Dow Jones 30: Industrials Index

[setravis]

Earnings Fuel Tech Rally.......


Wednesday 10/17/2007 12:56 PM EDT


Tech stocks were jumping Wednesday following a blowout profit report from Intel (INTC:) and a beat by Yahoo! (YHOO:) , but stubbornly high crude prices kept a lid on blue chips.

The Nasdaq Composite was climbing 20 points, or 0.7%, to 2784. The Dow Jones Industrial Average opened higher but was recently down 18 points, or 0.1%, at 13,895, while the S&P 500 was clinging to a one-point gain at 1540.

Following the previous session's close, Intel handily beat estimates and raised its outlook for the year, and Yahoo! topped both the top- and bottom-line estimates. Intel was rallying 4.3% and Yahoo! jumped 7.5%, giving a boost to the tech-heavy Nasdaq.

Also on the late side, IBM (IBM:) reported earnings that beat the Thomson First Call estimate by a penny. Shares of IBM were falling 2.5%, though, after the company said sales of computer servers and hardware declined.

Before the new session began, four other Dow components were out with better-than-expected earnings. JPMorgan Chase (JPM:) and Altria (MO:) topped Wall Street's earnings-per-share estimates, as did Coca Cola (KO:) and United Technologies (UTX:) .

JPMorgan was up 3.4% and Coke was rising 2.1%. United Technologies slid 4.3% after the company said that 2008 would be challenging for the company, and Altria was off 0.1% after offering 2007 a full-year guidance that was in line with expectations.

However, crude oil again tempered the market's advance, setting new record highs despite a bearish inventory report for prices from the Energy Department. The data showed strong builds in crude, gas and distillate inventories last week even as refinery utilization declined 0.5%.

Crude prices marched as high as $89 a barrel for the first time ever, but was recently up 49 cents to $88.10.

In the prior session, record oil prices, as well as worries about housing and weak earnings, sank the major averages.

The Dow fell 71.86 points, or 0.5%, to 13,913, and the S&P 500 dropped 10.18 points, or 0.66%, to 1538.53. The Nasdaq surrendered 16.14 points, or 0.58%, at 2763.91. Over the last two sessions, the Dow has fallen 180 points, the S&P 500 has lost 23 points, and the Nasdaq is down 41 points.

Aside from the big tech names and the Dow components, several other companies were out with profit reports in the new trading day. Abbott Laboratories (ABT:) , Gannett (GCI:) and Northern Trust (NTRS:) all topped estimates.

Later tonight, all eyes will be on eBay (EBAY:) and on several banks, including Washington Mutual (WM:) and Sovereign Bancorp (SOV:) , all of which will be posting earnings results after the bell.

In addition to the earnings flood, traders were contending with several important pieces of economic data. The Labor Department said its consumer price index rose 0.3% last month, slightly above economists'' expectation.

On the bright side, the core number, which excludes food and energy, was in line with consensus predictions of a 0.2% increase.

"Inflation remains modest, despite rising crude oil prices," said Peter Morici, a professor at the University of Maryland School of Business and former chief economist at the U.S. International Trade Commission. "Throughout the supply chain, from oil refineries to florists, businesses face strong buyer resistance to the pass-through of higher oil and material prices."

At the same time, the Census Bureau said that housing starts plummeted 10.2% last month to 1.19 million annualized units, a 14-year low. Building permits tumbled 7.3% to 1.22 million, also below expectations.

"We are more interested in permits, which are less erratic than starts and which tanked," said Ian Shepherdson, chief economist with High Frequency Economics. "This is just about exactly half the peak summer 2005 level but there is no end in sight to the drop. The housing hit is intensifying."

Later, at 2 p.m. EDT, the Federal Reserves regional survey, known as the beige book, will be released.

Treasury prices were racing higher. The 10-year note rallied 21/32 in price, cutting the yield to 4.56%. The 30-year bond was rising 1-9/32 in price to yield 4.82%. The dollar was generally weaker against other major currencies except for the yen.

Overseas markets were mostly higher. In Europe, London's FTSE 100 was up 1.1%, and Germany's Xetra Dax was climbing 0.5%. In Asia, Hong Kong's Hang Seng rallied 1.2%, while Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 1.1%.

[setravis]

Stocks Fall Into the Red.......


Wednesday 10/17/2007 2:21 PM EDT


Stocks in the U.S. succumbed to a rally in oil and bonds Wednesday, relinquishing gains and falling to session lows following the Federal Reserves regional beige book survey.

The Nasdaq Composite held its ground until the release of the Fed's beige book, when it fell 2 points, or 0.1%, to 2762. The Dow Jones Industrial Average opened higher but turned sharply lower, falling 123 points, or 0.9%, at 13,790. The S&P 500 also went negative and was losing 6 points, or 0.4%, at 1532.

The beige book was part of what pinned the market in the red. Economic activity continued to expand in most of the nation's 12 districts at a modest or moderate pace in September and early October, the Fed said. Growth slowed, however, in the Cleveland, Kansas City, Richmond, Dallas and San Francisco regions.

The report said that manufacturing and service sectors saw growth weaken due to the weak housing sector and recent credit turmoil.

"Factory activity continued to expand, but reports suggested that growth has been dampened by declining output of products used in home construction," the survey read. "Home sales continued to fall or increased more slowly in most [districts] . In some instances, buyers could no longer secure financing or were unable to sell their current homes."

The beige book completely erased the gains in tech stocks that stemmed from solid earnings reports following the previous session.

Intel (INTC:) handily beat estimates and raised its outlook for the year, and Yahoo! (YHOO:) topped both the top- and bottom-line estimates. Intel was rallying 3.8% and Yahoo! jumped 5.8%.

Also on the late side, IBM (IBM:) reported earnings that beat the Thomson First Call estimate by a penny. Shares of IBM were falling 2.6%, though, after the company said sales of computer servers and hardware declined.

Before the new session began, four other Dow components were out with better-than-expected earnings. JPMorgan Chase (JPM:) and Altria (MO:) topped Wall Street's earnings-per-share estimates, as did Coca Cola (KO:) and United Technologies (UTX:) .

JPMorgan was up 2.8%, and Coke was rising 1%. United Technologies slid 4.4% after the company said that 2008 could be challenging, and Altria was off 0.1% despite raising its forecast.

"IBM and United Technologies are really getting hit today, and that's sinking the Dow," said Paul Mendelsohn, chief investment officer with Windham Financial. "Technology earnings came in good, but when all is said and done, it's going to be very centered in very specific large companies, like IBM and United Tech."

Treasury prices were racing higher as investors ran to so-called safe havens. The 10-year note rallied 24/32 in price, cutting the yield to 4.55%. The 30-year bond was rising 1-14/32 in price to yield 4.81%.

"Yields are at 4.55% and that doesn't fit with what's been going on in the market today," said Mendelsohn. "The bond market is telling us that a big slowdown could be coming."

Oil was also a factor, setting new record highs despite a bearish inventory report for prices from the Energy Department. The data showed strong builds in crude, gas and distillate inventories last week and a decline in refinery utilization.

Crude prices marched as high as $89 a barrel for the first time ever but were recently up 54 cents to $88.15.

In the prior session, record oil prices, along with worries about housing and weak earnings, sank the major averages.

The Dow fell 71.86 points, or 0.5%, to 13,913, and the S&P 500 dropped 10.18 points, or 0.66%, to 1538.53. The Nasdaq surrendered 16.14 points, or 0.58%, at 2763.91. Over the last two sessions, the Dow has fallen 180 points, the S&P 500 has lost 23 points, and the Nasdaq is down 41 points.

Aside from the big tech names and the Dow components, several other companies were out with profit reports in the new trading day. Abbott Laboratories (ABT:) , Gannett (GCI:) and Northern Trust (NTRS:) all topped estimates.

Later tonight, all eyes will be on eBay (EBAY:) and on several banks, including Washington Mutual (WM:) and Sovereign Bancorp (SOV:) , all of which will be posting earnings results after the bell.

In addition to the earnings flood, traders were contending with several important pieces of economic data. The Labor Department said its consumer price index rose 0.3% last month, slightly above economists'' expectation.

On the bright side, the core number, which excludes food and energy, was in line with consensus predictions of a 0.2% increase.

"Inflation remains modest, despite rising crude oil prices," said Peter Morici, a professor at the University of Maryland School of Business and former chief economist at the U.S. International Trade Commission. "Throughout the supply chain, from oil refineries to florists, businesses face strong buyer resistance to the pass-through of higher oil and material prices."

At the same time, the Census Bureau said that housing starts plummeted 10.2% last month to 1.19 million annualized units, a 14-year low. Building permits tumbled 7.3% to 1.22 million, also below expectations.

"We are more interested in permits, which are less erratic than starts and which tanked," said Ian Shepherdson, chief economist with High Frequency Economics. "This is just about exactly half the peak summer 2005 level but there is no end in sight to the drop. The housing hit is intensifying."

Following the data, the dollar was weaker against other major currencies except for the Australian dollar.

Overseas markets were mostly higher. In Europe, London's FTSE 100 was up 1.1%, and Germany's Xetra Dax was climbing 0.5%. In Asia, Hong Kong's Hang Seng rallied 1.2%, while Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 1.1%.

[setravis]

Tech Stocks Regroup.......


The Final call...Wednesday 10/17/2007 8:45 PM EDT


Tech stocks overcame an afternoon slip and closed higher Wednesday, but blue chips went out mixed following a back-and-forth session in New York.

The Nasdaq Composite was the best performer, rising 28.76 points, or 1.04%, to 2792.67, fueled by strong earnings reports from Intel (INTC:Nasdaq) and Yahoo! (YHOO:Nasdaq) .

At the same time, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 20.40 points, or 0.15%, to 13,892.54. The S&P 500 added 2.71 points, or 0.18%, to 1541.24.

Traders saw an early rally gradually give way to selling pressure that hit the hardest following the release of the Federal Reserves beige book.

According to the document, economic activity continued to expand in most of the nation's 12 districts at a modest or moderate pace in September and early October. Growth slowed, however, in the Cleveland, Kansas City, Richmond, Dallas and San Francisco regions.

The report said that manufacturing and service sectors saw growth weaken due to the weak housing sector and recent credit turmoil.

"Factory activity continued to expand, but reports suggested that growth has been dampened by declining output of products used in home construction," the survey read. "Home sales continued to fall or increased more slowly in most [districts] . In some instances, buyers could no longer secure financing or were unable to sell their current homes."

The beige book report came a few hours after the Census Bureau said that housing starts plummeted 10.2% last month to 1.19 million annualized units, a 14-year low. Building permits tumbled 7.3% to 1.22 million, also below expectations.

"We are more interested in permits, which are less erratic than starts and which tanked," said Ian Shepherdson, chief economist with High Frequency Economics. "This is just about exactly half the peak summer 2005 level but there is no end in sight to the drop. The housing hit is intensifying."

The beige book completely reversed early gains in tech stocks, but traders eventually recovered and resumed the rally that stemmed from solid earnings reports following the previous session.

Intel handily beat estimates and raised its outlook for the year, and Yahoo! topped both the top- and bottom-line estimates. Intel climbed 4.9% to $26.72, and Yahoo! jumped 8% to finish the day at $28.82.

Also in the prior afternoon, IBM (IBM:) reported earnings that beat the Thomson First Call estimate by a penny. However, shares of IBM slumped 3.2% to close at $115.78 after the company said sales of computer servers and hardware declined.

Before the new session began, four other Dow components were out with better-than-expected earnings. JPMorgan Chase (JPM:) and Altria (MO:) topped Wall Street's earnings-per-share estimates, as did Coca Cola (KO:) and United Technologies (UTX:) .

JPMorgan ended up 2.8% at $46.37, Coke advanced 2.3% to $59.09, and Altria tacked on 0.3% to $70.98. United Technologies, though, slid 3.6% to $76.80 after the company said that 2008 could be challenging.

"The market firmed up in the last hour of trading instead of fading, which is encouraging," said Larry Wachtel, senior market analyst with Wachovia Securities. "This was the first big day of earnings for the third quarter and we got a lot of bad news on housing. All in all, it could've been worse, given the fact the markets were looking sour."

Breadth was weak Wednesday. On the New York Stock Exchange 2.64 billion shares changed hands, as decliners topped advancers by a 6-to-5 margin. Volume on the Nasdaq reached 2.31 billion shares, with losers barely edging out winners nearly 15 to 14.

The chip sector was the best performer of the session thanks to Intel, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Sector Index up 1.7%. The Dow Jones Transportation Index and the Amex Airline Index were winners as well, tacking on 1% each.

Among the worst-declining sectors, the Philadelphia Gold & Silver Index tumbled 1.8%. Energy-related indices also gave up ground, with the Philadelphia Oil Service Sector Index down 1.3% and the Amex Oil Index lower by 0.8%.

Treasury prices raced higher as investors ran to so-called safe havens. The 10-year note surged 24/32 in price, cutting the yield to 4.55%. The 30-year bond rose 1-13/32 in price to yield 4.81%.

"The bond market is telling us that a big slowdown could be coming," said Paul Mendelsohn, chief investment strategist with Windham Financial.

Oil was also a factor, setting new record highs despite a bearish inventory report for prices from the Energy Department. The data showed strong builds in crude, gas and distillate inventories last week and a decline in refinery utilization.

Crude prices marched as high as $89 a barrel for the first time ever, but pared gains and finished down 21 cents at $87.12 a barrel.

In the prior session, record oil prices, along with worries about housing and weak earnings, sank the major averages.

The Dow fell 71.86 points, or 0.5%, to 13,913, and the S&P 500 dropped 10.18 points, or 0.66%, to 1538.53. The Nasdaq surrendered 16.14 points, or 0.58%, at 2763.91.

Aside from the big tech names and the Dow components, several other companies were out with profit reports in the new trading day. Abbott Laboratories (ABT:) , Gannett (GCI:) and Northern Trust (NTRS:) all topped estimates.

In addition to the earnings flood, traders had to contend the latest read on inflationary pressures. The Labor Department said its consumer price index rose 0.3% last month, slightly above economists'' expectation.

On the bright side, the core number, which excludes food and energy, was in line with consensus predictions of a 0.2% increase.

"Inflation remains modest, despite rising crude oil prices," said Peter Morici, a professor at the University of Maryland School of Business and former chief economist at the U.S. International Trade Commission. "Throughout the supply chain, from oil refineries to florists, businesses face strong buyer resistance to the pass-through of higher oil and material prices."

Following the data, the dollar was weaker against other major currencies except for the Australian dollar.

Overseas markets were mostly higher. In Europe, London's FTSE 100 was up 1%, and Germany's Xetra Dax was climbed 0.3%. In Asia, Hong Kong's Hang Seng rallied 1.2%, while Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 1.1%.

The earnings parade marches on Thursday, with reports expected from Bank of America (BAC:) and Pfizer (PFE:) before the bell, among others. After the bell, Google (GOOG:) , Advanced Micro Devices (AMD:) and SanDisk (SNDK:) take the stage.

[setravis]

Stocks End Near Flat Line.......


Thursday 10/18/2007


Stocks in the U.S. finished little changed Thursday, as traders balanced weak quarterly reports out of the financial sector and another record for crude oil against strong technology earnings.

After falling by as many as 72 points earlier, the Dow Jones Industrial Average clawed its way back and finished down 3.58 points, or 0.03%, to 13,888.96. The S&P 500 was off 1.16 points, or 0.08%, to 1540.08. The Nasdaq Composite eked out a gain of 6.64 points, or 0.24%, to 2799.31.

"We're still seeing leadership from the technology sector, mostly related to earnings, but outside of that there's nothing leading us higher," said Paul Nolte, director of investments with Hinsdale Associates. "The market has come up so fast from the August bottom, and valuations are set now that a slowdown won't affect earnings going forward."

Breadth was negative. On the New York Stock Exchange 2.65 billion shares changed hands, as decliners topped advancers by a 6-to-5 margin. Volume on the Nasdaq reached 1.94 billion shares, with losers outpacing winners nearly 8 to 7.

Stocks initially took a hit after financial heavyweights Bank of America (BAC:) and Washington Mutual (WM:) offered disappointing reports. Bank of America reported a plunge in profits as "unprecedented market disruptions impacted trading results." Shares ended down $1.18, or 2.4%, to $48.85.

At Washington Mutual, third quarter results showed a 72% decline in profit from a year ago. The bank said after the prior close that continuing problems in the housing market affected the value of its portfolio of mortgage loans. WaMu lost $2.55, or 7.7%, to $30.52.

Following the results, the KBW Bank Index was lower by 1%, and the NYSE Financial Sector Index was down 0.7%.

Even so, stocks were able to rebound amid strong reports from several other names.

"We're still in the early stages of the earnings season," said Michael Sheldon, chief market strategist with Spencer Clarke LLC. "Even though there have been some misses, investors are still trying to sort out the outlook for the economy and corporate profits over the months ahead."

Among those with a strong report was eBay (EBAY:) , which became the latest tech name to beat targets with its third-quarter results.

eBay's earnings beat followed strong reports from Intel (INTC:) and Yahoo! (YHOO:) , among others, the day before. eBay also raised its guidance, but a downgrade to sell and cautious comments from Deutsche Bank pressured the stock, and it fell $2.50, or 6.2%, to close at $38.10.

Ahead of the new session, Nokia (NOK:) was out with positive results, posting a third-quarter profit that nearly doubled from a year ago. Elsewhere, UnitedHealth Group (UNH:) and McGraw-Hill (MHP:) trumped Wall Street's estimates.

Pfizer (PFE:) also beat on an adjusted basis, but its overall net income plummeted 77%, largely because of a $2.8 billion pretax charge. The drug giant is recording the charge because it has decided to drop the inhaled insulin Exubera. Pfizer dipped by a penny to $24.54.

However, Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR:) , which holds the licensing rights for Exubera, plunged 17.5% to $6.67.

Following the close, Internet giant Google (GOOG:) topped analysts'' estimates, which could give tech some upside momentum Friday.

Away from stocks, crude prices continued their march toward $90 a barrel. The November crude contract jumped $2.07 to $89.47 a barrel. Gold and silver futures also finished higher.

Treasury prices continued their rally. The 10-year note rose 13/32 in price, reducing the yield to 4.50%. The 30-year bond added 26/32 in price to yield 4.77%.

On the economic front, the Labor Department said initial jobless claims unexpectedly jumped by 28,000 to 337,000 last week. The leading indicators rose 0.3%, as expected. Additionally, the Philadelphia Fed said its manufacturing index fell to a reading of 6.9 in October from 10.9 last month.

Overseas markets were mixed. In Asia, Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.6%, and Japan's Nikkei 225 advanced 0.9%. In Europe, London's FTSE 100 was down 1%, while Germany's Xetra Dax shed 0.8%.

[setravis]

A Black Friday for Stocks.......


Friday 10/19/2007


Stocks in New York were pummeled Friday as the outlooks from the industrial sector disappointed investors and added to worries about the U.S. economy.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 366.94 points, or 2.64%, to 13,522.02. The S&P 500 was off 39.45 points, or 2.56%, at 1500.63, and the Nasdaq Composite plunged 74.15 points, or 2.65%, to 2725.16.

"This is a bad way to close a Friday afternoon," said Paul Mendelsohn, chief investment strategist with Windham Financial. "Now there are serious questions about earnings going forward."

At the end of it all, the major averages saw their string of five consecutive winning weeks come to an end. The selloff also came 20 years to the day of the infamous Black Monday crash that erased more than 500 points, or nearly 23%, from the Dow in a single session.

For the week, the Dow and the S&P 500 each lost 4%, and the Nasdaq gave back 2.9%. It was the worst downturn for the indices in two months.

Linda Duessel, senior portfolio manager and market strategist with Federated Investors, said "sentiment has been getting too euphoric, which set the market up for a consolidation of gains. We went through too many levels to the upside, and we found a reason to pull back today."

Breadth was decidedly negative to end the week. On the New York Stock Exchange 4.10 billion shares changed hands, and volume on the Nasdaq reached 2.42 billion shares. Losers outpaced winners roughly 5 to 1.

Ahead of the open, earnings came in at a rapid clip, including results from several Dow components. Caterpillar (CAT:) dragged on the index after missing Wall Street's target for third-quarter earnings. The company also cut its full-year outlook to a range below forecasts and offered gloomy comments about the U.S. economy.

Shares shed $4.09, or 5.3%, to end at $73.57.

Fellow industrial giants 3M (MMM:) and Honeywell (HON:) also stumbled after their profit reports. 3M beat the Thomson First Call earnings estimate, but fell short of revenue targets. Honeywell posted in-line results.

3M dropped 8.6% to $86.62, and Honeywell finished down 3.9% at $58.32.

Another Dow component, McDonald's (MCD:) , fared better, with shares down 0.7% at $56.42 after the fast-food giant posted profits that met recently raised targets.

Treasury prices rallied again as traders moved into the so-called safe haven of the bond market. The 10-year note was up 22/32 in price, cutting the yield to 4.40%. The 30-year bond added 1-11/32 in price, yielding 4.69%.

"The Fed should lower rates when it meets at the end of the month, but the lower yields on the bonds don't necessary mean that," said John Canavan, market analyst with Stone & McCarthy Reseach Associates. "It's a reaction to what equities did this week as well as growing concerns in the credit market. It's far from over."

The financial sector was among the hardest hit. The NYSE Financial Sector Index dropped 2.7%, the Nasdaq Financial 100 Index slumped 2.6%, and the KBW Bank Index lost 2.4%.

"Financial name after financial name has given us a stacking effect with worse-than-expected results," said Steven Sheldon, principal with SMS Capital Management. "Seeing this, there is a fear and likelihood that the rest of businesses will start to slow. If these financials are having massive writedowns, then you have to question how this affects the entire economy."

Crude oil, which has set a series of new record highs in recent days, slid 87 cents to close at $88.60 a barrel. Still, it gained nearly 6% this week.

Last time out, record crude prices coupled with miserable earnings from Bank of America (BAC:) and Washington Mutual (WM:) to pressure stocks. The Dow finished down 3.58 points to 13,888.96, and the S&P was off 1.16 points to 1540.08.

The Nasdaq gained 6.64 points, or 0.24%, to 2799.31.

Tech stocks were unable to carry over that momentum even with Google (GOOG:) , which delivered a third-quarter earnings report after the close that beat both top- and bottom-line estimates. Shares advanced $5.09, or 0.8%, at $644.71.

Also after the previous session, chipmakers Xilinx (XLNX:) and SanDisk (SNDK:) exceeded estimates on an earnings-per-share basis. Advanced Micro Devices (AMD:) posted a big loss.

SanDisk dove 15.1% to $42.71, shares of AMD slid 5.5% to $13.80, and Xilinx was lower by 2.5% to $25.31.

Oil giant Schlumberger (SLB:) posted a 35% rise in profit from a year ago, handily beating estimates. Boston Scientific (BSX:) swung to a third-quarter loss, but it surpassed the Thomson First Call consensus of 7 cents a share on an adjusted basis.

Schlumberger, though, tanked 11% to $99.32, while Boston Scientific rallied 4.1% to end the day at $14.42.

Elsewhere, Wachovia (WB:) echoed the same issues other lenders had last quarter, reporting earnings that missed estimates due to writedowns related to the recent credit crisis. Wachovia was off $1.74, or 3.6%, to close at $46.40.

The major averages were further upset after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke offered cautious comments on the central Bank's ability to depend on economic data going forward during a speech in St. Louis.

"The fact that the public is uncertain about and must learn about the economy and policy provides a reason for the central bank to strive for predictability and transparency, avoid overreacting to current economic information, and recognize the challenges of making real-time assessments of the sustainable level of real economic activity and employment," Bernanke said.

"Most fundamentally, our discussions of the pervasive uncertainty that we face as policymakers is a powerful reminder of the need for humility about our ability to forecast and manage the future course of the economy," he concluded.

Overseas markets were lower. In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 slid 1.7%. In Europe, London's FTSE 100 dropped 1.2%, and Germany's Xetra Dax was off 0.5%.

[stout7735]

That was merely a Grey Friday...Beware of a Black Monday II...   

[setravis]

Stocks Set for More Losses.......


Monday 10/22/2007



Stocks in the U.S. were set to plummet anew, as the wave of selling that dropped the major averages at the end of last week carried over.

S&P 500 futures were losing 12.40 points at 1493.40 and were 15.63 points below fair value. Futures on the Nasdaq 100 were lower by 19.8 points at 2130 and were more than 19 points beneath fair value.

On Friday, stocks marked the 20th anniversary of the Black Monday stock market crash by tumbling hard, thanks to weak earnings from several industrial components. The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 366.94 points, or 2.64%, to 13,522.02. The S&P 500 was off 39.45 points, or 2.56%, at 1500.63, and the Nasdaq Composite plunged 74.15 points, or 2.65%, to 2725.16.

Losses bled into overseas markets, as Hong Kong's Hang Seng tanked 3.7% and Japan's Nikkei 225 slid 2.2%. In Europe, London's FTSE 100 and Germany's Xetra Dax lost 1.3%, and the Paris CAC 40 fell 1.8%.

Traders were bracing for more selling ahead of several earnings reports. Apple (AAPL:) , Texas Instruments (TXN:) and Dow component American Express (AXP:) are all set to report later in the day.

Already, Schering-Plough (SGP:) missed Wall Street's targets on an adjusted basis.

Late Sunday, Halliburton (HAL:) posted a 19% rise in third-quarter profit, matching the Thomson First Call consensus when an income tax gain was excluded.

Merck (MRK:) and Kimberly-Clark (KMB:) are also due to report before the opening bell.

Away from earnings, Bear Stearns (BSC:) and China's Citic Securities were set to swap $1 billion in a cross-investment deal with each other. Bear Stearns were set to open higher after the news.

Elsewhere, private-equity group KKR and Goldman Sachs (GS:) said they will void an $8 billion offer for Harman International (HAR:) , instead electing to invest $400 million in the company.

With no economic releases scheduled, Treasury securities were on the rise as investors sought a safe-haven from selling in equities. The 10-year note was up 7/32 in price, cutting the yield to 4.36%. The 30-year bond was gaining 14/32 in price, yielding 4.66%.

Commodity prices were moving the in opposite direction. Crude oil, which topped $90 a barrel last week for the first time, was recently down 77 cents to $87.83 a barrel. Gold and silver futures were also losing ground.

[setravis]

Tech Sector Leads Rebound.......


Monday 10/22/2007 8:15 PM EDT


Tech stocks led a broad-based comeback Monday in New York, as gains in Yahoo! (YHOO:) and Apple (AAPL:) helped the market stabilize after the shellacking last time out.

The Nasdaq Composite reversed an early downturn and rose 28.77 points, or 1.06%, to 2753.93. Yahoo! rose 2.8% after the European Commission set a Nov. 13 deadline to examine antitrust concerns that stem from Google's (GOOG:) $3.1 billion bid for the Internet ad tracker DoubleClick.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 115 points early in the session before rebounding. The blue-chip index closed up 44.95 points, or 0.33%, to 13,566.97. Merck (MRK:) and Disney (DIS:) were the best performers, rising 2.9% and 2.6% respectively.

The S&P 500 also overcame early losses and advanced 5.70 points, or 0.38%, to 1506.33.

"It was a bit of a rocky ride today, but the decent finish gives us a better feel for the overall market," said Robert Pavlik, chief investment officer with Oaktree Asset Management. "Investors used some of the weakness as a buying opportunity. There were some pockets of strength that helped stabilize the market.

"We're not completely out of the woods yet, though," he added. "Stock prices are still readjusting for slower growth."

Breadth was slightly positive to start the week. On the New York Stock Exchange 3.35 billion shares changed hands, as advancers topped decliners by a 9-to-7 margin. Volume on the Nasdaq reached 1.96 billion shares, with winners outpacing losers nearly 3 to 2.

Airlines, retail, and chip stocks were among the best performers of the day, while energy and commodities lost ground.

The Amex Airlines Index jumped 2.6%, the S&P Retail Index rose 1.8%, and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Sector Index added 1%. The Philadelphia Gold & Silver Sector Index dropped 2.4%, and the Amex Oil Index shed 1.3%.

On Friday, stocks marked the 20th anniversary of the Black Monday market crash by tumbling hard, thanks to weak earnings from several industrial components. The Dow sank 366.94 points, or 2.64%, to 13,522.02. The S&P 500 was off 39.45 points, or 2.56%, at 1500.63, and the Nasdaq plunged 74.15 points, or 2.65%, to 2725.16.

"Going into a weekend, with military unrest in northern Iraq, the buyers simply evaporated," said Marc Pado, U.S. market strategist with Cantor Fitzgerald. "Now the talk will be about sending up a red flare for the Federal Reserve to rescue the economy with another 50-basis-point cut."

Friday's losses on Wall Street bled into overseas markets, as Hong Kong's Hang Seng tanked 3.7% and Japan's Nikkei 225 slid 2.2%. In Europe, London's FTSE 100 and Germany's Xetra Dax lost 1.1%, and the Paris CAC 40 fell 1.4%.

Traders turned more optimistic ahead of earnings reports from Apple, Texas Instruments (TXN:) and Dow component American Express (AXP:) after Monday's bell. Apple finished up 2.3% at $174.36, and Texas Instruments was 1% higher at $34.27. American Express slipped by 0.4% to $56.87.

Among those out with earnings before the opening bell, Merck beat third-quarter forecasts as earnings rose 62% from a year ago. The drugmaker also lifted its full-year guidance. On the other hand, Schering-Plough (SGP:) missed Wall Street's targets on an adjusted basis.

Merck shares ended 2.9% higher at $54.64, while Schering-Plough tumbled 13.4% to end at $28.34.

Late Sunday, Halliburton (HAL:) posted a 19% rise in third-quarter profit, matching the Thomson First Call consensus when an income tax gain was excluded. Halliburton tacked on 48 cents, or 1.2%, to $39.33.

Kimberly-Clark (KMB:) said that third-quarter earnings jumped 24% from last year, topping estimates by a penny on a per-share basis. Toymaker Hasbro (HAS:) also topped expectations with its earnings report. Kimberly-Clark added 4.5% to $70.19, but Hasbro shares slipped a penny to $28.40.

Away from earnings, Bear Stearns (BSC:) rose $1.44, or 1.2%, to $117.85 after it set a cross-investment deal with China's Citic Securities.

Elsewhere, private-equity group KKR and Goldman Sachs (GS:) said they will void an $8 billion offer for Harman International (HAR:) , instead electing to invest $400 million in the company. Shares of Harman lost 0.6% to close at $85.87.

With no economic releases scheduled, Treasury securities finished mixed after a volatile session. The 10-year note was down 1/32 in price, cutting the yield to 4.40%. The 30-year bond added 6/32 in price, yielding 4.68%.

"Investors ran to the comfort of bonds last week, expecting that the Fed would likely cut rates at two of their next three meetings left in the year," said Paul Nolte, director of investments with Hinsdale Associates. "The long bond declined in yield by over 20 basis points, while the 10-year fell nearly 30 basis points."

Commodity prices slipped. Crude oil, which topped $90 a barrel last week for the first time, lost $1.04 to close at $87.56 a barrel. Gold and silver futures also finished lower.

[setravis]

Stocks Sprint to the Finish.......


Tuesday 10/23/2007 7:45 PM EDT


Blue chips overcame a midsession stumble and bolted into the close Tuesday, while a gain in Apple (AAPL:Nasdaq) propped up the tech sector.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended a volatile session -- one that saw the index briefly dip into negative territory -- with a gain of 109.26 points, or 0.81%, to 13,676.23. A 2.9% decline in Wal-Mart (WMT:) put some pressure on the index, but it wasn't enough to keep the average from rallying.

The S&P 500 added 13.26 points, or 0.88%, at 1519.59. Meanwhile, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite surged 45.33 points, or 1.65%, to 2799.26, thanks to strong earnings from Apple.

Following the last close, the company blew away fiscal fourth-quarter estimates with its latest report, prompting several analysts to bump their stock price targets higher. UBS has now assigned a target of $220, while JMP Securities raised its target to $210 from $160.

Shares of Apple jumped $11.80, or 6.8%, to end the day at $186.16.

"A lot of the negative news was wrung out of the market today, as some positive earnings reports alleviated fears," said Edgar Peters, chief market strategist with Pan Agora. "A lot of these earnings reports showed that the consumer was still spending, which is good news. We had been oversold and people were too pessimistic, so today we righted things again."

Breadth was positive for a second day. On the New York Stock Exchange 3.15 billion shares changed hands, as advancers topped decliners by a 2-to-1 margin. Volume on the Nasdaq reached 2.30 billion shares, with winners outpacing losers nearly 3 to 2.

Airlines, energy and the transportation sector were among the winners of the day, while the chip group was one of the worst performers.

The Amex Airlines Index jumped 2.8%, the Philadelphia Oil Service Sector Index rose 2.8%, and the Dow Jones Transportation Average was higher by 2%. On the other hand, the Philadelphia Semiconductor Sector Index lost 0.4%.

Apple offset negative news from Texas Instruments (TXN:) , which gave weak fourth-quarter guidance that overshadowed its third-quarter earnings beat. UBS, JPMorgan, Lehman Brothers and Credit Suisse, among others, downgraded the stock because of the disappointing outlook, and TI finished 8.3% lower at $31.43.

Traders also pored over several Dow components that were posting quarterly results. AT&T (T:) reported a 13% jump in third-quarter earnings from a year ago, thanks in part to sales of Apple's iPhone. AT&T gained 85 cents, or 2.1%, to close at $42.02.

Elsewhere, DuPont (DD:) exceeded forecasts with its third-quarter report and raised its full-year outlook, but was cautious on the U.S. After the previous bell, American Express (AXP:) said it earned $1.06 billion, or 90 cents a share, in the last quarter, topping estimates. DuPont rose 0.5% to $46.81, and American Express gained 3.2% to $58.66.

As for other companies posting quarterly results, Lockheed Martin (LMT:) and UPS (UPS:) beat Wall Street's expectations. Shares of Lockheed were off 0.3% at $106.97, while UPS was 0.7% higher at $75.64.

On the other hand, Biogen Idec (BIIB:) and specialty retailer Coach (COH:) offered disappointing results. Biogen shares slipped 1.5% to close at $78.93, and Coach dropped 11.7% to $36.60.

After the close, Amazon.com (AMZN:Nasdaq) and Juniper (JNPR:Nasdaq) topped analysts'' expectations.

Away from earnings, Research in Motion (RIMM:) surged 9.8% after it announced a distribution deal for its Blackberry smartphones in China. The stock closed at $124.53, a new record high.

With no economic releases scheduled, Treasury prices ended a see-saw day higher. The 10-year note was up 6/32 in price, yielding 4.39%. The 30-year bond added 2/32 in price, yielding 4.69%.

Commodities were mixed. The newly benchmarked December crude contract slid 75 cents to end at $85.27 a barrel. Gold and silver futures were on the upswing as the dollar was softer against the world's major currencies.

Overseas markets rallied after the previous Day's selloff. In Asia, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index jumped 3.5% overnight, and Japan's Nikkei 225 added 0.1%. In Europe, London's FTSE 100 rose 0.9%, and Germany's Xetra Dax was up 0.6%.

[setravis]

Stocks Erase Worst of Losses.......


Wednesday 10/24/2007


Blue chips used a late push to overcome steep losses and tech stocks finished well above their session lows Wednesday in New York.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended with a loss of just 0.98 point at 13,675.25. Earlier, it had been down nearly 200. The S&P 500 was off 3.71 points, or 0.2%, at 1515.88, and the Nasdaq Composite gave back 24.50 points, or 0.9%, to 2774.76.

Less-than-perfect results from Amazon.com (AMZN:) and a mammoth writedown at Merrill Lynch (MER:) had stocks deep in the red for much of the trading day, but a little after 2 p.m. EDT, the market approached its prior session lows and then began to reverse course.

Despite the indices general recovery, both those names remained to the downside. Merrill fell $3.90, or 5.8%, to $63.22 after saying the subprime mortgage mess over the summer forced it to take a $7.9 billion writedown for bad debt.

The firm swung to a third-quarter continuing-operations loss of $2.24 billion, or $2.85 a share, from a year-ago profit of $3.05 billion, or $3.14 a share. Revenue plunged 94% from a year ago to $577 million.

Another soft spot was Amazon. After the close, the Internet retailer beat third-quarter forecasts by a penny as revenue jumped 41% from a year ago. However, gross margin declined when compared with the second quarter, and shares tumbled 12% to $88.73.

Amazon's report came at the same time that chipmakers Altera (ALTR:) and Broadcom (BRCM:) delivered dispiriting reports, putting a crimp on recent tech optimism. Altera and Broadcom spiraled 15.7% and 17% lower, respectively.

With those losses, the chip sector was the worst performer of the session, and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Sector Index sank 3.6%. The Nasdaq Financial 100 Index and the NYSE Financial Sector Index were losers as well, down roughly 1% each.

As for the gainers, the Amex Oil Index was higher by 1%, and the Philadelphia Oil Service Sector Index was better by 0.8%.

Breadth was weak. On the New York Stock Exchange 3.68 billion shares changed hands, as decliners topped advancers by a 5-to-3 margin. Volume on the Nasdaq reached 2.74 billion shares, with losers beating winners nearly 7 to 3.

As the market came off its lows, reports on television and the Internet said traders got interested in buying after passing around speculation that the Federal Reserve might be considering another rate reduction. There was no indication that the chatter was anything other than a rumor, but that doesn't mean investors wouldn't like to see one.

"The Fed should cut anyway, so if they make the move early it won't make any difference," said Paul Mendelsohn, chief investment strategist with Windham Financial. "The probability of the credit problem becoming more systemic is certainly worrying the Fed. There are companies out there with bigger problems than Merrill Lynch, so needless to say the Fed needs to let the market know the last rate cut wasn't a ''one-and-done'' event. This issue needs to be contained."

Aside from the earnings, investors also were handed more bad news about the housing market from the National Association of Realtors. The NAR said that existing-home sales fell a greater-than-expected 8% in September to an annual rate of 5.04 million units, considerably worse than expectations.

Ian Shepherdson, chief economist with High Frequency Economics, said the latest housing data will force the Fed to lower the fed funds rate by 25 basis points when it meets next week.

"Prices will keep falling. The housing crunch is accelerating," he said. "The Fed can't stand by and watch."

Following the housing data, Treasury securities rallied. The 10-year note was up 16/32 in price, cutting the yield to 4.34%. The 30-year bond added 26/32 in price, yielding 4.64%.

While Amazon and Merrill were hogging the earnings spotlight, plenty of other companies were out with reports.

Dow member Boeing (BA:) and tech giant Corning (GLW:) both beat Wall Street's estimates for the current quarter, but each offered sluggish guidance. Corning dropped 6.2% to $23.20, and shares of Boeing slumped 0.7% to $94.26.

Northrop Grumman (NOC:) also notched an earnings beat and boosted its forecast for 2007. Coca-Cola Enterprises (CCE:) met expectations for the third quarter and guided higher for the fiscal year.

Northrop added 3.4% to $82.25, and Coca-Cola Enterprises finished higher by 2% at $25.

Elsewhere, the CME Group (CME:) , Freeport-McMoRan (FCX:) and WellPoint (WLP:) came in ahead of their respective Thomson First Call consensus estimates. ConocoPhillips (COP:) posted an earnings decline from a year ago but still exceeded forecasts.

Crude futures rose after an unexpected decline in inventory levels. The Energy Department said that crude stocks dropped by 5.3 million barrels last week. Gasoline and distillate inventories also fell, compared with expectations for slight gains. The December front-month crude contract jumped $1.83 to close at $87.10 a barrel.

Overseas markets were uniformly lower. In Asia, Hong Kong's Hang Seng eased 0.2% overnight, and Japan's Nikkei 225 was off 0.6%. In Europe, London's FTSE 100 was down 0.5%, and Germany's Xetra Dax was 0.2% lower for the day.

[setravis]

Stocks Set for Higher Open.......


Thursday 10/25/2007


Stocks in the U.S. were set to open with gains Thursday as traders shrugged off mixed earnings news from several names, including Motorola (MOT:) and Dow Chemical (DOW:) , and hoped to maintain the upward momentum from the previous close.

S&P 500 futures were adding 6.10 points at 1528 and were 5.10 points above fair value. Futures on the Nasdaq 100 were higher by 16 points at 2219 and were more than 14 points ahead of fair value.

On Wednesday, stocks fell hard early due to disappointing quarterly results from Merrill Lynch (MER:) and Amazon.com (AMZN:) , but they pared those losses significantly by the end of the day.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended down just 0.98 point at 13,675.25. Earlier, it had been lower by nearly 200. The S&P 500 was off 3.71 points, or 0.2%, at 1515.88, and the Nasdaq Composite gave back 24.50 points, or 0.9%, to 2774.76

The trend of weak earnings continued into the current session. Before the opening bell, Motorola said profits plunged from a year ago due to weak cell phone sales. Shares were up nearly 4% on Instinet, though, after it offered strong guidance for the fourth quarter.

Dow Chemical also posted a sharply lower profit compared with a year ago, pressured by higher income tax rates. Excluding charges, the company earned 84 cents a share and fell short of estimates.

Robert Pavlik, chief investment officer with Oaktree Asset Management, said that surprisingly weaker third-quarter results weren't the sole reason stocks were under pressure lately.

"We all knew going into this earnings season that results were going to be weak," he said. "What is driving the market here is weaker earnings guidance and cautious commentary going forward from some of the names that weren't initially seen as being affected."

Several other companies are expected to report before the start of trading, including Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY:) , Starwood Hotels (HOT:) , Commerce Bancorp (CBH:) and Newell Rubbermaid (NWL:) .

While Microsoft (MSFT:) isn't due to report earnings until later this afternoon, the company was already in the spotlight after announcing a $240 million investment in the social-networking Web site Facebook.com. Shares were up 1.4% in the premarket session.

Away from equities, multiple economic releases were on deck. At 8:30 a.m. EDT, reports on durable goods orders for September and weekly jobless claims will come out. At 10 a.m. EDT, the latest reading on new home sales will be posted.

Ahead of the data, Treasury prices were declining. The 10-year note was down 6/32 in price, pushing the yield up to 4.36%. The 30-year bond was off 7/32 in price, yielding 4.66%.

Commodity prices were rallying. The December crude contract was up $1.40 to $88.50 a barrel. Gold and silver futures were also on the upswing.

Overseas markets were mixed. In Asia, Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 1.8% overnight, while Japan's Nikkei 225 was off 0.5%. In Europe, London's FTSE 100 was rising 1.3% and Germany's Xetra Dax was up 1.5%.

[setravis]

Positive news fails to reassure US investors.
Stocks Turn Southward.......


Thursday 10/25/2007 2:18 PM EDT


Unusually positive housing data failed to keep U.S. stocks afloat Thursday, as a selloff in chips, transports and computer hardware names led the market lower.

After stints in both positive and negative territory, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was recently down 106 points, or 0.8%, at 13,569. The S&P 500 was losing 13 points, or 0.9%, at 1503, and the Nasdaq Composite was 40 points, or 1.4%, lower at 2735.

The major averages took a brief trip above the flat line after the Census Bureau said new home sales surprisingly rose last month, climbing to 770,000 annualized units from a downwardly revised 735,000 in August. New home sales data for June and July were also revised lower by a combined 107,000.

"The economic fundamentals, though deteriorating, indicate the situation is salvageable," said Peter Morici, professor at the University of Maryland School of Business and former chief economist at the U.S. International Trade Commission.

"But the depth of structural problems in the mortgage market, and hence new home market, indicate aggressive action is needed from the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee, when it meets next week, to help avert calamity," he added.

The Fed will convene for a two-day meeting starting Oct. 30, with most analysts expecting a 25-basis-point rate cut when the central bank announces its decision on Halloween.

Following the housing data, the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index initially jumped before falling 2.1%. Similarly, several homebuilders relinquished gains, including Hovnanian (HOV:) , D.R. Horton (DHI:) , and Pulte Homes (PHM:) .

Most other sectors were also in the red. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Sector Index was dropping 2.9%, and the Amex Computer Hardware Index was sinking 3.1%. The Amex Airlines Index surrendered 2.7%, and the Dow Jones Transportation Average was losing 2.3%.

Transportation stocks were being punished as crude futures jumped $2.57 to $89.67 at the New York Mercantile Exchange. At the same time, the surge in oil was supporting share prices in the energy group, with natural gas stocks among the best performers of the day.

On Wednesday, stocks fell hard following abysmal existing home sales data, as well as disappointing quarterly results from Merrill Lynch (MER:) and Amazon.com (AMZN:) , but they pared those losses significantly by the end of the day.

The trend of sluggish earnings continued into the current session. Motorola (MOT:) said profits plunged from a year ago due to weak cell phone sales. Shares were up 3.7%, though, after it offered strong guidance for the fourth quarter.

Dow Chemical (DOW:) also posted a sharply lower profit compared with a year ago, pressured by higher income tax rates. Excluding charges, the company earned 84 cents a share and fell short of estimates. Dow was losing 64 cents, or 1.5%, to $43.34.

Robert Pavlik, chief investment officer with Oaktree Asset Management, said that soft third-quarter results weren't the sole reason stocks were under pressure lately.

"We all knew going into this earnings season that results were going to be weak," he said. "What is driving the market here is weaker earnings guidance and cautious commentary going forward from some of the names that weren't initially seen as being affected."

Several other companies reported before the start of trading. Comcast (CMCSA:) posted a 54% drop in third-quarter earnings from a year ago, falling in line with Thomson First Call consensus. The stock was recently down $2.66, or 11.2%, to $21.19.

Starwood Hotels (HOT:) beat third-quarter estimates on both the top and bottom lines, but the company guided below fourth-quarter and full-year 2008 expectations. Shares were losing $2.38, or 4.1%, to $55.20.

Among drugmakers, Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY:) topped forecasts, while ImClone Systems (IMCL:) swung to a third-quarter loss, falling short of analyst targets. Bristol-Myers was rising 2.8% to $29.21, and ImClone was tacking on 0.2% to $43.79.

Akamai Technologies (AKAM:) was another bright spot, jumping 13.5% after the company said that third-quarter earnings soared 73% from a year ago.

While Microsoft (MSFT:) isn't due to report earnings until later this afternoon, the company was already in the spotlight after announcing a $240 million investment in the social-networking Web site Facebook.com. Shares were up 72 cents, or 2.3%, to $31.97.

Outside of earnings, shares of WellCare (WCG:) dropped 62% a day after state and federal authorities raided the Medicare HMO. The stock was losing $71.27 to $43.90.

Away from equities, traders were also digesting the newest data. The Commerce Department said durable goods orders unexpectedly fell 1.7% last month, compared with expectations of a 1.5% rise. At the same time, the Labor Department said initial jobless claims were down 8,000 last week to 331,000, compared with forecasts for a decline to 320,000 claims.

Treasury prices were holding steady after the data. The 10-year note was unchanged in price, yielding 4.34%. The 30-year bond was down 1/32, yielding 4.65%.

Aside from oil, other commodity prices were rallying. Gold was up $5.40 to $771 an ounce, and silver futures were adding 31 cents to $13.90 an ounce.

Overseas markets were mixed. In Asia, Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 1.8% overnight, while Japan's Nikkei 225 was off 0.5%. In Europe, London's FTSE 100 and Germany's Xetra Dax were up 1.5% and 1.3%, respectively.

[setravis]

Stocks Finish Volatile Week Higher !

Microsoft Sends Tech Soaring.......


Friday 10/26/2007


An earnings beat by Microsoft (MSFT:) and the promise of a fourth-quarter profit from Countrywide (CFC:) lifted traders'' spirits Friday, even as crude continued its record-breaking journey.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at its best level of the session, rising 134.78 points, or 0.99%, at 13,806.70, and the S&P 500 improved by 20.88 points, or 1.38%, to 1535.28. The Nasdaq Composite was sharply higher, up 53.33 points, or 1.94%, at 2804.19.

Leading tech to the upside was Microsoft, who jumped 9.5% to $35.03. Late Thursday, the software giant easily beat estimates with its fiscal first-quarter earnings and revenue. Microsoft also guided higher for its fiscal second quarter and the full year.

Meanwhile, Countrywide lost more than $1 billion in the latest quarter, but the stock soared 32.4% to end at $17.30 after the lender kept its quarterly dividend and said it should return to profitability in the fourth quarter and next year.

Also among financials, Merrill Lynch (MER:) rallied as rumors swirled that CEO Stan O'Neal will be forced out by early next week. The stock, which tumbled just days ago after the brokerage reported a mammoth third-quarter writedown, climbed $5.19, or 8.5%, to $66.09.

"The two keys to today were Microsoft and the renaissance of the financial stocks," said Larry Wachtel, senior market analyst with Wachovia Securities. "The key movers were all in the financials, and these beleaguered names helped us rally today."

Those big stock moves mitigated the sting of soaring oil prices. A day after surging 3.9%, the December front-month crude contract was up another $1.40 to close at $91.86 a barrel. Earlier, oil prices touched a record high of $92.22 a barrel.

Breadth was decidedly positive to end the week. On the New York Stock Exchange 3.58 billion shares changed hands, as advancers toppled decliners by a 3-to-1 margin. Volume on the Nasdaq reached 2.58 billion shares, with winners outpacing losers nearly 2 to 1.

The major averages also notched their sixth winning week in seven tries. The Dow added 2.1%, the S&P 500 gained 2.3%, and the Nasdaq finished the week 2.9% higher.

Last time out, stocks finished a volatile session with losses following record crude prices, mixed earnings and the latest round of economic data. The Dow ended down 3.33 points at 13,671.92, but was well above its session lows. The S&P 500 lost 1.48 points at 1514.40, and the Nasdaq was down 23.90 points, or 0.86%, at 2750.86.

"Technically, we tested 1500 on the S&P and held," said Marc Pado, U.S. market strategist with Cantor Fitzgerald. "Resistance isn't an obstacle until 1540."

Pado noted that the Federal Reserve's two-day meeting on interest rates will ultimately determine which way the major averages will swing in upcoming sessions. The Federal Open Market Committee's decision will come Wednesday, with most analysts expecting a 25-basis-point cut.

"It will all come down to the Fed next week," said Pado. "Funds using an October fiscal year will close their books on that same day."

Elsewhere on the earnings front, Coventry Health Care (CVH:) matched the Thomson First Call estimate for the third quarter, as did Exelon (EXC:) and Baker Hughes (BHI:) .

Coventry dropped 7.7% for the session, and Baker Hughes lost 3.9%. Exelon, on the other hand, gained 2.5% to close at $80.22.

Wendy's (WEN:) , which posted results after the previous close, reported a 57% decline in third-quarter profits but still managed to beat forecasts. Shares advanced 57 cents, or 1.7%, to $34.60.

Away from equities, the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index for October was the lone economic report of the day. The index fell to a reading of 80.9, below the preliminary 82.0 reading, as well as economists'' expectation of 82.3.

Treasury prices were slightly lower on the day. The 10-year note was down 5/32 in price, yielding 4.40%. The 30-year bond was off 6/32 in price, yielding 4.69%. The dollar was again making record lows against the euro.

Overseas markets were higher. In Asia, Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 1.8% overnight, and Japan's Nikkei 225 climbed 1.4%. In Europe, London's FTSE 100 was rose 1.3%, and Germany's Xetra Dax was up 0.2%.

[setravis]

Modest Advance for Wall Street.......


Monday 10/29/2007


Stocks in the U.S. were moderately stronger Monday as traders were in a buying mood ahead of this week's upcoming Federal Reserve rate decision.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 63.56 points, or 0.46%, to 13,870.26, and the S&P 500 tacked on 5.70 points, or 0.37%, to 1540.98. The Nasdaq Composite added 13.25 points, or 0.47%, to 2817.44.

The major averages were able to build on a late-session rally that closed out the previous week. On Friday, the Dow rose 134.78 points to 13,806.70, and the Nasdaq was up 53.33 points at 2804.19.

Breadth was mixed to start the week. On the New York Stock Exchange 3.01 billion shares changed hands, as advancers topped decliners by a 6-to-5 margin. Volume on the Nasdaq reached 1.99 billion shares, with losers outpacing winners 8 to 7.

Airlines, transportation and banks stocks were among the worst performers of the day, while commodities and chip stocks gained ground.

The Amex Airlines Index, the Dow Jones Transportation Average and the KBW Bank Index all slipped 0.5%. The Philadelphia Gold & Silver Sector Index rose 1.7%, and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Sector Index added 1.3%.

The transportation group was again hindered by record oil prices, as the December crude contract topped $93 a barrel for the first time ever, rising $1.67 to close at $93.53. However, that didn't derail the overall market.

"Oil prices rise, [and] the markets rise, as demand for oil remains high, indicating that the global economy is still chugging along," said Paul Nolte, director of investments with Hinsdale Associates. "Oil prices decline and the markets rally, as lower oil prices will add to consumers'' ability to spend. The markets are not really paying attention to oil prices."

Nolte warned, though, that rallies are starting to come "on lower volume and less participation than at any time since the August bottom."

Meanwhile, investors were waiting on a looming decision from the Fed on whether to lower lending rates. The Federal Open Market Committee convenes Tuesday for a two-day meeting, with an announcement expected Wednesday at 2:15 p.m. EDT.

Most economists are expecting a 25-basis-point reduction, which would be the second after the Fed kept its fed funds target rate at 5.25% for nine straight meetings, dating back to June 2006.

"The fed funds futures figure a 100% certainty of a rate cut this week," said Michael Sheldon, chief market strategist with Spencer Clarke. "The surprise is if the Fed cuts by a half-point or if they don't cut rates at all, which would be a major disappointment for the markets. However, there could be some alarm that the Fed knows something we don't, and that things could be much worse than we expect."

While the earnings inflow was much slower than it has been in previous days, some big companies were still reporting, including Dow component Verizon (VZ:) , which exceeded analyst targets, and Kellogg (K:) , which guided lower for next year.

Verizon tacked on 31 cents, or 0.7%, to $45.91, but Kellogg slumped $1.52, or 2.8%, to $52.92.

Humana (HUM:) reported a third-quarter profit that nearly doubled from a year ago, easily beating the Thomson First Call average estimate. The company also boosted its full-year view. Shares of Humana, though, relinquished early gains and closed down $2.08, or 2.8%, to $73.48.

Also, shares of Merrill Lynch (MER:) were in focus amid reports that CEO Stan O'Neal is close to a deal to exit the company. Rumors of O'Neal's departure sent the stock 8.5% higher last time out, and Merrill finished with another gain of $1.32, or 2%, at $67.41.

Elsewhere, Treasury prices were higher in the absence of any economic releases. The 10-year note was up 6/32 in price, yielding 4.38%. The 30-year bond added 23/32 in price, yielding 4.66%. The dollar was again making record lows against the euro.

Overseas markets were stronger. In Asia, Hong Kong's Hang Seng rallied 3.9% overnight, and Japan's Nikkei 225 climbed 1.2%. In Europe, London's FTSE 100 was better by 0.7%, and Germany's Xetra Dax was up 0.8%.

[setravis]

Futures Point to Pullback.......


10/30/2007 7:44 AM EDT


Stocks in the U.S. were set to slip early Tuesday as investors digested the latest round of earnings reports and positioned themselves ahead of the Federal Reserve's upcoming interest rate decision.

Futures on the S&P 500 were losing 4.30 points to 1542.70 and were 4.6 points below fair value. Nasdaq 100 futures were down 7.5 points at 2208 and were 10.5 points lower than fair value.

A bit later, the Federal Open Market Committee will convene for a two-day meeting, with a decision about rates due at 2:15 p.m. EDT on Wednesday.

Most economists are expecting a 25-basis-point rate cut, the second in as many months after the Fed kept its fed funds target rate at 5.25% for nine straight meetings, dating back to June 2006.

In the meantime, the focus remained on earnings. UBS (UBS:) said that third-quarter income fell 41% from a year ago, as the Swiss financial services firm had to deal with writedowns due to the subprime mortgage mess over the summer.

UBS also warned it may have to take further writedowns in the fourth quarter because of its ongoing exposure to the U.S. mortgage markets.

European bourses were dipping. London's FTSE 100 was losing 0.7%, the Paris CAC 40 was off 0.5%, and Germany's Xetra Dax was down 0.4%.

Back in the U.S., Procter & Gamble (PG:) posted fiscal fourth-quarter results that topped the Thomson First Call average estimate by a penny.

P&G said it expects fiscal second-quarter earnings in a range of 95 cents to 97 cents, compared with Wall Street's expectations of 97 cents.

Also before the opening bell, earnings are expected from U.S. Steel (X:) , Qwest Communications (Q:) and Colgate-Palmolive (CL:) .

Away from equities, crude prices were retreating after setting new records on Monday. The December crude contract closed above $93 a barrel for the first time during the prior session, but it was recently falling $1.04 to $92.49.

Last time out, crude prices did little to dampen enthusiasm, except for in the transportation sector, and the New York market climbed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 63.56 points, or 0.46%, to 13,870.26, and the S&P 500 tacked on 5.70 points, or 0.37%, to 1540.98. The Nasdaq Composite added 13.25 points, or 0.47%, to 2817.44.

Treasury prices were losing ground early. The 10-year note was down 4/32 in price, yielding 4.40%. The 30-year bond was off 5/32 in price, yielding 4.68%. The dollar was rising slightly against the euro.