Will Airlines Continue To Carry This Market?
Stocks
are rallying strongly this midday as a better-than-expected nonfarm
payrolls report and Merrill Lynch’s upgrade of the airline industry sparked some
broad-based buying interest. Although the unemployment rate rose to a higher-than-expected 6%, investors focused on the nonfarm payrolls which showed a loss
of 48,000 jobs last month, or better than the forecast of a loss of 60,000 jobs.
Airliners are flying high today as Merrill Lynch upgraded several issues
including: Alaska Air
(
ALK |
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PowerRating), Continental
(
CAL |
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PowerRating), Delta
(
DAL |
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PowerRating), and
Northwest
(
NWAC |
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PowerRating) from “Neutral” to “Buy.”
The Dow Jones Industrial
Average
(
$INDU.X |
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Chart |
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PowerRating) is +1.30% at 8,564.89. The S&P 500
(
$SPX.X |
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PowerRating)
is +1.30% at 928.30. The Nasdaq
(
$COMPQ |
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News |
PowerRating) is+1.77% at 1,498.74.
The day’s leaders are in
Airlines
(
$XAU.X |
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Chart |
News |
PowerRating), +10.90%, Internet
(
$ECM.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), +3.52%,
and Software
(
$GSO.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), +2.90%.
Weak today are Gold
(
$XAU.X |
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Chart |
News |
PowerRating),
-1.12%, Telecoms
(
$IXTC.X |
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Chart |
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PowerRating), -0.50% and Healthcare
(
$HMO.X |
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News |
PowerRating),
-0.15%.
In economic news, April
Average Workweek came in at 34.0 vs. estimates 34.2. April Hourly
Earnings rose 0.1% vs. estimates 0.2%. April Nonfarm Payrolls came in
at -48K vs. estimates -58K this was the third straight month of job losses.
Lastly, Factory Orders for April came in at 2.2% vs. estimates 1.2%.
The 10-year U.S. Note
is -130 at 114 260.
The dollar is +0.21 at
97.09.
Gold is – 1.10 at 341.30
Crude Oil – 0.51 at
25.52
Volume is heavy at
773,000,000 on the NYSE, and at 983,000,000 on the Nasdaq.
Market breadth is decisively
positive, with NYSE advancing issues over declining issues by a ratio of
2.50, and up volume over down volume by a 6.29 ratio. Nasdaq advancing issues
over declining issues are 2.50, and down volume over up volume is at a 6.26
ratio.
Top Dow stocks are:
Boeing
(
BA |
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Chart |
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PowerRating), +5.09% at 28.49,
SBC Communications
(
SBC |
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News |
PowerRating), +3.00% at 23.99, DuPont
(
DD |
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Chart |
News |
PowerRating), +2.31%
at 42.96, and Intel
(
INTC |
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Chart |
News |
PowerRating) +2.15% at 18.95.
Stocks in the news:
Biosite
(
BSTE |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) up
over 12% on seven times average volume. The company reported first-quarter
results that were 6 cents ahead of estimates. The company also boosted revenue
targets for the year.
Chevron Texaco
(
CVX |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
up 3.8% as the company reported first-quarter results of $1.99 per share,
beating estimates of $1.81 a share.
Walt Disney
(
DIS |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
down 0.26 after the company reported second-quarter results in line with
estimates. Disney cited that the military conflict and SARS had an impact on its
business.
Shares of Auto giant General
Motors
(
GM |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) have now recovered after early morning weakness. Lehman
Brothers downgraded the company to “underweight” from “equal weight” over market
share concerns.