Will This AMAT Report Be A Market Mover?

Stocks rose Tuesday on
better-than-expected Home Depot earnings,
lower consumer prices and
higher homebuilding activity and industrial output. Retail stocks and semis
staged a 2-day rally as energy stocks continued their sell off. A Russian court
rejected Yukos’ $3.4 billion tax appeal. Consumer prices dropped for the first
time in 8 months, with the CPI sliding to 0.1% in July. 

Google asked the SEC to make its IPO
registration effective as of 4 PM ET today; if that happens, Google shares could
trade on the Nasdaq as early as Wednesday — symbol “GOOG.” The company expects
to raise nearly $2 billion in the offering.

In the second quarter, Soros Investment
Management
sold shares of ChevronTexaco
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, and added shares
of Sun Microsystems
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.

After the close, Applied Materials
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reported earnings that beat by a penny and revenues of $2.24 billion that beat
the $2.15 billion estimate; net income was $441 million.  Gross margins
were 47.4%; new orders increased 11%.  Network Appliance
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beat by a penny, ex-items and beat on revenues. Niku
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beat by
0.04 and guided higher.

Dow +18.28 9972.83
S&P 500 +2.37 1081.71
Nasdaq +12.41 1795.25

Strong today were: Brokers
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+1.72%, Semis
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+1.44%, Retail
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+1.36%.

Weak were: Utilities
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-0.09%, and Drugs
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-0.17%.

10-year Notes were +130 at 112 300

The dollar
was +0.15 at 88.11

Gold was +1.30 at 406.50

Crude Oil was +0.65 at
46.70

Volume was 1.26 billion
on the NYSE and 1.38 billion on the Nasdaq.

Market breadth was positive.

NYSE Issues
Advancing 1966 Up Vol 782
Declining 1330 Down Vol 458
Ratio 1.47 1.70
Nasdaq
Advancing 1782 Up Vol 1064
Declining 1284 Down Vol 298
Ratio 1.38 3.57

Stocks in the News




Deere & Co

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: Reported Q3 earnings 7 cents
better than the consensus and guided Q4 earnings higher.

Motorola
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said it expects strong
sales in the second half of 2004.

Home Depot
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: Announced Q2 earnings 6 cents above the estimates.
The company increased its fiscal 2004 EPS growth guidance from 10-14% to
14-17%. The company said the average purchase rose 8% to 54.73.

JC Penney
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: Reported Q2 earnings in line also guided Q3 in line.

Staples
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: Released Q2 earnings 2 cents better than the
estimates. Company also issued in-line guidance for Q3.

Brice Wightman