NYSE Dow Jones finished today at:

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER ▼ -28.28 points or ▼ -0.17% on Friday, 21 March 2014
Symbol …........Last …......Change.......
Dow_Jones 16,302.77 ▼ -28.28 ▼ -0.17%
Nasdaq____ 4,276.79 ▼ -42.50 ▼ -0.98%
S&P_500___ 1,866.52 ▼ -5.49 ▼ -0.29%
30_Yr_Bond____ 3.61 ▼ -0.05 ▼ -1.39%

NYSE Volume 5,042,139,500
Nasdaq Volume 3,220,514,750

Europe
Symbol... .....Last ….....Change.......
FTSE_100 6,557.17 ▲ 14.73 ▲ 0.23%
DAX_____ 9,342.94 ▲ 46.82 ▲ 0.50%
CAC_40__ 4,335.28 ▲ 7.37 ▲ 0.17%

Asia Pacific
Symbol...... ….......Last .....Change…......
ASX_All_Ord___ 5,354.00 ▲ 41.30 ▲ 0.78%
Shanghai_Comp 2,047.62 ▲ 54.14 ▲ 2.72%
Taiwan_Weight 8,577.17 ▼ -20.16 ▼ -0.23%
Nikkei_225___ 14,224.23 ▼ -238.29 ▼ -1.65%
Hang_Seng.__ 21,436.70 ▲ 254.54 ▲ 1.20%
Strait_Times.__ 3,073.39 ▲ 16.19 ▲ 0.53%
NZX_50_Index_ 5,124.99 ▼ -35.40 ▼ -0.69%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/early-gain-fades-wall-street-164940850.html

An early gain fades on Wall Street
An early gain fades away on Wall Street; Health care stocks slump
Associated Press
By Matthew Craft, AP Business Writer

An early surge on the stock market evaporated Friday, as health care stocks tugged major indexes down.

Biotech companies were especially hard-hit after U.S. lawmakers questioned the pricing of a Hepatitis C drug made by Gilead Sciences.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index raced past an all-time high in early trading, then lost steam in the afternoon. It still finished with a solid weekly gain, up 1.4 percent.

It might sound surprising that the stock market is trading near an all-time high with all the uncertainty surrounding China's slowing growth and simmering tensions between Russia and the West. Last week, those concerns were credited with knocking the S&P 500 index down 1.9 percent, its worst weekly loss in nearly two months.

This week investors seemed to return their focus to the basics.

"There are always bad things going on in the world, but they don't all matter to the ultimate direction of markets," said Douglas Coté, chief market strategist at ING U.S. Investment Management. "The only thing that matters is the following: corporate earnings, manufacturing and the consumer. And they've all been solid."

The S&P 500 slipped 5.61 points, or 0.3 percent, to close at 1,866.40 Friday. It traded as high as 1,882 earlier in the day, four points above its record high reached March 7.

The Dow Jones industrial average lost 28.35 points, or 0.2 percent, to 16,302.70. The Nasdaq composite dropped 42.50 points, or 1 percent, to 4,276.79.

Health care stocks fell the most in the S&P 500 index. Gilead lost $3.46, or 5 percent, to $72.07. Biogen Idec fell $28.51, or 8 percent, to $318.53.

Nike fell after warning that a stronger U.S. dollar will dampen its results this quarter. Still, strong demand for its shoes and apparel ahead of the World Cup in June helped it beat analysts' earnings expectations in the previous quarter, the company said late Thursday. Nike, one of the 30 stocks in the Dow, lost $4.06, or 5 percent, to $75.21.

Earlier in the week, reports on manufacturing and housing sent the stock market higher. The big stumble came Wednesday, when the Federal Reserve said it could start raising short-term interest rates as soon as next year. Traders drove down prices for gold, government bonds and stocks in anticipation of higher interest rates and borrowing costs.

Those market jitters overshadowed some good news, said Dan Veru, chief investment officer of Palisade Capital Management in Fort Lee, N.J.

"If interest rates are going higher it's because the economy is doing better," he said, "and that's going to be a good thing for corporate profits. What's so bad about that?"

In other trading Friday, the yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 2.74 percent. Crude oil rose 56 cents to close at $99.46 a barrel. Gold gained $5.50 to settle at $1,336 an ounce.

Among other companies in the news:

— Zions Bancorporation, a regional bank based in Salt Lake City, fell $1.75, or 5 percent, to $31.24. Late Thursday, the Fed said Zions was the only one of 30 major U.S. banks that didn't pass an annual "stress test" that determines whether banks are have sufficient capital buffers to keep them lending through an economic crisis.

— Symantec lost $2.71, or 13 percent, to $18.20. The maker of security software fired its CEO late Thursday. It was the second time in less than two years that the company has dismissed its chief executive.

— News that Golden Gate Capital has acquired a stake in Ann Inc. sent the retailer's stock soaring $4.82, or 13 percent, to $42.05. The private equity firm disclosed the 9.5 percent stake in the parent company of Ann Taylor and LOFT late Thursday.

7416

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER ▼ -26.08 points or ▼ -0.16% on Monday, 24 March 2014
Symbol …........Last …......Change.......
Dow_Jones 16,276.69 ▼ -26.08 ▼ -0.16%
Nasdaq____ 4,226.39 ▼ -50.40 ▼ -1.18%
S&P_500___ 1,857.44 ▼ -9.08 ▼ -0.49%
30_Yr_Bond____ 3.57 ▼ -0.04 ▼ -1.03%

NYSE Volume 3,375,083,000
Nasdaq Volume 2,402,464,250

Europe
Symbol... .....Last ….....Change.......
FTSE_100 6,520.39 ▼ -36.78 ▼ -0.56%
DAX_____ 9,188.77 ▼ -154.17 ▼ -1.65%
CAC_40__ 4,276.34 ▼ -58.94 ▼ -1.36%

Asia Pacific
Symbol...... ….......Last .....Change…......
ASX_All_Ord___ 5,362.10 ▲ 8.10 ▲ 0.15%
Shanghai_Comp 2,066.28 ▲ 18.66 ▲ 0.91%
Taiwan_Weight 8,605.38 ▲ 28.21 ▲ 0.33%
Nikkei_225___ 14,475.30 ▲ 251.07 ▲ 1.77%
Hang_Seng.__ 21,846.45 ▲ 409.75 ▲ 1.91%
Strait_Times.__ 3,111.29 ▲ 37.90 ▲ 1.23%
NZX_50_Index_ 5,118.62 ▼ -6.38 ▼ -0.12%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/netflix-other-tech-stocks-lead-210500923.html

Netflix and other tech stocks lead market lower
Drop in technology stocks leads US indexes lower; Netflix, Facebook slump
Associated Press
By Bernard Condon, AP Business Writer

A sell-off in technology stocks Monday pulled the broader market lower as investors unloaded some of the biggest names in the industry.

Netflix fell 7 percent, Facebook fell 5 percent, and Google and Amazon.com each fell more than 2 percent.

Tech stocks have soared over the past year, pushing the Nasdaq composite index up 30 percent over the past 12 months, more than twice as much as the Dow Jones industrial average. Netflix and Facebook have doubled in price in that time.

"The big highfliers have done really well, and so I think there's been some profit-taking," said Randy Warren, chief investment officer of Warren Financial Service.

The Nasdaq lost 50.4 points, or 1.2 percent, to close at 4,226.39.

Other indexes also fell, but not as much. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 9.08 points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,857.44. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 26.08 points, or 0.2 percent, to 16,276.69.

Stocks drifted lower early Monday as traders feared that sanctions against Russia could tip the world's ninth-largest economy into recession. Investors were also reacting to news that Russian troops had seized Ukrainian ships and military installations in the Crimean peninsula. Russia annexed the region last week.

Biotechnology stocks, another sector that has soared over the past year, extended a decline that began Friday after U.S. lawmakers questioned the pricing of a Hepatitis C drug made by Gilead Sciences.

A popular fund tracking biotech stocks, the iShares Nasdaq Biotech ETF, fell 3 percent on Monday. It's been up 53 percent over the past 12 months.

"It's the richest part of the market, so ... you're going to get nervousness," said Jerry Webman, chief economist of Oppenheimer Funds.

Among stocks making big moves:

”” Herbalife rose $3.32, or 6.7 percent, to $52.86 after agreeing to back billionaire Carl Icahn's three nominees for its board. Icahn is a supporter of the embattled health supplements company in its fight with another famed investor, William Ackman, who has accused the company of operating a pyramid scheme.

”” Apple bucked the downward trend in technology stocks. The company rose after The Wall Street Journal reported that Apple is in talks with the giant cable provider Comcast to offer a streaming video service. Apple rose $6.32, or 1 percent, to $539.19.

Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.73 percent.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER ▲ 91.19 points or ▲ 0.56% on Tuesday, 25 March 2014
Symbol …........Last …......Change.......
Dow_Jones 16,367.88 ▲ 91.19 ▲ 0.56%
Nasdaq____ 4,234.27 ▲ 7.88 ▲ 0.19%
S&P_500___ 1,865.62 ▲ 8.18 ▲ 0.44%
30_Yr_Bond____ 3.58 ▲ 0.01 ▲ 0.20%

NYSE Volume 3,175,961,250
Nasdaq Volume 2,240,870,750

Europe
Symbol... .....Last ….....Change.......
FTSE_100 6,604.89 ▲ 84.50 ▲ 1.30%
DAX_____ 9,338.40 ▲ 149.63 ▲ 1.63%
CAC_40__ 4,344.12 ▲ 67.78 ▲ 1.59%

Asia Pacific
Symbol...... ….......Last .....Change…......
ASX_All_Ord___ 5,351.00 ▼ -11.10 ▼ -0.21%
Shanghai_Comp 2,067.31 ▲ 1.03 ▲ 0.05%
Taiwan_Weight 8,689.30 ▲ 83.92 ▲ 0.98%
Nikkei_225___ 14,423.19 ▼ -52.11 ▼ -0.36%
Hang_Seng.__ 21,732.32 ▼ -114.13 ▼ -0.52%
Strait_Times.__ 3,104.17 ▼ -7.66 ▼ -0.25%
NZX_50_Index_ 5,130.69 ▲ 12.08 ▲ 0.24%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/stocks-move-higher-wall-street-205451496.html

Stocks move higher on Wall Street; Sonic gains
Stocks move higher as investors assess US economy and earnings; Biotechnology stocks rebound
Associated Press
By Steve Rothwell, AP Markets Writer

Stocks got a lift Tuesday as health care companies bounced back after a heavy sell-off.

Biotechnology stocks in the Standard & Poor's 500 index rose for the first time in five days after a sharp sell-off that prompted by concern over costs of the drugs they make. Merck and Boston Scientific were among the companies that rose.

Stocks have been flipping between gains and losses for the most of the month, as investors have bought stocks after every dip. While many investors are confident that economic growth will accelerate as the weather moderates following an unusually harsh winter, they are reluctant to push stock prices higher before seeing more evidence that the economy is picking up.

"The reasons to buy are certainly there," said Robert Pavlik, chief market strategist at Banyan Partners, a wealth management company. "People are afraid to jump the gun."

The S&P 500 rose 8.18 points, or 0.4 percent, to 1,865.62. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 91.19 points, or 0.6 percent, to 16,367.88. The Nasdaq composite gained 7.88 points, or 0.2 percent, to 4,234.27.

Nine of the 10 industry groups in the S&P 500 ended the day higher. Industrial stocks rose the most, 0.9 percent, followed by the energy and health care sectors, which each gained 0.8 percent.

Biotechnology companies in the index rose 0.6 percent, led by Alexion Pharmaceuticals, which rose $3.32, or 2.2 percent, to $153. The index had lost 8.5 percent over the previous four days. The index has surged in the last year and is still up 45 percent over the last 12 months.

McCormick was the best performing stock in the S&P 500 on Tuesday. The company, which makes spices, seasonings and condiments, rose $3.69, or 5.5 percent, to $71.20 after reporting earnings that beat analysts' estimates. The company also reaffirmed its outlook for the year.

Another big gainer was Sonic. The stock of the drive-in restaurant company jumped $2.31, or 11 percent, to $23.23 after the company posted earnings that exceeded the expectations of Wall Street analysts. Net income rose despite the unusually harsh winter weather.

There were also conflicting reports on the economy for investors to consider.

One report showed that fewer people bought new U.S. homes in February. Sales fell to the slowest pace in five months, a sign that the housing market has yet to recover fully from brutal winter weather, the Commerce Department said Tuesday. Meanwhile, an index measuring U.S. consumer confidence rose to the highest level in six years, another sign that the economy's prospects should brighten with warmer weather.

Mixed signals have undermined investor's confidence in the economy after a strong fourth quarter last year suggested that U.S. growth was poised to accelerate, said Russ Koesterich, chief investment strategist for BlackRock. The S&P 500 has gained 0.3 percent this month, and is up 0.9 percent for the year.

"The investment thesis for 2014 was that the U.S. economy was going to start sprinting ahead," said Koesterich. "It's been a very sluggish start to the year ... People are not seeing the growth that they expected."

Prices for U.S. government bonds fell. The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note rose to 2.74 percent from 2.73 percent on Monday.

Crude oil fell 41 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $99.19 a barrel. Gold edged up 20 cents to $1,311.40 an ounce.

Among other stocks making big moves on Tuesday:

”” Carnival fell $1.98, or 4.9 percent, to $38.02, after the cruise operator swung to a loss in the first quarter, stung by losing bets on the future price of fuel. Carnival's adjusted results and revenue beat analysts' expectations, but the company narrowed its full-year forecast and gave a second-quarter projection below Wall Street's view.

”” Walgreen rose $2.11, or 3.3 percent, to $66.42 after the company reported its fiscal second quarter earnings. The company said it plans to close 76 stores in the second half of its fiscal year. That's a big shift from its previous growth strategy, which focused on opening locations to maximize convenience for its customers.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER ▼ -98.89 points or ▼ -0.60% on Wednesday, 26 March 2014
Symbol …........Last …......Change.......
Dow_Jones 16,268.99 ▼ -98.89 ▼ -0.60%
Nasdaq____ 4,173.58 ▼ -60.69 ▼ -1.43%
S&P_500___ 1,852.56 ▼ -13.06 ▼ -0.70%
30_Yr_Bond____ 3.55 ▼ -0.03 ▼ -0.78%

NYSE Volume 3,440,517,500
Nasdaq Volume 2,429,389,500

Europe
Symbol... .....Last ….....Change.......
FTSE_100 6,605.30 ▲ 0.41 ▲ 0.01%
DAX_____ 9,448.58 ▲ 110.18 ▲ 1.18%
CAC_40__ 4,385.15 ▲ 41.03 ▲ 0.94%

Asia Pacific
Symbol...... ….......Last .....Change…......
ASX_All_Ord___ 5,387.20 ▲ 36.20 ▲ 0.68%
Shanghai_Comp 2,063.67 ▼ -3.64 ▼ -0.18%
Taiwan_Weight 8,737.27 ▲ 47.97 ▲ 0.55%
Nikkei_225___ 14,477.16 ▲ 53.97 ▲ 0.37%
Hang_Seng.__ 21,887.75 ▲ 155.43 ▲ 0.72%
Strait_Times.__ 3,146.98 ▲ 42.81 ▲ 1.38%
NZX_50_Index_ 5,124.89 ▼ -5.81 ▼ -0.11%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/technology-stocks-lead-broad-market-211855953.html

Technology stocks lead a broad market decline
Stocks fall most in two weeks; Facebook leads technology sector lower after Oculus acquisition
Associated Press
By Steve Rothwell, AP Markets Writer

The stock market continued its recent pattern of one step forward, one step back.

After starting the day higher following an encouraging report on orders for manufactured goods, stocks drifted lower in afternoon trading Wednesday and gave up their gains from a day earlier. Facebook led the technology sector lower as investors gave the company's latest acquisition the thumbs-down.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell the most in two weeks and is now flat for the year. Investors are waiting for a catalyst that will either push the market higher or cause a sustained sell-off. Many anticipate that the stock market will resume its upward trajectory later in the year as the economy strengthens following an unusually harsh winter.

"We're going through this back and forth, I would call it a consolidation phase, digesting the huge gains we've had," said David Lafferty, chief market strategist at Natixis Global Asset Management. "Most of the movement in stocks will tend to be in the latter half of the year."

The S&P 500 fell 13.06 points, or 0.7 percent, to 1,852.56. The index is up 0.2 percent for the year, after rising almost 30 percent in 2013.

The Dow Jones industrial average lost 98.89 points, or 0.6 percent, to 16,268.99. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite fell more than the other indexes, giving up 60.69 points, or 1.4 percent, to 4,173.58.

Facebook was one of the biggest losers.

The social media network slumped $4.51, or 6.9 percent, to $60.38 after announcing a $2 billion acquisition of virtual reality company Oculus late Monday. It was Facebook's second big acquisition in as many months. Last month the company announced that it would pay $19 billion for messaging startup WhatsApp.

Investors may be questioning whether the returns on those investments will ultimately justify the big outlays, said Lawrence Creatura, a portfolio manager at Federated Investors.

Another loser in the technology sector was King Digital Entertainment.

The online games company, which makes the popular "Candy Crush Saga," slumped on its first day of trading. The company raised $499.5 million in an initial public offering. The company's stock fell $3.50, or 15.6 percent, to $19 on its first day of trading.

The stock market opened higher after a report showed that orders to U.S. factories for long-lasting manufactured goods rose in February by the largest amount since November, 2.2 percent. Demand for airplanes and automobiles drove the gains, according to the Commerce Department report. Last month's rise in durable goods orders followed a 1.3 percent drop in January.

"The bigger issue right now is whether or not growth in the United States is going to reaccelerate as the year goes on," Paul Karos, portfolio manager at Whitebox mutual funds. "We are assuming a bounce back after this week first quarter."

Health care companies bucked the downward trend and were the only industry sector to rise. The sector is rebounding after getting caught up in a brief sell-off of biotechnology stocks on Friday and Monday. Biotech companies slumped after lawmakers raised concerns about the prices of some drugs.

Tenet Healthcare rose $2.03, or 5.2 percent, to $40.93. Quest Diagnostic rose $3.05, or 5.6 percent, to $57.99. Hospitals and medical device companies are attractive because they have steady revenue streams.

Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.69 percent from 2.75 percent from late Tuesday. The price of crude oil rose $1.07, or 1.1 percent, to $100.26 a barrel. Gold fell $8, or 0.6 percent, to settle at $1,303.40 an ounce.

Among other stocks making big moves:

”” International Game Technology fell $1.23, or 8.3 percent, to $13.62 after the company lowered its annual profit forecast, saying North American gambling revenue has declined more steeply than it expected. Its international business is being hurt by weakening currencies and other problems.

”” Discount retailer Five Below shot higher after its quarterly profit and sales beat analysts' expectations. The stock jumped $4.34, or 11 percent, to $42.34.

”” Citigroup fell $2.66, or 5.3 percent, to $47.50 in after-hours trading after the Federal Reserve turned down the bank's plan to spend $6.4 billion buying back its own stock and increasing its quarterly dividend from 1 cent to 5 cents.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER ▼ -4.76 points or ▼ -0.03% on Thursday, 27 March 2014
Symbol …........Last …......Change.......
Dow_Jones 16,264.23 ▼ -4.76 ▼ -0.03%
Nasdaq____ 4,151.23 ▼ -22.35 ▼ -0.54%
S&P_500___ 1,849.04 ▼ -3.52 ▼ -0.19%
30_Yr_Bond____ 3.51 ▼ -0.04 ▼ -1.15%

NYSE Volume 3,700,630,250
Nasdaq Volume 2,225,925,500

Europe
Symbol... .....Last ….....Change.......
FTSE_100 6,588.32 ▼ -16.98 ▼ -0.26%
DAX_____ 9,451.21 ▲ 2.63 ▲ 0.03%
CAC_40__ 4,379.06 ▼ -6.09 ▼ -0.14%

Asia Pacific
Symbol...... ….......Last .....Change…......
ASX_All_Ord___ 5,359.70 ▼ -27.50 ▼ -0.51%
Shanghai_Comp 2,046.59 ▼ -17.08 ▼ -0.83%
Taiwan_Weight 8,779.57 ▲ 42.30 ▲ 0.48%
Nikkei_225___ 14,622.89 ▲ 145.73 ▲ 1.01%
Hang_Seng.__ 21,834.45 ▼ -53.30 ▼ -0.24%
Strait_Times.__ 3,162.46 ▲ 19.14 ▲ 0.61%
NZX_50_Index_ 5,126.53 ▲ 1.65 ▲ 0.03%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/tech-companies-citigroup-tug-us-161934884.html

Tech companies, Citigroup tug US stocks lower
Stock indexes close lower for second day as Citigroup and technology shares slide
Associated Press
By Ken Sweet, AP Markets Writer

NEW YORK (AP) -- It was a bad day to be an investor in Citigroup or tech stocks.

U.S. stock indexes edged lower for a second day Thursday as investors continued to retreat from technology stocks. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index closed at its lowest level in six weeks.

Bank stocks were also in focus. Citigroup fell 5 percent after the Federal Reserve denied the bank's plan to raise its dividend and buy back more stock. Most other major banks won approval to raise their dividends.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index lost 3.52 points, or 0.2 percent, to 1,849.04 and the Nasdaq dropped 22.35 points, or 0.5 percent, to 4,151.23.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell a modest 4.76 points, or less than 0.1 percent, to end at 16,264.23. The blue-chip index benefited from a gain in Exxon Mobil, which rose $1.54, or 1.6 percent, to $96.24 as the price of oil increased 1 percent to just over $101 a barrel.

Once again, the high-flying technology stocks that soared in 2013 were among the hardest hit. Tesla Motors fell nearly 3 percent, Netflix lost 2.2 percent and Google fell 1.6 percent.

The sell-off continues what has already been a tough month for technology stocks. Netflix is down 18 percent this month, and Twitter and Tesla have fallen 16 and 15 percent, respectively.

Investors say it's reassuring to see some of the air come out of these speculative technology stocks. Netflix is still is trading at 90 times its expected 2014 earnings; the average for companies in the S&P 500 index is 17. Tesla is worth 119 times its expected earnings and Twitter, which hasn't even made a profit, is trading at more than 3,000 times what analysts expect the company to earn this year.

Most investors believe that while Netflix, Tesla and Facebook have bright futures, the stocks may have gotten ahead of themselves in recent months.

"The real story in the market is this valuation correction and risk-off trade," said Steve Massocca, a fund manager for the Wedbush Hedged Dividend Fund. "The more speculative areas have seen money come out of them in a hurry."

Citigroup was the second-biggest decliner in the S&P 500 after the Federal Reserve denied the bank's plan to raise its dividend and buy back more stock. The bank was one of only five to have plans rejected by the Fed. Citi was the only large U.S.-based commercial bank to face a rebuke from the Fed.

Investors had been bidding up the big banks' stock prices in the weeks heading into the announcement, in anticipation that the Fed would allow the banks, five years after the financial crisis, to return more money to investors. The nation's biggest banks have proposed $22.79 billion in dividends this year, a 23 percent increase from a year ago, according to data provided by Thomson Reuters.

"While there's going to be some winners and losers, these 'stress test' results will be an overall positive for the banks because it removes some of uncertainty in the sector," said Andres Garcia-Amaya, a global market strategist for J.P. Morgan Funds.

"From a long-term perspective, they're all in a great place competitively," Massocca said.

As they have often done in recent weeks, investors looked past the latest positive reports on the U.S. economy.

The government estimated that the U.S. economy expanded at a 2.6 percent rate between October and December, slightly better than previously thought. Consumer spending rose at the fastest pace in three years. The government also said the number of people seeking U.S. unemployment benefits fell 10,000 last week to 311,000, the lowest since late November. Both reports were better than economists were expecting.

Economic data has had less of an impact on the stock market recently as many investors assume that the unusually harsh winter weather this year has skewed the data. Extremely cold and stormy weather is widely believed to have suppressed sales, hiring, construction and other potential growth in the economy in January and February. At the same time, many investors attribute improvements in economic indicators this month to a temporary bounce because of pent-up demand.

"We are not likely to get 'pure' data until the summer," Garcia-Amaya said. "Investors can't have it both ways, complaining that any bad data was impacted by the weather while at the same time saying any better-than-expected data was not impacted by the weather. We'll need to take the good and the bad with a grain of salt for a couple more months."

In company news:

”” GameStop fell $1.57, or 4 percent, to $37.33. The video game retail chain reported higher fourth-quarter earnings, thanks to the recent debut of Microsoft's Xbox One and Sony's PlayStation 4, but its earnings missed estimates. The company also announced it would close 2 percent of its stores.

”” King Entertainment, producer of the "Candy Crush Saga" video game, continued to slide a day after flopping in its stock market debut. The stock fell 51 cents, or 2.7 percent, to $18.49. It plunged 16 percent the day before.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER ▲ 58.83 points or ▲ 0.36% on Friday, 28 March 2014
Symbol …........Last …......Change.......
Dow_Jones 16,323.06 ▲ 58.83 ▲ 0.36%
Nasdaq____ 4,155.76 ▲ 4.53 ▲ 0.11%
S&P_500___ 1,857.62 ▲ 8.58 ▲ 0.46%
30_Yr_Bond____ 3.54 ▲ 0.03 ▲ 0.97%

NYSE Volume 2,966,843,750
Nasdaq Volume 2,009,684,880

Europe
Symbol... .....Last ….....Change.......
FTSE_100 6,615.58 ▲ 27.26 ▲ 0.41%
DAX_____ 9,587.19 ▲ 135.98 ▲ 1.44%
CAC_40__ 4,411.26 ▲ 32.20 ▲ 0.74%

Asia Pacific
Symbol...... ….......Last .....Change…......
ASX_All_Ord___ 5,376.80 ▲ 17.10 ▲ 0.32%
Shanghai_Comp 2,041.71 ▼ -4.88 ▼ -0.24%
Taiwan_Weight 8,774.64 ▼ -4.93 ▼ -0.06%
Nikkei_225___ 14,696.03 ▲ 73.14 ▲ 0.50%
Hang_Seng.__ 22,065.53 ▲ 231.08 ▲ 1.06%
Strait_Times.__ 3,172.17 ▲ 9.71 ▲ 0.31%
NZX_50_Index_ 5,142.90 ▲ 16.36 ▲ 0.32%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/stock...;_ylg=X3oDMTBhYWM1a2sxBGxhbmcDZW4tVVM-;_ylv=3

Stocks edge higher on consumer spending data
Microsoft leads the Dow Jones industrial average higher; CBS Outdoor jumps in market debut
Associated Press
By Ken Sweet, AP Markets Writer March 28, 2014

NEW YORK (AP) -- A positive report on U.S. consumer spending helped push stocks mostly higher Friday for the first time in three days.

The gains were modest as investors continued to cut their holdings in biotechnology stocks, some of the best performing names of 2013. Instead, the stocks that advanced the most were mostly mature, large companies such as Microsoft, Exxon and Cisco Systems.

The Dow Jones Industrial average rose 58.83 points, or 0.4 percent, to 16,323.06. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 8.58 points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,857.62. The Nasdaq composite, which includes a number of large biotech companies, rose just 4.53 points, or 0.1 percent, to 4,155.76.

The biggest gainer in the Dow was Microsoft, which rose 94 cents, or 2.4 percent, to $40.30. The company announced Thursday that it was bringing Microsoft Office to the iPad and would shift its focus away from Windows, a move that analysts liked. Satya Nadella made the announcement in his first public appearance as the new leader of Microsoft.

"We continue to view (Office on the iPad) as a massive revenue and operating profit opportunity for Microsoft," analysts at Credit Suisse said in a report Thursday.

Microsoft helped lift other large technology companies, with Cisco Systems, Intel and Oracle up roughly 1 percent or more.

In contrast to technology, biotechnology had another horrible day. Gilead Sciences, Biogen Idec and Vertex Pharmaceuticals were all down 4 percent or more.

The higher they rise, the harder they fall, investors say. Biotechnology stocks had been among the hottest sectors in the stock market for the last two years, with the S&P 500 Biotechnology index rising 74 percent in 2013 and 38 percent in 2012.

That momentum stopped dead in the month of March. The S&P 500 Biotechnology index is down 12 percent this month alone, erasing all of the sector's gains in January and February.

The sell-off in biotech echoes the pullback investors have seen speculative technology stocks, such as Twitter, Netflix and Tesla Motors. Those stocks are down between 14 percent and 20 percent this month alone.

"The high-momentum names have lost all the traction they had in the past year," said John Fox, director of research at Fenimore Asset Management.

Investors were encouraged by news that Americans increased their spending last month, a hopeful sign for an economy that has been slowed by months of severe winter weather. The Commerce Department said consumer spending inched up 0.3 percent, a hair short of economists' forecasts. Incomes rose at the same pace.

"The economy is now reaching the point where it can shake off the weather-related excuses," Doug Cote, a market strategist for ING Investment Management, wrote in an email.

Investors will now turn their attention to next week's economic data, including the March jobs report due out Friday. Economists expect the U.S. economy, thawing from the harsh winter, created 200,000 jobs last month and the unemployment rate remained steady at 6.6 percent.

In other markets, the yield on the 10-year Treasury note hovered around 2.72 percent, up from 2.69 percent Thursday. The price of crude oil edged up 39 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $101.67 a barrel. Gold was little changed at $1,293.80 an ounce.

In other company news:

”” King Digital, the maker of the "Candy Crush Saga" video game, was down for a third day in a row following its IPO on Wednesday. The stock fell 41 cents, or 2.2 percent, to $18.08. King went public at $22.50 a share.

”” CBS Outdoor, a major outdoor advertising company, rose $1.50, or 5 percent, to $29.50 on its first day of trading. CBS decided to spin off CBS Outdoor into a separate publicly traded company because executives believed billboard advertising did not fit well with CBS's primary business of broadcasting.

”” Electric car maker Tesla Motors rose $5.05, or 2.4 percent, to $212.37. The stock rise followed news that federal safety regulators had closed their investigation into allegations of battery fires without any penalty against Tesla. The company also said it would install more shielding around its battery packs.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER ▲ 134.6 points or ▲ 0.82% on Monday, 31 March 2014
Symbol …........Last …......Change.......
Dow_Jones 16,457.66 ▲ 134.60 ▲ 0.82%
Nasdaq____ 4,198.99 ▲ 43.23 ▲ 1.04%
S&P_500___ 1,872.34 ▲ 14.72 ▲ 0.79%
30_Yr_Bond____ 3.56 ▲ 0.02 ▲ 0.48%

NYSE Volume 3,209,253,000
Nasdaq Volume 2,055,529,880

Europe
Symbol... .....Last ….....Change.......
FTSE_100 6,598.37 ▲ 10.05 ▲ 0.15%
DAX_____ 9,555.91 ▼ -31.28 ▼ -0.33%
CAC_40__ 4,391.50 ▼ -19.76 ▼ -0.45%

Asia Pacific
Symbol...... ….......Last .....Change…......
ASX_All_Ord___ 5,403.00 ▲ 26.20 ▲ 0.49%
Shanghai_Comp 2,033.31 ▼ -8.41 ▼ -0.41%
Taiwan_Weight 8,849.28 ▲ 74.64 ▲ 0.85%
Nikkei_225___ 14,827.83 ▲ 131.80 ▲ 0.90%
Hang_Seng.__ 22,151.06 ▲ 85.53 ▲ 0.39%
Strait_Times.__ 3,186.79 ▲ 14.62 ▲ 0.46%
NZX_50_Index_ 5,139.98 ▼ -2.91 ▼ -0.06%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/us-stocks-close-meager-first-211941723.html

US stocks close out a meager first-quarter gain
Stocks rise, closing out a meager first-quarter gain; S&P 500 is up 1.3 percent year-to-date
Associated Press
By Ken Sweet, AP Markets Writer

NEW YORK (AP) -- If 2013 was a year where the stock market went straight up, 2014 has started off as a year where the stock market moves sideways.

There was plenty for investors to worry about in the first three months of the year, from tensions between Russia and the West over Ukraine and the winter storms that froze the U.S. economy in January and February. As a result, investors focused their attention on buying and holding "safe" investments, such as bonds, dividend-paying stocks, and gold.

The Standard & Poor's 500 rose 1.3 percent in the first three months of 2013. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 0.7 percent so far this year, and the Nasdaq composite is up 0.5 percent.

It was S&P 500's its fifth-straight quarterly gain. It was also the index's worst quarter since the fourth quarter of 2012.

"I think this bull market is starting to show signs of fatigue," said Wayne Wilbanks, chief investment officer at Wilbanks, Smith, Thomas in Norfolk, Va., which manages roughly $2.4 billion in assets.

It was all about safety this quarter.

Utility and health care stocks, which typically pay larger-than-average dividends and are less volatile than other stocks, rose 9 percent and 5.5 percent, respectively. Those two sectors were among the laggards last year.

Riskier growth-oriented stocks, particularly in biotechnology, consumer discretionary and technology stocks, fared the worst. Among the biggest decliners this quarter, Twitter fell 27 percent, biotechnology company Celgene dropped 17 percent and Amazon.com fell 16 percent.

Bonds were widely expected to do poorly in 2014 because the Federal Reserve was winding down its bond-buying program and the U.S. economy was improving. Instead, they did better than the stock market. The Barclays Aggregate Bond Index, a broad measure of the bond market that includes Treasurys, corporate and other types of bonds, is up 1.9 percent this quarter.

Even gold did well this quarter. After getting slammed in 2013, gold rose nearly 7 percent in the first quarter of 2013.

Investors started off the quarter cautiously optimistic. The S&P 500 had risen 32 percent in 2013, including dividends, and was trading at an all-time high early in the year. There were signs that the U.S. economic recovery was accelerating. Few investors expected 2013's momentum to hold into this year, however.

"We had such an incredible year last year, people were willing to take a break and wait it out," said J.J. Kinahan, chief strategist with TD Ameritrade.

Investors quickly had to shift to defense mode. Throughout the first three months of the year, there were signs that the U.S. economy was negatively impacted by severe winter storms in December, January and February, which slowed down job creation, consumer spending and manufacturing nationwide.

Internationally, the tensions between Russia and the West over Ukraine drag on. Geopolitical uncertainty is never good for the stock market.

Then there's the Federal Reserve. The nation's central bank began to pull back on its bond-buying economic stimulus in late December, cutting its bond purchases from $85 billion to $75 billion a month. The Fed voted twice this quarter to further cut back the program, which now stands at $55 billion a month.

There's a large group of traders and money managers who believe the Fed's bond-buying program helped push the stock market higher because it was designed to make bonds more expensive than stocks. Now that the Fed is pulling out of the market, the tailwind in the stock market is fading.

"We should expect much more volatility and more meager returns like this" Wilbanks said.

Looking forward, now that winter has subsided across much of the country, investors will turn their eyes to this Friday's jobs report. It is widely expected that the economic freeze from the winter storms is thawing, and the pent-up demand of the last three months should result in burst of activity in the second three months of the year.

Corporations will also start reporting their quarterly results in a few weeks, which will be a catalyst on where this market goes from here.

On Monday, the Dow rose 134.60 points, or 0.8 percent, to 16,457.66, the S&P 500 rose 14.72 points, or 0.8 percent, to 1,872.34 and the Nasdaq composite rose 43.23 points, or 1 percent, to 4,198.99.

8682

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER ▲ 74.95 points or ▲ 0.46% on Tuesday, 1 April 2014
Symbol …........Last …......Change.......
Dow_Jones 16,532.61 ▲ 74.95 ▲ 0.46%
Nasdaq____ 4,268.04 ▲ 69.05 ▲ 1.64%
S&P_500___ 1,885.52 ▲ 13.18 ▲ 0.70%
30_Yr_Bond____ 3.60 ▲ 0.04 ▲ 1.21%

NYSE Volume 3,312,963,500
Nasdaq Volume 2,127,747,750

Europe
Symbol... .....Last ….....Change.......
FTSE_100 6,652.61 ▲ 54.24 ▲ 0.82%
DAX_____ 9,603.71 ▲ 47.80 ▲ 0.50%
CAC_40__ 4,426.72 ▲ 35.22 ▲ 0.80%

Asia Pacific
Symbol...... ….......Last .....Change…......
ASX_All_Ord___ 5,394.90 ▼ -8.10 ▼ -0.15%
Shanghai_Comp 2,047.46 ▲ 14.15 ▲ 0.70%
Taiwan_Weight 8,873.15 ▲ 23.87 ▲ 0.27%
Nikkei_225___ 14,791.99 ▼ -35.84 ▼ -0.24%
Hang_Seng.__ 22,448.54 ▲ 297.48 ▲ 1.34%
Strait_Times.__ 3,201.54 ▲ 12.92 ▲ 0.41%
NZX_50_Index_ 5,122.52 ▼ -17.46 ▼ -0.34%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/p-500-record-high-manufacturing-204322174.html

S&P 500 at record high on manufacturing pickup
Stock close at a record high as US manufacturing shows signs of recovery after a winter freeze
Associated Press
By Ken Sweet, AP Markets Writer

NEW YORK (AP) -- New signs of life in the U.S. manufacturing sector helped push the stock market to a record high Tuesday.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index gained 13.18 points, or 0.7 percent, to close at 1,885.52. That's above its previous record of 1,878.04, set on March 7. The gains were broad, with eight out of the ten sectors in the S&P 500 rising.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 74.95 points, or 0.5 percent, to 16,532.61. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite rose 69.05 points, or 1.6 percent, to 4,268.04.

Investors were encouraged by two mostly positive economic reports focused on U.S. manufacturing.

The Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing index rose to 53.7 in March, up from 53.2 in February, as the nation's factories continued to rev up following the severe winter weather earlier this year. Separately, the Commerce Department said construction spending rose by 0.1 percent in February, after falling by 0.2 percent in January.

Both reports were the latest signs that the U.S. economy was beginning to thaw following a difficult winter.

The biggest gainer in the S&P 500 was the medical device maker Intuitive Surgical, which jumped $55.61, or 13 percent, to $493.60. The Food and Drug Administration approved the company's newest surgical robotic system, which is designed to do minimally invasive surgeries.

Other biotechnology and medical device stocks also rose, a welcome relief for a sector that has been beaten down in the last three weeks. Celgene rose 5 percent, Gilead Sciences rose 4 percent and Amgen rose 2 percent.

Ford also was among the biggest gainers in the S&P 500 after reporting a bump up in sales last month. Ford's U.S. sales chief John Felice says demand picked up in the middle of March, and the company's top-selling F-Series truck sales gained 5 percent. Other automakers also reported higher sales, including Chrysler and Toyota.

Ford rose 72 cents, or 5 percent, to $16.32.

"It's nice to see vehicle sales do well, even with the weather-related concerns last month," said Neil Massa, senior equity trader at John Hancock Asset Management.

It was the first trading day of the second quarter, so Tuesday's trading was likely impacted by fund managers moving money into the market for the first time after closing their books on the first quarter. The stock market had a choppy first quarter, with the S&P 500 rising only 1.3 percent. In comparison, the S&P 500 rose more than 10 percent in the first quarter of 2013.

Later this week, the market will get the closely watched U.S. jobs report. Economists expect that U.S. employers created 191,000 jobs in March and the unemployment rate remained steady at 6.6 percent.

The March report will likely be the first "clean" jobs number investors will get this year, because the December, January and February reports were all affected by the winter storms that enveloped most of the country earlier this year.

"Markets will be quiet until we get that number," said Jonathan Corpina, a floor trader at the New York Stock Exchange with Meridian Equity Partners.

In other markets, bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.76 percent from 2.72 percent late Monday. The price of crude oil slipped $1.84 to $99.74 a barrel. Gold was little changed at $1,279.60 an ounce.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER ▲ 40.39 points or ▲ 0.24% on Wednesday, 2 April 2014
Symbol …........Last …......Change.......
Dow_Jones 16,573.00 ▲ 40.39 ▲ 0.24%
Nasdaq____ 4,276.46 ▲ 8.42 ▲ 0.20%
S&P_500___ 1,890.90 ▲ 5.38 ▲ 0.29%
30_Yr_Bond____ 3.65 ▲ 0.05 ▲ 1.25%

NYSE Volume 3,100,740,250
Nasdaq Volume 2,164,094,250

Europe
Symbol... .....Last ….....Change.......
FTSE_100 6,659.04 ▲ 6.43 ▲ 0.10%
DAX_____ 9,623.36 ▲ 19.65 ▲ 0.20%
CAC_40__ 4,430.86 ▲ 4.14 ▲ 0.09%

Asia Pacific
Symbol...... ….......Last .....Change…......
ASX_All_Ord___ 5,408.80 ▲ 13.90 ▲ 0.26%
Shanghai_Comp 2,058.99 ▲ 11.53 ▲ 0.56%
Taiwan_Weight 8,905.45 ▲ 32.30 ▲ 0.36%
Nikkei_225___ 14,946.32 ▲ 154.33 ▲ 1.04%
Hang_Seng.__ 22,523.94 ▲ 75.40 ▲ 0.34%
Strait_Times.__ 3,192.78 ▼ -5.74 ▼ -0.18%
NZX_50_Index_ 5,116.31 ▼ -6.21 ▼ -0.12%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/p-500-notches-another-record-210046227.html

S&P 500 notches another record after hiring report
S&P 500 hits another record after encouraging employment report; Dow Jones erases 2014 losses
Associated Press
By Steve Rothwell, AP Markets Writer

NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks closed higher for a fourth straight day on Wednesday after a report on hiring provided another encouraging sign that the economy is emerging from its winter slump.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index closed at a record high for the eighth time this year. The Dow Jones industrial average also rose above its record closing level during trading, but fell back and finished just short of its first all-time high of the year.

The stock market has turned higher this week after moving largely sideways for most of the year as reports have suggested that the economy is strengthening after slowing down during an unusually harsh winter. The catalyst on Wednesday was a private survey that showed that U.S. companies increased hiring at a rapid pace last month after a strong manufacturing survey a day earlier.

"In January and February we had that weather weakness and it's now showing through that ... the underlying economy is fine," said Jerry Braakman, chief investment officer of First American Trust. "Economic expansion should continue."

The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 5.38 points, or 0.3 percent, to 1,890.90. The Dow Jones industrial average climbed 40.39 points, or 0.24 percent, to 16,573. That's just short of its record close of 16,576.66 set Dec. 31. The Nasdaq composite rose 8.52 points, or 0.2 percent, to 4,276.46.

Payroll processer ADP said private employers added 191,000 jobs. ADP also revised February's job creation up to 153,000 from the 139,000 figure reported earlier. The report comes ahead of the government's monthly report on jobs, scheduled to be released on Friday.

Economists are forecasting that U.S. employers added 200,000 jobs in March, according to data provider FactSet. That would be the most since November last year.

"In general, expectations for this Friday's non-farms payrolls number have clearly risen over the last two weeks," said Gary Flam, a portfolio manager at Bel Air Investment Advisors.

There was more encouraging news on manufacturing Wednesday as the Commerce Department reported that orders to U.S. factories rose 1.6 percent in February, the most in five months. On Tuesday, the S&P 500 gained after the Institute for Supply Management said its manufacturing index rose in March.

Industrial companies were among the biggest gainers in the S&P 500 index on Wednesday. The sector has risen 2.7 percent over the last week, as signs have emerged that manufacturing is strengthening, makes it the second-best performer of the 10 industry groups that make up the S&P 500.

After the jobs report on Friday, investors will turn their focus to corporate earnings, as companies start to report for the first quarter. First quarter earnings are expected to grow by just 0.4 percent for the quarter after rising 7.8 percent in the fourth quarter, according to S&P Capital IQ.

Expectations for the earnings in the first three months are low, in part due to the weather, said Jeff Kleintop, Chief Market Strategist for LPL Financial. However, investors will be looking for signs that companies are expecting revenues to increase during the remainder of the year.

"The question is, did they start to see a reacceleration toward the end of the quarter, as we're seeing in some of this economic data," Kleintop said.

Government bonds fell after the ADP report. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note climbed to 2.80 percent from 2.75 percent on Tuesday and is now at its highest level since January.

In commodities trading, the price of oil fell 12 cents, or 0.1 percent, to $99.62 a barrel. Gold rose $10.80, or 0.9 percent, to settle at $1,290.80 an ounce.

Among stocks making big moves;

”” Apollo Education slumped $3.10, or 8.8 percent, to $32.02 after the company reported revenue that fell short of investor's expectations. The company said new student enrollment at its University of Phoenix fell drank 16.5 percent.

”” MannKind soared $2.97, or 74 percent, to $6.99 after FDA advisers voted unanimously to recommend approval of the drug Afrezza, a fast-acting insulin, for patients with the most common form of diabetes. MannKind has no products on the market and lost more than $191 million last year.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER ▲ -0.45 points or ▲ 0.00% on Thursday, 3 April 2014
Symbol …........Last …......Change.......
Dow_Jones 16,572.55 ▼ -0.45 ▲ 0.00%
Nasdaq____ 4,237.74 ▼ -38.72 ▼ -0.91%
S&P_500___ 1,888.77 ▼ -2.13 ▼ -0.11%
30_Yr_Bond____ 3.62 ▼ -0.02 ▼ -0.66%

NYSE Volume 2,997,861,000
Nasdaq Volume 2,046,762,000

Europe
Symbol... .....Last ….....Change.......
FTSE_100 6,649.14 ▼ -9.90 ▼ -0.15%
DAX_____ 9,628.82 ▲ 5.46 ▲ 0.06%
CAC_40__ 4,449.33 ▲ 18.47 ▲ 0.42%

Asia Pacific
Symbol...... ….......Last .....Change…......
ASX_All_Ord___ 5,415.70 ▲ 6.90 ▲ 0.13%
Shanghai_Comp 2,043.70 ▼ -15.29 ▼ -0.74%
Taiwan_Weight 8,888.54 ▼ -16.91 ▼ -0.19%
Nikkei_225___ 15,071.88 ▲ 125.56 ▲ 0.84%
Hang_Seng.__ 22,565.08 ▲ 41.14 ▲ 0.18%
Strait_Times.__ 3,220.06 ▲ 27.28 ▲ 0.85%
NZX_50_Index_ 5,122.37 ▲ 6.06 ▲ 0.12%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/us-stocks-slip-hold-close-210831058.html

US stocks slip, but hold close to an all-time high
Stocks slip, but hold near record highs amid optimism that the economy is set to strengthen
Associated Press
By Steve Rothwell, AP Markets Writer

NEW YORK (AP) -- The stock market held close to its all-time high on Thursday amid optimism that the economy is set to strengthen.

Stocks are on course for their best weekly gain in seven weeks after investors got more encouraging news on the economy. A survey showed that U.S. service firms increased their business more quickly last month as new orders rose. Separate reports earlier in the week had shown manufacturing strengthening, hiring picking up, and sales of cars and trucks rising.

The news came ahead of the government's monthly jobs report, which will be published Friday. Investors expect to see a strong pickup in hiring. Economists are forecasting that the U.S. economy added 200,000 jobs in March, according to FactSet. That would be the biggest gain in hiring since November.

"If you have a decent economy, a modestly growing economy, that's supportive of corporate earnings and stocks can continue to benefit from that," said John Fox, director of research at Fenimore Asset Management.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 2.13 points, or 0.1 percent, to 1,888.77. The index closed at an all-time high of 1,890 a day earlier after rising for four straight days. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 0.45 point, or less than 0.1 percent, to 16,572.55. The Nasdaq composite fell 38.72 points, or 0.9 percent, to 4,237.74.

Stocks started the day higher after getting a lift from a report on the U.S. service sector, a broad category of businesses that includes banks, transportation and construction.

The Institute for Supply Management's non-manufacturing index rose to 53.1 in March, up from 51.6 in February, indicating that growth in the service sector is picking up. The survey also showed hiring picking up.

However, by midmorning stocks started to drift lower. Investors seemed unwilling to place big bets on the market before Friday's key jobs report.

"Going into the employment report, a lot of people aren't anxious to open new positions," said J.J. Kinahan, chief strategist with TD Ameritrade. "They don't want to be taken by surprise."

Barnes & Noble was among the day's big losers.

The stock fell $2.99, or 13.5 percent, to $19.12 after Liberty Media said it was cutting its stake in the company. Liberty Media, the investment company controlled by billionaire John Malone, gave Barnes & Noble a lifeline in 2011 when it bought a 17 percent stake in the company.

Biotechnology stocks also fell.

After surging at the start of the year, biotech stocks have become volatile amid concerns about the cost of the drugs that they're developing. The S&P's index of biotechnology stocks fell 1.6 percent, paring its gains for the year to about 1.2 percent. The index had been up as much as 13 percent by the end of February.

Google's stock split took effect Thursday.

The technology company's new Class C non-voting shares rose $2.74, or 0.5 percent, to $569.74. Its Class A shares, which retained voting rights, rose $3.40, or 0.6 percent, to $571.50. The Class A shares, which have been traded since the company went public nearly a decade ago, now trade under the ticker symbol "GOOGL." The Class C shares inherited the "GOOG" ticker symbol.

In government bond trading, bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.79 percent from 2.80 percent on Wednesday. The price of oil rose 67 cents, or 0.7 percent, to $100.29 a barrel. Gold fell $6.20, or 0.5 percent, to $1,284.60 an ounce

Among other stocks making big moves:

”” Anadarko Petroleum jumped $12.55, or 14.5 percent, to $99.02 after the company announced that it had reached a $5.15 billion deal to settle claims arising from the 2009 bankruptcy of paints materials maker Tronox. A U.S. bankruptcy court judge said in December that Anadarko Petroleum may be liable for between $5 billion and more than $14 billion in the legal battle.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER ▼ -159.84 points or ▼ -0.96% on Friday, 4 April 2014
Symbol …........Last …......Change.......
Dow_Jones 16,412.71 ▼ -159.84 ▼ -0.96%
Nasdaq____ 4,127.73 ▼ -110.01 ▼ -2.60%
S&P_500___ 1,865.09 ▼ -23.68 ▼ -1.25%
30_Yr_Bond____ 3.58 ▼ -0.04 ▼ -1.10%

NYSE Volume 3,595,032,500
Nasdaq Volume 2,587,384,500

Europe
Symbol... .....Last ….....Change.......
FTSE_100 6,695.55 ▲ 46.41 ▲ 0.70%
DAX_____ 9,695.77 ▲ 66.95 ▲ 0.70%
CAC_40__ 4,484.55 ▲ 35.22 ▲ 0.79%

Asia Pacific
Symbol...... ….......Last .....Change…......
ASX_All_Ord___ 5,428.60 ▲ 12.90 ▲ 0.24%
Shanghai_Comp 2,058.83 ▲ 15.13 ▲ 0.74%
Taiwan_Weight 8,888.54 ▼ -16.91 ▼ -0.19%
Nikkei_225___ 15,063.77 ▼ -8.11 ▼ -0.05%
Hang_Seng.__ 22,510.08 ▼ -55.00 ▼ -0.24%
Strait_Times.__ 3,212.72 ▼ -7.34 ▼ -0.23%
NZX_50_Index_ 5,123.90 ▲ 1.53 ▲ 0.03%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/tech-stocks-once-highfliers-drop-201613521.html

Tech stocks, once highfliers, drop; Nasdaq sinks
Traders dump technology stocks, leading to a broad market decline; Nasdaq sinks 2.6 percent
Associated Press
By Matthew Craft, AP Business Writer

NEW YORK (AP) -- A slump in Internet and other technology stocks pulled the broader market lower Friday, as traders turned on the same companies they flocked to earlier this year. Google, Netflix and other pillars of the Internet economy took a beating.

It was a bad day in an otherwise decent week. The Standard & Poor's 500 index ended the week slightly higher.

Mixed signals in the government's monthly jobs report gave investors little direction Friday. The government said that U.S. employers added more workers to their payrolls last month, but the overall report presented a mixed picture, and the unemployment rate remained at 6.7 percent.

The stock market crept higher to start, began losing steam at lunchtime and then turned lower in the afternoon. The jobs report wasn't the culprit, said Uri Landesman, president of the hedge fund Platinum Management. It was likely the "momentum" traders, he said, people who chased high-flying stocks and are having a change of heart.

Tech stocks had soared over the past year, pushing the Nasdaq composite index up 28 percent, as traders piled into Internet and biotechnology companies. Netflix and Facebook, for instance, doubled in price over that time.

"It's like (traders) took a look at some of these high-flying Internet companies and said, "How can I justify these prices?'" Landesman said.

The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index plunged 110.01 points, or 2.6 percent, to close at 4,127.73, its biggest one-day drop since February.

The S&P 500 index fell 23.68 points, or 1.3 percent, to 1,865.09. The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 159.84 points, or 1 percent, to 16,412.71.

Utilities, which investors buy to play it safe and collect dividend payments, bucked the overall market and edged higher. Coca-Cola, Johnson & Johnson and other big corporations whose stocks are often less volatile than the broader market also made gains. Coca-Cola climbed 15 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $38.22.

Before the market opened Friday, the Labor Department reported that employers added 192,000 jobs in March. That's less than economists had expected and also below February's total of 197,000. On the bright side, employers added a combined 37,000 more jobs in February and January than the government first estimated. A half-million Americans started looking for work last month, and many of them found jobs.

Earlier in the week, a string of reports on manufacturing and hiring nudged the stock market to its record highs. Robert Pavlik, chief market strategist at Banyan Partners, said many investors have argued that tough winter weather held the economy back at the start of the year and that things would turn around as temperatures rose. The jobs report, Pavlik said, didn't support their case. "A lot of what people have been saying about payrolls isn't true," he said.

Pavlik said he thinks the economy is likely to keep plodding along. With the market trading near record highs, it's hard for him to see any good reason for stocks to climb much higher.

In the bond market Friday, traders pushed Treasury prices up and yields down. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.73 percent from 2.80 percent late Thursday. The price of crude oil rose 85 cents to settle at $101.14 a barrel. Gold gained $18.90 to close at $1,303.50 an ounce, its biggest gain in three weeks.

Among other companies making big moves:

— GrubHub jumped 31 percent in its first day of trading on the New York Stock Exchange. The online food delivery company, which runs the Seamless website, raised $192.5 million in its initial public offering late Thursday, selling shares at $26 each. GrubHub's stock jumped $8 to $34.

— CarMax slumped after the seller of used cars said its quarterly income dropped as an accounting correction outweighed higher demand for cars. The company's stock slumped $2, or 4 percent, to $45.56.

— News that a Swedish drug company rebuffed a merger offer from Mylan, the generic drugmaker, sent Mylan's stock higher. Mylan rose 77 cents, or 2 percent, to $50.63. Meda AB, the Swedish company, didn't explain why its board turned down the proposal.

9078

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER ▼ -166.84 points or ▼ -1.02% on Monday, 7 April 2014
Symbol …........Last …......Change.......
Dow_Jones 16,245.87 ▼ -166.84 ▼ -1.02%
Nasdaq____ 4,079.75 ▼ -47.97 ▼ -1.16%
S&P_500___ 1,845.04 ▼ -20.05 ▼ -1.08%
30_Yr_Bond____ 3.56 ▼ -0.03 ▼ -0.75%

NYSE Volume 3,766,343,500
Nasdaq Volume 2,516,075,750

Europe
Symbol... .....Last ….....Change.......
FTSE_100 6,622.84 ▼ -72.71 ▼ -1.09%
DAX_____ 9,510.85 ▼ -184.92 ▼ -1.91%
CAC_40__ 4,436.08 ▼ -48.47 ▼ -1.08%

Asia Pacific
Symbol...... ….......Last .....Change…......
ASX_All_Ord___ 5,416.10 ▼ -12.50 ▼ -0.23%
Shanghai_Comp 2,058.83 ▲ 15.13 ▲ 0.74%
Taiwan_Weight 8,876.44 ▼ -12.10 ▼ -0.14%
Nikkei_225___ 14,808.85 ▼ -254.92 ▼ -1.69%
Hang_Seng.__ 22,377.15 ▼ -132.93 ▼ -0.59%
Strait_Times.__ 3,193.59 ▼ -19.13 ▼ -0.60%
NZX_50_Index_ 5,075.84 ▼ -48.06 ▼ -0.94%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/stock...;_ylg=X3oDMTBhYWM1a2sxBGxhbmcDZW4tVVM-;_ylv=3

Stocks slump, extending decline from last week
Stocks extend declines, pushing S&P 500 lower for third day; CarMax and Mattel drop

Associated Press
By Steve Rothwell, AP Markets Writer

NEW YORK (AP) -- For investors, a volatile stock market passed a worrisome milestone on Monday.

The market logged its longest losing streak in two months, and extended a sell-off that began last week.

After biotechnology and internet stocks pulled the market lower on Friday, it was companies that sell non-essential goods and services that dragged on the market to start the week. Concerns about earnings and sales drove declines. CarMax slumped after the used car dealer reported lower net income, and Mattel dropped on concerns about demand for big-name toys.

Stocks have been volatile this year after surging in 2013. Investors now appear to question whether their lofty prices will be justified by what's expected to be slower growth in first-quarter earnings.

"The markets are struggling to choose a direction," said Joe Tanious, a global market strategist for JPMorgan Funds. "I suspect that this choppiness in the markets is something we are going to be seeing for some time to come."

The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 20.05 points, or 1.1 percent, to 1,845.04. It has fallen for three straight days, the longest losing span since late January, and has shed 2.4 percent since its all-time high of 1,890.89 on April 2.

The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 166.84 points, or 1.02 percent, to 16,245.87 Monday. The Nasdaq composite had the biggest decline, falling 47.97 points, or 1.2 percent, to 4,079.75.

There were signs of stability in the market. Technology and biotechnology stocks, which were pummeled by investors at the end of last week, were mixed on Monday.

Facebook edged up 20 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $56.95 on Monday after it dropped 4.6 percent Friday.

Netflix, which also slumped last week, gained 69 cents, or 0.2 percent, to $338.

Consumer discretionary stocks ”” companies that sell goods and services that are not necessities for shoppers ”” saw the biggest decline among the S&P 500's 10 sectors.

CarMax slipped $1.88, or 4.1 percent, to $43.68 after the company said late Friday that its fourth-quarter earnings fell. Net income declined as the effects of an accounting correction offset higher demand for its vehicles. The company's revenue also missed Wall Street expectations.

Mattel dropped $1.15, or 2.9 percent, to $38.26 after analysts at BMO Capital cut their outlook for the toy company, citing lower demand for key products such as Barbie dolls and Hot Wheels cars.

Investors will focus more and more on the outlook for corporate earnings this week, as companies begin to announce first-quarter results. Aluminum maker Alcoa, JPMorgan and Wells Fargo are reporting.

Overall, companies in the S&P 500 index are expected to see earnings growth of 0.3 percent over last year's first quarter. That rate of growth, however, is down from 8 percent in the fourth quarter, and would be the lowest since the third quarter 2009, when earnings contracted 1.7 percent, according to S&P Capital IQ.

While the outlook is poor, the low expectations may actually help stocks, because they give companies a lower hurdle to overcome, said Warne.

"The expectations are incredibly low, largely due to the impact of winter weather," said Kate Warne, an investment strategist at Edward Jones.

JPMorgan is expected to report earnings of $1.41 per share for the first quarter on Friday, a decline from earnings of $1.59 per share for the same period a year earlier, according to FactSet data.

Nine of the ten industry groups that make up the S&P 500 index fell Monday. The only sector in the S&P 500 to rise was made up of consumer staples stocks, or companies that sell essential consumer goods. Investors typically buy these stocks when the market slumps.

In government bond trading, the yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.70 percent from 2.72 percent late Friday. The price of crude oil fell 70 cents, or 0.7 percent, to $100.44 a barrel. Gold fell $5.20, or 0.4 percent, to $1,298.30 an ounce.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER ▲ 10.27 points or ▲ 0.06% on Tuesday, 8 April 2014
Symbol …........Last …......Change.......
Dow_Jones 16,256.14 ▲ 10.27 ▲ 0.06%
Nasdaq____ 4,112.99 ▲ 33.23 ▲ 0.81%
S&P_500___ 1,851.96 ▲ 6.92 ▲ 0.38%
30_Yr_Bond____ 3.54 ▼ -0.02 ▼ -0.51%

NYSE Volume 3,703,318,750
Nasdaq Volume 2,178,841,000

Europe
Symbol... .....Last ….....Change.......
FTSE_100 6,590.69 ▼ -32.15 ▼ -0.49%
DAX_____ 9,490.79 ▼ -20.06 ▼ -0.21%
CAC_40__ 4,424.83 ▼ -11.25 ▼ -0.25%

Asia Pacific
Symbol...... ….......Last .....Change…......
ASX_All_Ord___ 5,409.20 ▼ -6.90 ▼ -0.13%
Shanghai_Comp 2,098.28 ▲ 39.45 ▲ 1.92%
Taiwan_Weight 8,888.25 ▲ 11.81 ▲ 0.13%
Nikkei_225___ 14,606.88 ▼ -201.97 ▼ -1.36%
Hang_Seng.__ 22,596.97 ▲ 219.82 ▲ 0.98%
Strait_Times.__ 3,204.09 ▲ 10.50 ▲ 0.33%
NZX_50_Index_ 5,031.56 ▼ -44.28 ▼ -0.87%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/us-stocks-rise-first-time-154411651.html

US stocks rise for the first time in four days

Stocks rise for the first time in four days; Rebound in technology helps lift the market

Associated Press
By Steve Rothwell, AP Markets Writer

NEW YORK (AP) -- Maybe the sell-off was a little overdone.

That was the sentiment on Wall Street Tuesday as the stock market broke a three-day losing streak. The gain pushed the Standard & Poor's 500 index back into positive territory for the year.

The rebound was driven partly by bargain-hunting as investors picked up stocks that hold fallen the most in the slump over the previous three days. Utilities stocks also rose sharply as skittish investors bought less volatile stocks.

"Longer-term investors should really use this as an opportunity to buy attractive areas that have sold off," said Kristina Hooper, US Investment Strategist at Allianz Global Investors. "For them, stocks are on sale."

Stocks have had a volatile start to April. After closing at a record last Wednesday amid optimism about the improving outlook for the economy, stocks fell sharply on Friday as investors decided that some of the high-flying stocks in the technology and biotech sectors no longer justified their lofty valuations.

The S&P 500 rose 6.92 points, or 0.4 percent, to 1,851.96. The Dow Jones industrial average climbed 10.27 points, or 0.06 percent, to 16,256.14. The Nasdaq composite rose 33.23 points, or 0.8 percent, to 4,112.99.

Even as investors sent stocks higher, they were still being cautious. Investors typically buy utilities stocks when they are worried about volatility in the market. That's because those companies pay big dividends and demand for the power they generate tends to be stable, regardless of how the economy is doing.

On Tuesday, the utilities sector rose 1.5 percent. The sector has gained 10.5 percent this year, making it by far the best performing industry group in the S&P 500. Health care stocks are the next best performers, gaining 2.7 percent over the same period.

Technology stocks and consumer discretionary stocks, among the biggest decliners in the three-day sell-off, also logged gains on Tuesday.

Facebook rose $1.24, or 2.2 percent, to $58.19. Google's class newly issued C shares rose $16.75, or 3.1 percent, to $554.90.

The recent volatility is making it tough for investors who are looking to get back into stocks after switching their investments to cash and bonds in the aftermath of the financial crisis and the Great Recession, said Mike Mussio, a managing director with FBB Capital Partners, a wealth management company.

"It is a little nerve-wracking for people entering the market just now, with cash they've had on the sidelines," said Mussio.

Corporations start reporting first-quarter earnings this week, which should help stabilize the market, said Joe Quinlan, chief market strategist at U.S. Trust. Quinlan attributed the stock market's recent wobble to investor's jitters ahead of corporate earnings.

Overall, corporate earnings are forecast to grow just 0.2 percent in the first quarter compared with the same period a year ago, according to S&P Capital IQ. That would be the weakest showing since the third quarter of 2009, when earnings contracted 1.7 percent.

"Seems like every time we come up to earnings season we get a little nervous," Quinlan said. "This will pass."

Energy company Chevron, and banks Wells Fargo and JPMorgan will report their earnings for the first quarter this week, as will Bed Bath & Beyond.

Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.68 percent from 2.70 percent on Monday.

Among other stocks making big moves:

”” Whole Foods Market gained $1.09, or 2.2 percent, to $51.38 after analysts at UBS raised their price target for the stock to $70 from $62. The analysts are optimistic that the high-end grocery store chain will be able to increase its profit margins as it expands.

””Gilead Sciences fell $2.22, or 3.1 percent, to $70.01 following reports that Express Scripts, the largest U.S. pharmacy benefits manager, plans to ask its clients to join a coalition that would stop using Gilead's Sovaldi Hepatitis C treatment once a rival medicine is approved for the U.S. next year. Express Scripts estimates that U.S. spending on Hepatitis C medications will surge 1,800 percent in 2016. Lawmakers last month have already questioned the pricing of Gilead's new drug.

”” Dr. Pepper Snapple Group fell $2.06, or 3.8 percent, to $51.62 after Wells Fargo Securities cut their outlook for the company's earnings. The analysts say that the stock has peaked and that the company has limited opportunities to further increase productivity and that its beverages are continuing to lose market share.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER ▲ 181.04 points or ▲ 1.11% on Wednesday, 9 April 2014
Symbol …........Last …......Change.......
Dow_Jones 16,437.18 ▲ 181.04 ▲ 1.11%
Nasdaq____ 4,183.90 ▲ 70.91 ▲ 1.72%
S&P_500___ 1,872.18 ▲ 20.22 ▲ 1.09%
30_Yr_Bond____ 3.57 ▲ 0.02 ▲ 0.71%

NYSE Volume 3,288,448,750
Nasdaq Volume 1,939,416,380

Europe
Symbol... .....Last ….....Change.......
FTSE_100 6,635.61 ▲ 44.92 ▲ 0.68%
DAX_____ 9,506.35 ▲ 15.56 ▲ 0.16%
CAC_40__ 4,442.68 ▲ 17.85 ▲ 0.40%

Asia Pacific
Symbol...... ….......Last .....Change…......
ASX_All_Ord___ 5,460.30 ▲ 51.10 ▲ 0.94%
Shanghai_Comp 2,105.24 ▲ 6.95 ▲ 0.33%
Taiwan_Weight 8,930.57 ▲ 42.32 ▲ 0.48%
Nikkei_225___ 14,299.69 ▼ -307.19 ▼ -2.10%
Hang_Seng.__ 22,843.17 ▲ 246.20 ▲ 1.09%
Strait_Times.__ 3,211.72 ▲ 7.63 ▲ 0.24%
NZX_50_Index_ 5,067.41 ▲ 35.85 ▲ 0.71%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/us-stocks-rally-fed-minutes-211318800.html

US stocks rally on Fed minutes, earnings news
Encouraging signals from the Federal Reserve on interest rates send stocks sharply higher
Associated Press
By Ken Sweet, AP Markets Writer

NEW YORK (AP) -- Once again, it was the Federal Reserve to the rescue for the stock market.

Major U.S. indexes rose broadly Wednesday, helped by a report out of the nation's central bank that showed Fed policymakers want to be absolutely certain the U.S. economy had recovered before starting to raise interest rates.

Confident that the Fed won't be raising rates until sometime next year, investors once again embraced some of the market's more risky names. Biotechnology and technology stocks, beaten down over the past week, were among the biggest gainers.

Wednesday's trading had one broad theme: risk on. Investors sold utility and telecommunications stocks ”” which are usually less volatile, rich-dividend companies ”” and piled into areas that typically benefit from a growing economy: materials makers, industrial companies and technology stocks.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 181.04 points, or 1.1 percent, to 16,437.18. The Standard & Poor's 500 index jumped 20.22 points, or 1.1 percent, to 1,872.18 and the technology-heavy Nasdaq composite rose the most, up 70.91 points, or 1.7 percent, to 4,183.90.

Facebook rose the most in the S&P 500, jumping 7.3 percent, followed closely by biotech company Vertex Pharmaceuticals, up 7 percent. Other names that saw renewed investor interest were biotech companies Boston Scientific, Biogen and Celgene and in technology, Priceline, Red Hat and ETrade.

The Dow Jones Transportation Average jumped 1.6 percent. Investors closely watch the "Dow Transports," as the index is nicknamed, on the theory that a growing economy will mean companies will have to ship more products, increasing the profits of transportation companies like airlines, railroads and trucking companies.

At their March policy meeting, Fed policymakers debated over when the bank should start raising interest rates. Traditionally the Fed's main policy tool for regulating the U.S. economy, short-term rates have been near zero since 2008 in an effort to encourage borrowing and economic growth, all of which is good for stocks.

Now that the economy has mostly recovered from the recession, an increasing number of policymakers believe it's time for the Fed to start raising rates. The question is when.

"We know higher interest rates are coming, but we don't know exactly when, whether it's 2015 or 2016," said Tom di Galoma, head of fixed income rates at ED&F MAN Capital Markets.

Investors always keep a close eye on the Fed, but they're particularly sensitive these days because the central bank is in the process of winding down its economic stimulus policies. Investors worry that the bank might act too quickly and choke off the economic recovery.

The Dow soared 192 points on Feb. 11 after Janet Yellen, in her first public comments since taking over as head of the Fed from Ben Bernanke, said she would continue the Fed's market-friendly, low-interest rate policies.

Confident that interest rates and inflation would remain low, investors bought bonds Wednesday, particularly bonds that have shorter maturities. The yield on the two-year Treasury note dropped to 0.36 percent from 0.39 percent late Tuesday, a relatively big move for that security. Yields on the three-year and five-year notes made similar moves.

Investors also got a dose of good news from Corporate America.

Aluminum giant Alcoa reported an adjusted first-quarter profit that was well ahead of analysts' forecasts. The aluminum maker is typically the first large U.S. corporation to report its results every quarter. Alcoa rose 47 cents, or 4 percent, to $13.

Alcoa's results helped push other mining and materials stocks higher. U.S. Steel rose 3 percent; industrial parts company W.W. Grainger climbed 2 percent and the auto parts company Delphi increased 3 percent.

Investors expect that corporate earnings for the first three months of the year will be held back by the severe winter weather that plagued most of the country. Earnings are expected to fall 1.6 percent from a year earlier, according to financial data provider FactSet. If that forecast proves correct, it would be the first time corporate profits have fallen since the third quarter of 2012.

"We're going to see lousy results, but I think we'll still see optimistic forecasts from companies," said Jack Ablin, chief investment officer with BMO Private Bank in Chicago. "Companies lost a lot of business in the first couple months of the year, but most of that business, I suspect, will come back."

In other company news:

”” Intuitive Surgical, the maker of robotic surgical equipment, slumped $33.20, or 7 percent, to $456.64. The company warned that first-quarter sales would be drastically lower than previously expected.

”” La Quinta Holdings, the parent company of the hotel chain La Quinta Inns, rose 12 cents, or 0.7 percent, to $17.12 on its first day of trading. La Quinta is owned by the private equity firm Blackstone Group and was taken public this week in a $650 million IPO.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER ▼ -266.96 points or ▼ -1.62% on Thursday, 10 April 2014
Symbol …........Last …......Change.......
Dow_Jones 16,170.22 ▼ -266.96 ▼ -1.62%
Nasdaq____ 4,054.11 ▼ -129.79 ▼ -3.10%
S&P_500___ 1,833.08 ▼ -39.10 ▼ -2.09%
30_Yr_Bond____ 3.50 ▼ -0.06 ▼ -1.74%

NYSE Volume 3,736,002,500
Nasdaq Volume 2,384,974,500

Europe
Symbol... .....Last ….....Change.......
FTSE_100 6,641.97 ▲ 6.36 ▲ 0.10%
DAX_____ 9,454.54 ▼ -51.81 ▼ -0.54%
CAC_40__ 4,413.49 ▼ -29.19 ▼ -0.66%

Asia Pacific
Symbol...... ….......Last .....Change…......
ASX_All_Ord___ 5,477.50 ▲ 17.20 ▲ 0.32%
Shanghai_Comp 2,134.30 ▲ 29.06 ▲ 1.38%
Taiwan_Weight 8,948.10 ▲ 17.53 ▲ 0.20%
Nikkei_225___ 14,300.12 ▲ 0.43 ▲ 0.00%
Hang_Seng.__ 23,186.96 ▲ 343.79 ▲ 1.51%
Strait_Times.__ 3,204.10 ▼ -5.82 ▼ -0.18%
NZX_50_Index_ 5,115.49 ▲ 48.08 ▲ 0.95%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/biote...;_ylg=X3oDMTBhYWM1a2sxBGxhbmcDZW4tVVM-;_ylv=3

Biotech drops again, pulling down market
Stocks drop as investors dump biotech, other former favorites; Nasdaq has worst day since 2011
Associated Press
By Matthew Craft, AP Business Writer

NEW YORK (AP) -- Biotech and Internet stocks tumbled again Thursday, and the broader market followed.

After a two-day respite, investors again started dumping shares of cutting-edge drug companies and other industries that have soared over the past year. Biotechnology stocks have turned volatile in recent weeks as regulators scrutinize the cost of their drugs and investors worry their earnings won't justify lofty stock prices. Investors are also worried that high-growth companies like Twitter and Facebook have become too expensive.

On Thursday, the Nasdaq composite, which is weighted heavily toward tech and biotech companies, had its worst day since November 2011.

The rout started slowly and picked up speed throughout the day. By the close, the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index had its worst day since November 2011. Few companies escaped the sell-off. Of the Nasdaq's 100 largest stocks, only one, C.H. Robinson Worldwide, a freight company, ended higher.

The Nasdaq ended the day down 129.79 points, or 3.1 percent, to 4,054.11. It is now down 7 percent from its recent high reached March 5.

Other major index also fell, but not as much.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index dropped 39.10 points, or 2.1 percent, to close at 1,838.08. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 266.96 points, or 1.6 percent, to 16,170.22.

Biogen Idec, Gilead Sciences and other biotech companies plunged. Facebook and Twitter, other recent investor favorites, also dropped.

The sudden downfall of these former high-flyers comes as investors shift from riskier investments to safer areas like utilities, health care and consumer staples. The sell-off in these former darlings, whose stock prices appealed to investors because their rise seemed unstoppable, has weighed on the overall market, especially the Nasdaq.

Gilead Sciences slid $5.17, or 7 percent, to $65.48 on Thursday. Biogen Idec dropped $13.33, or 4 percent, to $287.35. Both roughly doubled in value last year.

Facebook, another stock that doubled last year, sank $3.25, or 5 percent, to $59.16.

The market's drop wiped out gains made earlier in the week. On Wednesday, minutes from the Federal Reserve's latest meeting reassured investors that the central bank wasn't in a hurry to raise interest rates. The S&P 500 had its best day in a month.

Brad McMillan, Chief Investment Officer for Commonwealth Financial, said it seems like investors had been searching for a reason to push the market up. "But there's no compelling story," he said. "Without a catalyst to move the market higher, people are going to start questioning their assumptions."

Weaker sales at Bed Bath & Beyond drove the company's stock down $4.19, or 6 percent, to $63.72. The company reported a drop in quarterly revenue and profit late Wednesday. Like many other retailers, Bed Bath & Beyond laid some of the blame on cold winter weather for keeping customers at home.

Among the handful of winners Thursday was Rite Aid, which surged after the retailer turned in quarterly results that topped analysts' expectations. Rite Aid also announced the acquisition of RediClinic and said it plans to expand the Texas chain of health clinics. The company's stock gained 54 cents, or 8 percent, to $6.94.

In government bond trading, the yield on the 10-year Treasury note dipped to 2.63 percent from 2.69 percent late Wednesday. The price of crude oil fell 20 cents to close at $103.40 a barrel. Gold climbed $14.60 to settle at $1,320.50 an ounce.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER ▼ -143.47 points or ▼ -0.89% on Friday, 11 April 2014
Symbol …........Last …......Change.......
Dow_Jones 16,026.75 ▼ -143.47 ▼ -0.89%
Nasdaq____ 3,999.73 ▼ -54.37 ▼ -1.34%
S&P_500___ 1,815.69 ▼ -17.39 ▼ -0.95%
30_Yr_Bond____ 3.48 ▼ -0.03 ▼ -0.74%

NYSE Volume 3,743,274,000
Nasdaq Volume 2,221,389,250

Europe
Symbol... .....Last ….....Change.......
FTSE_100 6,561.70 ▼ -80.27 ▼ -1.21%
DAX_____ 9,315.29 ▼ -139.25 ▼ -1.47%
CAC_40__ 4,365.86 ▼ -47.63 ▼ -1.08%

Asia Pacific
Symbol...... ….......Last .....Change…......
ASX_All_Ord___ 5,423.50 ▼ -54.00 ▼ -0.99%
Shanghai_Comp 2,130.54 ▼ -3.76 ▼ -0.18%
Taiwan_Weight 8,908.05 ▼ -40.05 ▼ -0.45%
Nikkei_225___ 13,960.05 ▼ -340.07 ▼ -2.38%
Hang_Seng.__ 23,003.64 ▼ -183.32 ▼ -0.79%
Strait_Times.__ 3,196.96 ▼ -6.62 ▼ -0.21%
NZX_50_Index_ 5,091.43 ▼ -24.06 ▼ -0.47%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/stocks-fall-jitters-over-earnings-220012990.html

Stocks fall on jitters over earnings, tech rout

Stocks drop for 2nd day on jitters over earnings, tech rout; Nasdaq down for 3rd week in a row
Associated Press
By Bernard Condon, AP Business Writer

NEW YORK (AP) -- Investors drove the stock market lower for a second straight day Friday as they grew anxious that earnings growth was faltering.

Weaker earnings at JPMorgan Chase dragged bank stocks lower. And big drops in once-soaring tech stocks pushed the Nasdaq composite down for a third week.

"The market has been trying to come back, but each time the selling just picks up," said Quincy Krosby, a market strategist at Prudential. "The buyers are just not stepping in."

So much for buying on the dip.

Stocks fell from the open on news that JPMorgan had missed analysts' earnings estimates. Investors, who were worried that technology shares were overvalued, dumped those for a second day, with some of the biggest gainers of late falling sharply. Facebook fell 1.1 percent, after a 5 percent drop on Thursday.

The first-quarter earnings season has just started, but investors already seem anxious about what lies ahead. Financial analysts expect earnings for companies in the Standard & Poor's 500 index to drop 1.6 percent from a year earlier, according to FactSet, a financial data provider. At the start of the year, they expected a jump of 4.3 percent.

If profits do fall, it would be only the second quarterly drop in three years.

"Earnings are going to come in on the sloppy side," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Rockwell Global Capital. "The market needs to correct," he added, referring to sharp downturn in stocks.

On Friday, the Nasdaq dropped 54.37 points, or 1.3 percent, to 3,999.73. It was only the second time this year the index has closed below the 4,000 mark.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 143.47 points, or 0.89 percent, to 16,026.75. The S&P 500 fell 17.39 points, or 0.95 percent, to 1,815.69.

All ten industry sectors in the S&P 500 dropped. Consumer discretionary stocks fell the most, down 1.4 percent, followed by technology stocks, down 1.2 percent.

Last year, earnings for S&P 500 companies rose 6 percent, a decent showing. Stocks rose much faster — up nearly 30 percent for the index. Helping stocks rise was the Federal Reserve bond buying designed to stimulate the economy.

"Investors haven't worried about earnings because it hasn't mattered. Fundamentals haven't mattered," said Prudential's Krosby. "All that has mattered ... is what is the Federal Reserve was going to do."

She said a so-called correction in indexes — a drop of 10 percent from highs — would be healthy for the market, giving its sturdier base on which to rally.

The Nasdaq is already well on its way. It is now 8 percent below its recent high in March. The S&P 500 is 4 percent off its recent high on April 2.

Among tech stocks making big moves Friday, Netflix fell 2.4 percent, Amazon, 1.7 percent and Google's new Class C shares, 1.9 percent.

On Friday, JPMorgan Chase fell $2.10, or 3.7 percent, to $55.30. The nation's biggest bank by assets said its earnings slid 20 percent in the first quarter as revenue from bond trading and mortgage lending declined.

"They're just struggling to grow, and then they didn't have the strength out of the investment bank to help offset that," said Shannon Stemm, financial services analyst for Edward Jones. "All around, it's just a lackluster quarter for them."

Other stock making news:

— General Motors dropped $1.18, or 3.5 percent, to $32.12 after it said it must fix a second ignition part in compact cars it is recalling for switch problems. It said the fix will boost its first-quarter recall costs above $1 billion.

— Gap Inc. fell 89 cents, or 2.3 percent, to $38.40. The San Francisco-based company, which owns the Gap, Banana Republic and Old Navy brands, said revenue for stores open at least a year fell 6 percent.

— Zoe's Kitchen, a restaurant chain, soared 65 percent in its trading debut. The stock gained $9.72 to $24.72.

Treasury prices rose. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.62 percent from 2.65 percent late Thursday.

9820

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER ▲ 146.49 points or ▲ 0.91% on Monday, 14 April 2014
Symbol …........Last …......Change.......
Dow_Jones 16,173.24 ▲ 146.49 ▲ 0.91%
Nasdaq____ 4,022.69 ▲ 22.96 ▲ 0.57%
S&P_500___ 1,830.61 ▲ 14.92 ▲ 0.82%
30_Yr_Bond____ 3.48 ▲ 0.01 ▲ 0.20%

NYSE Volume 3,097,442,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,858,686,750

Europe
Symbol... .....Last ….....Change.......
FTSE_100 6,583.76 ▲ 22.06 ▲ 0.34%
DAX_____ 9,339.17 ▲ 23.88 ▲ 0.26%
CAC_40__ 4,384.56 ▲ 18.70 ▲ 0.43%

Asia Pacific
Symbol...... ….......Last .....Change…......
ASX_All_Ord___ 5,353.60 ▼ -69.90 ▼ -1.29%
Shanghai_Comp 2,131.54 ▲ 1.00 ▲ 0.05%
Taiwan_Weight 8,857.42 ▼ -50.63 ▼ -0.57%
Nikkei_225___ 13,910.16 ▼ -49.89 ▼ -0.36%
Hang_Seng.__ 23,038.80 ▲ 35.16 ▲ 0.15%
Strait_Times.__ 3,214.83 ▲ 16.61 ▲ 0.52%
NZX_50_Index_ 5,063.54 ▼ -27.89 ▼ -0.55%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/us-stocks-recover-ground-retail-210955674.html

US stocks recover some ground on retail sales

US stocks recover some lost ground after rough week as retail sales, Citi earnings lift market
Associated Press
By Alex Veiga, AP Business Writer

U.S. stocks mounted a modest rally on Monday, helping investors recover some of the ground lost after a rough finish last week.

Investors were bracing for another round of discouraging earnings and a third consecutive loss for the stock market. But the market pushed higher from the get-go Monday, receiving a boost from solid earnings from Citigroup and a strong pickup in retail sales last month.

Among the stocks that rose sharply were WebMD, Edwards Lifesciences and Goodrich Petroleum.

Stocks rose after the Commerce Department reported that retail sales increased 1.1 percent in March, the best gain since September 2012. The government also revised February's figure to a 0.7 percent gain, more than double its previous estimate.

Sales improved particularly in the second half of March, as unusually cold weather that gripped much of the country this winter began to ease, motivating more people to go out and spend money.

"As we look forward, the consumer may continue to (spend) and may continue to drive the economy overall," said J.J. Kinahan, chief strategist with TD Ameritrade.

Citigroup helped stoke the rally. The bank reported a 2.5 percent jump in first-quarter profit as both income and revenue beat Wall Street's expectations. That was a welcome surprise following an earnings miss last week by JPMorgan Chase. A positive earnings outlook from health information portal WebMd also helped.

The gains faded somewhat late in the afternoon. The Nasdaq composite slipped briefly into negative territory, harking back to last week's sharp drop in Internet and biotechnology stocks.

A wave of buying in the last half-hour of trading pushed the Nasdaq and other indexes to solid gains for the day. It was the market's first finish in the green since April 9.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index gained 14.92 points, or 0.8 percent, to close at 1,830.61. All ten industry sectors in the S&P 500 increased, led by energy stocks, which rose 1.3 percent.

The Dow Jones industrial average added 146.49 points, or 0.9 percent, to 16,173.24. The Nasdaq composite rose 22.96 points, or 0.6 percent, to 4,022.69.

While they recovered some of their losses from last week, all three indexes remain down for the month and the year.

Monday's rally was a positive start for the market in a week that promises to provide investors with plenty of insight into the health of Corporate America and the U.S. consumer.

"For the rest of the week I would actually expect a little bit of volatility," said Kinahan. "You have some big names coming out this week that will really set the trend of not only the U.S. but what's going on worldwide."

Investors will hear from several members of the Federal Reserve, including Fed Chair Janet Yellen.

Among the major companies due to report earnings this week are Johnson & Johnson, Google, General Electric and UnitedHealth.

Analysts still expect first-quarter earnings for companies in the Standard & Poor's 500 to decline 1.6 percent from a year earlier, according to FactSet, a financial data provider. If profits do fall, it would be only the second quarterly drop in three years.

"The expectations have been set so low that there are upside surprises out there," said Randy Frederick, managing director of trading at Schwab Center for Financial Research. "If they are big enough stocks and they're a big component of an index then they may well push that index up shortly. But the question is will people just buy them and hang on to them or will they take profits?"

Among the stocks making news Monday:

”” Medical device maker Edwards Lifesciences rose the most of any stock in the S&P 500 index. A federal judge on Friday reaffirmed an earlier ruling that Medtronic's CoreValve system infringes on Edwards' patent for a replacement heart valve. Edwards soared $8.03, or 11 percent, to $81. Medtronic fell $1.12, or 1.9 percent, to $58.08.

”” Intuitive Surgical was the S&P 500 index's biggest decliner. It shed $14.63, or 3.3 percent, to $425.

”” Citigroup surged $1.99, or 4.4 percent, to $47.67.

”” Health website operator WebMD jumped $6.20, or 16.5 percent, to $43.87.

Bond prices fell slightly. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note inched up to 2.65 percent from 2.63 percent late Friday.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER ▲ 89.32 points or ▲ 0.55% on Tuesday, 15 April 2014
Symbol …........Last …......Change.......
Dow_Jones 16,262.56 ▲ 89.32 ▲ 0.55%
Nasdaq____ 4,034.16 ▲ 11.47 ▲ 0.29%
S&P_500___ 1,842.98 ▲ 12.37 ▲ 0.68%
30_Yr_Bond____ 3.46 ▼ -0.02 ▼ -0.69%

NYSE Volume 3,715,068,000
Nasdaq Volume 2,361,395,750

Europe
Symbol... .....Last ….....Change.......
FTSE_100 6,541.61 ▼ -42.15 ▼ -0.64%
DAX_____ 9,173.71 ▼ -165.46 ▼ -1.77%
CAC_40__ 4,345.35 ▼ -39.21 ▼ -0.89%

Asia Pacific
Symbol...... ….......Last .....Change…......
ASX_All_Ord___ 5,380.30 ▲ 26.70 ▲ 0.50%
Shanghai_Comp 2,101.60 ▼ -29.94 ▼ -1.40%
Taiwan_Weight 8,916.71 ▲ 59.29 ▲ 0.67%
Nikkei_225___ 13,996.81 ▲ 86.65 ▲ 0.62%
Hang_Seng.__ 22,671.26 ▼ -367.54 ▼ -1.60%
Strait_Times.__ 3,246.32 ▲ 31.49 ▲ 0.98%
NZX_50_Index_ 5,076.29 ▲ 12.75 ▲ 0.25%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/us-stock-markets-rebounds-choppy-213802517.html

US stock markets rebounds after choppy day

US stocks rebound from midday slump, extending modest gains for second day

Associated Press
By Alex Veiga, AP Business Writer

A stock market swoon turned into a comeback Tuesday.

Stocks managed a late-afternoon rebound for the second time in two days as investors seemed to brush off a report of lower confidence among homebuilders and simmering tensions in the Ukraine.

The late rally even gave a lift to tech stocks like Google and Intel, which had weighed on the market much of the day.

"As long as the market can close on a positive note, it sends a signal to investors that there are bargains in the market still to be had," said Quincy Krosby, market strategist at Prudential Financial.

The day started off well when Johnson & Johnson and Coca-Cola reported encouraging first-quarter earnings.

But the strong beginning fell apart by late morning, when investors got a look at the latest measure of U.S. homebuilders' confidence in the housing market at 10 a.m. Eastern time. Builders saw overall sales conditions as poor, even though they expected improvement over the spring and summer.

The morning slide didn't hold, however. By the end of the day, the Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 12.37 points, or 0.7 percent, to 1,842.98.

All ten industry sectors in the S&P 500 increased, led by utilities.

The Dow Jones industrial average added 89.32 points, or 0.6 percent, to 16,262.56. The Nasdaq composite rose 11.47 points, or 0.3 percent, to 4,034.16.

All three indexes remain down for the month and year.

The Russell 2000 index of small-company stocks, which had been down more than 1 percent earlier in the day, ended higher. The index is still off 3.8 percent for the year, more than the other major indexes. It's also down more than 7 percent from its recent peak of 1,208 on March 4.

Small-company stocks have been racking up losses over the past five weeks, as investors look to reduce their exposure to risk. That's a turnaround from last year, when the Russell soared 37 percent versus 30 percent for the S&P 500 index.

The stock market has been losing ground in recent weeks as investors worry about whether some tech stocks became overpriced.

"There still seems to be some concern about valuation in some corners of the market, especially some of the more high-flying names that had run pretty far, pretty fast, and that's putting an overall weight on the market," said Brad Sorensen, director of market and sector analysis at the Schwab Center for Financial Research.

Traders also remain focused on what the latest wave of quarterly earnings will say about the health of the U.S. economy and companies.

After regular trade ended Tuesday, Yahoo soared 8 percent and Intel rose 1 percent. The two tech giants reported earnings that beat analysts' expectations.

Several major companies, including Google, American Express, Bank of America and IBM were due to report results on Wednesday.

"We're looking for healthy earnings growth and so far, we're getting it," said Anastasia Amoroso, global market strategist at JPMorgan Chase.

Not all stocks managed to end in the green.

Most homebuilder shares slumped, with M/I Homes among the biggest decliners. The builder fell 38 cents, or 1.7 percent, to $22.11.

PetSmart posted the steepest drop among companies in the S&P 500 index after an analyst downgraded the stock, saying new competition in pet care will create trouble for the retailer. The stock fell $2.76, or 4 percent, to $66.61.

TripAdvisor led all the risers in the S&P 500 index, gaining $3.53, or 4.4 percent, to $83.30.

Coca-Cola rose $1.45, or 3.7 percent, to $40.18 after it reported that strong sales of noncarbonated drinks helped offset a first-quarter decline in soda.

Johnson & Johnson rose $2.06, or 2.1 percent, to $99.20 after the world's biggest maker of health care products topped Wall Street expectations and raised its earnings outlook.

In Europe, Ukraine sent tanks and troops to reclaim government buildings being occupied by pro-Russian gunmen in the eastern part of the country. European governments have accused Russia of instigating the activists, raising the prospect of escalating violence and more sanctions against Moscow, possibly affecting the valuable energy trade

Europe's markets fared worse on Tuesday. Germany's DAX fell 1.8 percent while France's CAC 40 dropped 0.9 percent.

In government bond trading, the yield on the 10-year Treasury note slipped to 2.63 percent from 2.65 percent late Monday.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER ▲ 162.29 points or ▲ 1.00% on Wednesday, 16 April 2014
Symbol …........Last …......Change.......
Dow_Jones 16,424.85 ▲ 162.29 ▲ 1.00%
Nasdaq____ 4,086.23 ▲ 52.06 ▲ 1.29%
S&P_500___ 1,862.31 ▲ 19.33 ▲ 1.05%
30_Yr_Bond____ 3.45 ▼ -0.01 ▼ -0.17%

NYSE Volume 3,126,718,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,829,538,000

Europe
Symbol... .....Last ….....Change.......
FTSE_100 6,584.17 ▲ 42.56 ▲ 0.65%
DAX_____ 9,317.82 ▲ 144.11 ▲ 1.57%
CAC_40__ 4,405.66 ▲ 60.31 ▲ 1.39%

Asia Pacific
Symbol...... ….......Last .....Change…......
ASX_All_Ord___ 5,412.60 ▲ 32.30 ▲ 0.60%
Shanghai_Comp 2,105.12 ▲ 3.52 ▲ 0.17%
Taiwan_Weight 8,923.82 ▲ 7.11 ▲ 0.08%
Nikkei_225___ 14,417.68 ▲ 420.87 ▲ 3.01%
Hang_Seng.__ 22,696.01 ▲ 24.75 ▲ 0.11%
Strait_Times.__ 3,253.20 ▲ 6.88 ▲ 0.21%
NZX_50_Index_ 5,090.55 ▲ 14.26 ▲ 0.28%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/us-stocks-close-higher-third-211846434.html

US stocks close higher for third day in a row

US company earnings, encouraging economic data propel third straight day of gains for stocks
Associated Press
By Alex Veiga, AP Business Writer.

Investors drove stock prices to their highest level in a week Wednesday, encouraged by a crop of corporate earnings and reassuring U.S. and Chinese economic data.

Major U.S. stock indexes notched their third day of gains in a row. Yahoo and Delta Air Lines were among the companies posting big gains. The gains were broad; for every stock that declined, nearly four rose.

The market is coming back from a steep drop at the end of last week led by Internet and biotechnology stocks. That move away from some of the riskier, high-priced stocks that drove down the market is nearly, if not completely done now, said Jim Russell, senior equity strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth Management.

"We did think that last week's downside volatility would be limited, and we're very heartened to see a rebound for the first three days this week," he said.

Stocks started climbing from the opening bell on Wednesday as investors cheered the latest quarterly earnings report from Yahoo. The Web pioneer reported late Tuesday that it is making most of its money from its stakes in two Asian Internet companies: China's Alibaba Group and Yahoo Japan.

The market also welcomed a Chinese government report showing that the world's second-largest economy grew 7.4 percent from a year earlier in the January-March quarter. A favorable report on U.S. factory production helped keep investors in a buying mood.

Unlike Monday and Tuesday, the rally didn't falter during the day. Instead, the buying gained momentum in the afternoon after the Federal Reserve said its latest survey showed economic growth picking up across most of the U.S. over the past two months as bitter winter weather subsided.

"Yesterday was just a crazy day. We were all over the map, and finally today we are showing some strength," said Erik Davidson, deputy chief investment officer of Wells Fargo Private Bank.

All told, the Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 19.33 points, or 1.1 percent, to 1,862.31. All ten industry sectors in the S&P 500 increased, led by industrial stocks, including several airlines and transportation companies.

The Dow Jones industrial average added 162.29 points, or 1 percent, to 16,424.85. The Nasdaq composite rose 52.06 points, or 1.3 percent, to 4,086.22.

The three major stock indexes are each up for the week, but remain down for the month after several days of choppy trading. The three-day rise in stock prices helped push the S&P 500 index up 0.8 percent so far this year.

Investors are closely monitoring company earnings this week as they try to assess whether the impact of a severe winter has begun to ease. Financial analysts expect first-quarter earnings for companies the S&P 500 to fall about 1.2 percent, according to S&P Capital IQ.

"It's not like things are all hunky-dory with the economy, with profits, with revenue, and yet we keep clearing relatively low bars," Davidson said.

Google and IBM fell sharply in after-hours trading after their quarterly results disappointed investors.

Google's newly issued Class C stock fell $32.54, or 6 percent, to $524 after the company reported that its growth faltered as online advertising prices continued to fall. IBM's stock fell $7.45, or 4 percent, to $189 after reporting that its revenue fell from a year ago and came in below what analysts were expecting.

Technology stocks have come under selling pressure in recent weeks as investors question whether the sector has become too expensive. Even after a recent sell-off that brought the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite 6 percent below its recent peak reached Mar. 5, the index is still up 25 percent over the past year, versus 18 percent for the S&P 500.

Yahoo topped the gainers in the S&P 500. The stock jumped $2.14, or 6.3 percent, to $36.35.

Several airline stocks were also among the market's big risers: Delta Air Lines added $1.71, or 5.4 percent, to $33.62, while JetBlue rose 49 cents, or 6 percent, to $8.80. American Airlines rose $1.79, or 5.3 percent, to $35.51.

Among other the stocks making news Wednesday:

”” Bank of America fell 2 percent after booking $6 billion in legal costs over its home loan practices. The stock fell 26 cents to $16.13.

”” CSX fell 50 cents, or 1.8 percent, to $27.79. Severe winter weather contributed to a 14 percent drop in the railroad company's first-quarter earnings.

 

[bigdog]

U.S. stock markets will be closed in observance of Good Friday.

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER ▼ -16.31 points or ▼ -0.10% on Thursday, 17 April 2014
Symbol …........Last …......Change.......
Dow_Jones 16,408.54 ▼ -16.31 ▼ -0.10%
Nasdaq____ 4,095.52 ▲ 9.29 ▲ 0.23%
S&P_500___ 1,864.85 ▲ 2.54 ▲ 0.14%
30_Yr_Bond____ 3.52 ▲ 0.06 ▲ 1.82%

NYSE Volume 3,305,020,750
Nasdaq Volume 1,928,693,250

Europe
Symbol... .....Last ….....Change.......
FTSE_100 6,625.25 ▲ 41.08 ▲ 0.62%
DAX_____ 9,409.71 ▲ 91.89 ▲ 0.99%
CAC_40__ 4,431.81 ▲ 26.15 ▲ 0.59%

Asia Pacific
Symbol...... ….......Last .....Change…......
ASX_All_Ord___ 5,444.80 ▲ 32.20 ▲ 0.59%
Shanghai_Comp 2,098.88 ▼ -6.24 ▼ -0.30%
Taiwan_Weight 8,944.16 ▲ 20.34 ▲ 0.23%
Nikkei_225___ 14,417.53 ▼ -0.15 ▲ 0.00%
Hang_Seng.__ 22,760.24 ▲ 64.23 ▲ 0.28%
Strait_Times.__ 3,253.80 ▲ 0.60 ▲ 0.02%
NZX_50_Index_ 5,103.35 ▲ 12.80 ▲ 0.25%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/us-stock-market-ends-higher-213818112.html

US stock market ends higher as earnings pour in

US stocks edge mostly higher amid wave of earnings; GE and Morgan Stanley rise

Associated Press
By Alex Veiga, AP Business Writer

Corporate earnings pushed U.S. stocks mostly higher on Thursday, but it wasn't an easy ride up.

The stock market appeared set in the morning for its fourth consecutive positive open, but immediately turned negative as investors sold shares in Google and IBM. The market heavyweights reported disappointing earnings late Wednesday. Earnings from toy maker Mattel and insurer UnitedHealth also dragged down stocks.

But by midmorning, the market started to push higher as traders cheered upbeat results from Morgan Stanley, General Electric and PepsiCo.

"We were expecting this earnings season to be pretty volatile, and it's proven to be true so far, in that we're seeing some differences in the results," said Paul Mangus, head of equity research and strategy for Wells Fargo Private Bank.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose two points, or 0.1 percent, to close at 1,864.85. Seven of the 10 industry sectors in the S&P 500 gained, led by energy stocks. The Nasdaq added nine points, or 0.2 percent, to finish at 4,095.52. The Dow Jones industrial average, however, fell 16 points, or 0.1 percent, to close at 16,408.54, hurt by the big drop in IBM.

U.S. stock markets will be closed in observance of Good Friday.

Bond prices fell, pushing up the yield on the 10-year Treasury note to 2.72 percent from 2.63 percent late Wednesday.

After selling off Internet and biotechnology companies last week on concerns the stocks were overvalued, investors turned their attention this week to how companies' businesses are performing. Investors have lowered their expectations for earnings following severe cold in much of the country this winter. That harsh weather weighed on everything from auto and home sales to hiring.

Investors are now eager to hear what CEOs have to say about business prospects going ahead.

Thursday's trading reflected buying and selling on earnings news, rather than a broader market theme taking hold, Mangus said.

"Going into this quarter, expectations are low, so if you disappoint on low expectations you're likely to be penalized," he said. "However, they also present the opportunity for some significant beats because the estimates are that low."

Among companies whose earnings pleasantly surprised investors was General Electric, which described the economic situation as "positive" and said its industrial division was doing well. Another positive signal came from PepsiCo, which reported a higher profit after slashing costs and selling more snacks.

GE gained 44 cents, or 1.7 percent, to close at $26.56, while PepsiCo added 78 cents, or about 1 percent, to finish at $85.55.

IBM, meanwhile, struggled with a decline in its hardware business in the latest quarter. Its stock slid $6.39, or 3.3 percent, to $190.01.

UnitedHealth Group said its income slid 8 percent in the first quarter as fees and funding cuts from the health care overhaul dented its performance. UnitedHealth fell $2.41, or 3.1 percent, to $75.78.

Despite the big-name decliners, the latest wave of quarterly results has been mostly positive, said John Fox, director of research at Fenimore Asset Management.

"The overall read across five or 10 or 15 earnings reports is positive," Fox said, noting that many companies have reaffirmed their earnings forecasts for the year. "The fundamental underpinnings are good, and I'm not hearing anything from management that changes that."

Investors will study more company earnings over the next couple of weeks as they try to determine whether the effects of the severe winter are easing.

Homebuilders, automakers and consumer discretionary companies should provide a better read on whether consumer demand has rebounded from the deep chill.

"The companies that would be most impacted by that have yet to report," Mangus said.

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