 billion shares
traded, and NYSE volume fell by about 20%, as a little over a billion shares
traded.
While Friday’s Nasdaq snap-back was impressive, many analysts remain wary and
reluctant to say the worst is over.
"Market declines of this size already seen typically do not end, on a
trend basis, until one or more days of panic selling cause sellers to throw in
the towel. Without this kind of capitulation, new selling quickly reappears
again, smothering the next rally attempt," said Paul Desmond, President,
Lowrey’s Investment Research:
"Thus far, there have been very few signs of panic selling. The number
of stocks making new 52-week lows has expanded only moderately. While there is
always a temptation to rush back into a rapidly declining market, patience and
discipline may be the key to investment profits in the period ahead," he added.
According to preliminary numbers, the Nasdaq fell 26.53 to 3290.24, the Dow
gained 46.62 to 10,238.80, and the S&P 500 added a half point to 1374.62.
Top sectors included biotechnology
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up 3.0%, and chemicals
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On the downside were technology
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down 2.9%, and semiconductors
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Juniper Networks
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14 1/2 or 6.3% to 243. Juniper hit an all-time high on nearly double its average
volume.
Qualcomm
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of China possibly licensing Qualcomm’s CDMA wireless technology.
Old guard technology blue chips remained under pressure, as Microsoft
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fell 3 3/8 to 50 3/8 and Intel
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it’s fund managers taking tax losses ahead of their fiscal year-ends, or worries
about each companies earnings, each stock has been pummeled, with Microsoft
close to a two-year low and Intel at its lowest close in a year.
Microsoft and Intel joined Disney
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big gains by Wal-Mart
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Honeywell
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Looking to Tuesday, the September Industrial Production number is due out at
8:30 AM ET. Street consensus looks for a decrease of 0.1%.
For all those members I met at the TradingMarkets 2000 Conference in Las
Vegas this weekend, it was a pleasure meeting you all, and we look forward to
doing it all again next year!
Dan Delaney