Markets Slide on Weak Retail Sales Data
Retail data dominate this morning’s headlines, which are weak
for the most part. The slumping housing market and rising energy costs
were cited as reasons that led consumers to cut back.
The world’s largest retailer Wal-Mart
(
WMT |
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Chart |
News |
PowerRating) posted
a rare 3.5% drop in same-store sales for April. Teen apparel maker
Abercrombie & Fitch
(
ANF |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) reported a 15% drop in same-store sales for
April.
Dow Chemical
(
DOW |
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News |
PowerRating) raised its quarterly dividend by
12% to $0.42 per share.
Sara Lee
(
SLE |
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Chart |
News |
PowerRating), a leading maker of food and
household products, reported third quarter profits that nearly tripled the same
period last year. SLE reported $3.01 billion in sales. Increases in
international beverage and bakery sales helped lift earnings..
For more stocks
to watch, see
TradingMarkets 7 Trading Ideas for Today.
Today’s
PowerRatings Heat Map remains on the bearish side as the market continues to
hold near highs. Taking long positions at this point in the market may hold more risk. The
weakest sectors today are Transportation, Metals/Mining, Manufacturing, and
Energy. Let’s
take a closer look at the Metals and Mining sector:
Today’s featured
list comes from our
Top 10
PowerRatings Low-Priced Stock List.
Some
of the biggest moves on a percentage basis come from low-priced stocks. If you
are willing to assume more risk, you will find ample opportunities in low-priced
stocks with high PowerRatings.
For a free PowerRatings trial,
click here. If
you have any questions about PowerRatings or the new Stock Indicators please
feel free to email us or call 213-955-5858 ext 1.
Darren Wong
Associate Editor
darrenw@tradingmarkets.com
Reminder: We are in no
way recommending the purchase or short sale of these stocks. This article is
intended for education purposes only. Trading should be based on your own
understanding of market conditions, price patterns and risk; our information is
designed to contribute to your understanding.