Kroger Missed, But Here’s Who’s Benefiting
Stocks are mixed today. The
Dow hit 10,000 for the first time since May 2002 but has trended lower almost
immediately. The Fed is meeting today to discuss economic policies and is
expected to leave interest rates steady. Amid a strong semiconductor
environment, Texas Instruments
(
TXN |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) raised fourth-quarter
expectations. Revenue is expected to exceed $2.64 billion, up from the previous
forecast of $2.5 billion, with earnings from 18-20 cents a share. Retailer
Kroger
(
KR |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) reported a 57% drop in net income due to the month-long
strike in Southern California. Costco’s
(
COST |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) net income rose 10%,
as more shoppers flocked to its warehouses.
| Dow | +5.22 | 9970.21 |
| S&P 500 | -3.50 | 1066.45 |
| Nasdaq | -14.45 |
1934.25 |
The day’s leading sectors are
Oil
(
OIX.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) +1.05%, Internet
(
GIN.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) 0.96%,
Chemical
(
CEX.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) +0.68%, Software
(
$GSO.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), +0.34%.
Weak today is Amex Gold Bugs
[HUI.X|HUI.X] -2.30%, Gold and Silver
(
XAU.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) -2.06%, Semis [SOX.X|SOX.X]
-1.40%.
Economic news releases included
wholesale inventories that rose 0.5%, information from the FOMC meeting was not
available at the time this article was written.
10-year Notes are +60
at 113 105
The dollar
is -0.04 at 88.71
Gold is +1.60 at 408.20
Crude Oil is +0.10 at
32.20
Volume is 590,000,000 on
the NYSE, and 781,000,000 on the Nasdaq.
Market breadth is negative
| NYSE | Issues | |
| Advancing | 1364 | Up Vol 237 |
| Declining | 1708 | Down Vol 330 |
| Ratio | 1.31 | 1.41 |
| Nasdaq | ||
| Advancing | 1164 | Up Vol 272 |
| Declining | 1811 | Down Vol 453 |
| Ratio | 1.59 | 1.67 |
Top Dow stocks are:
GM
(
GM |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating),
+3.24% at 48.71, Intl Paper [IP|IP],
+1.54% at 40.87, Disney [DIS|DIS],
+1.23% at 22.03, and Microsoft
(
MSFT |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), +1.20% at 26.50.
Stocks in the news:
SBC Communications
(
SBC |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
announced plans to lay off 3000-4000 employees as part of cost-cutting
plans. The layoff will result in a one-time charge of $150 million.
General
Motors
(
GM |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) received an upgrade from Goldman Sachs to Outperform. GS
believes GM’s pension problems are behind it. GM also upped its earnings
estimate to $6.25 a share
Washington Mutual
(
WM |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
cautioned investors that it expects lower earnings from its mortgage department
due to lower volume and competitive pricing. The company raised 2003 earnings
estimates to $4.15-$4.25 a share.
Newell Rubbermaid
(
NWL |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) lowered 2003
and 2004 earnings forecasts due to a natural disaster. A tornado in November
caused $20 million worth of damages to its largest plant in Wooster, Ohio. The
company is expected to earn $1.46 to $1.49 a share for 2003. Shares are trading
10% lower today.
bricew@tradingmarkets.com