These Two Stocks Are Speaking Strongly
The
markets are up mid-day, as we kick off the last full trading week of
the year with talk of the “Santa Claus” rally now circulating among traders.
Price action for the session continues to push higher from the open, with little
in the way of significant pullbacks. Technology issues are the current strength
in this rally.
Dow Jones Industrial Average
(
$INDU.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) is +1.69% at 8,775.84 The S&P 500
(
$SPX.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) is
+1.85% at 905.92. The Nasdaq
(
$COMPQ |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) is +2.05% at 1,390.36.
Leading to the upside are
semiconductors
(
$SOX.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), +3.86%, broker/dealers
(
$XBD.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating),
+2.61%, and software
(
$GSO.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), +2.60%.
The only loser is the gold
and silver
(
$XAU.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), -1.55%.
There are no economic releases
for the day.
The 10-year U.S. Note
is -110 at 112 115.
The Dollar is +0.18 at
104.65.
Volume is at 541,882,000
on the NYSE, and 669,273,000 on the Nasdaq.
Market breadth is positive,
with NYSE advancing issues over declining issues by a ratio of 2.01, and up
volume over down volume by a 3.85 ratio. Nasdaq advancing issues over declining
issues are at 1.34, and up volume over down volume is at a 3.81 ratio.
Leading the Dow lower are:
SBC Communications
(
SBC |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating),
+5.09% at 27.06, Alcoa
(
AA |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), +4.34% at 24.03, JP Morgan
(
JPM |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating),
+4.10% at 24.58, Caterpillar
(
CAT |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), +3.14% at 46.00, Citigroup
(
C |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), +2.69% at 36.97, and Intel Corp.
(
INTC |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), +2.74% at 18.06.
Stocks in
the news:
In the retail sector, these two
stocks don’t seem to care much about negative news: Target
(
TGT |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating),
+1.39% at 31.40, was the subject of a negative Barron’s article over the
weekend which claims the company’s credit card business is likely to face rising
defaults and hurt earnings. Also, Wal-Mart
(
WMT |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), +2.14% at 51.62,
announced that it expects same store sales to rise 3% to 5% for the month of
December, as sales track at the low end of expectations. The company also said
it filed to sell $10 billion in debt securities.
Software company Internet
Security Systems
(
ISSX |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), -4.26% at 21.35, was downgraded by SG Cowen to
“underperform” from “market perform.”
Security systems company
Invision
(
INVN |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), +15.14% at 26.49, has raised its fourth-quarter
earnings estimated to $1.60 per share vs. the Multex consensus of $1.38-$1.39
per share.
Computer hardware maker
Hewlett Packard
(
HPQ |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), +2.05% at 18.96, has been added to Merrill
Lynch’s Focus One List.
In the pharmaceutical biz,
Glaxo-SmithKline
(
GSK |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), +3.35% at 37.98, announced that the U.S. Food
and Drug Administration has approved the use of Pediarix, a drug given to
infants for the prevention of diphtheria, tetanus, polio, hepatitis B, and
pertussis.