Monthly Archives: March 2012
Today’s Money Flows
ISSUE GAINERS SYMBOL EXCH LAST PRICE MONEY FLOW RATIO
Bank Of America BAC NYSE 9.57 +14.0 1.39 Apple AAPL NASD 606.24 +13.3 1.02 GasLog Ltd GLOG NYSE 12.47 +12.8 2.19 NewsCorp A NWSA NASD 19.44 +12.3 3.27 Microsoft MSFT NASD 32.15 +12.2 2.12 Hewlett-Packard HPQ NYSE 23.67 +10.4 4.23 Williams Cos WMB NYSE 31.14 +9.9 1.43 Oracle ORCL NASD 29.23 +9.7 2.10 McDonald's MCD NYSE 98.12 +9.3 2.37 Chevron CVX NYSE 106.98 +8.9 1.84 Google GOOG NASD 647.95 +8.1 1.13 PepsiCo PEP NYSE 66.33 +7.8 2.08 Cisco Systems CSCO NASD 21.02 +7.8 2.05 pricelinecom PCLN NASD 725.40 +7.8 1.17 Freeport McMoran FCX NYSE 37.75 +7.5 1.54 Qualcomm QCOM NASD 67.93 +7.2 1.71 Research in Motion RIMM NASD 14.15 +7.2 1.16 Nike Inc NKE NYSE 108.73 +6.8 1.63 Caterpillar CAT NYSE 106.20 +6.8 1.31 Pfizer PFE NYSE 22.60 +6.7 1.72 ISSUE DECLINERS SYMBOL EXCH LAST PRICE MONEY FLOW RATIO (in millions) Coca-Cola KO NYSE 73.63 -28.0 0.34 iShrs Russell 2000 Value IWN ARCA 73.26 -23.1 0.11 iShrs Tr MSCI EAFE EFA ARCA 54.74 -20.2 0.37 PwrShrs QQQ Tr Series 1 QQQ NASD 67.66 -16.7 0.58 Dunkin' Brands Group DNKN NASD 29.89 -14.0 0.54 iBoxx InvesTp Inv Grde Bd LQD ARCA 115.92 -13.3 0.29 SPDR S&P 500 SPY ARCA 140.63 -12.9 0.94 ExxonMobil XOM NYSE 86.45 -12.8 0.51 IBM IBM NYSE 208.20 -12.0 0.54 UnitedHealth Group UNH NYSE 58.84 -10.6 0.62 Wells Fargo WFC NYSE 33.92 -9.7 0.51 Procter & Gamble PG NYSE 67.35 -7.9 0.48 Baidu BIDU NASD 145.39 -7.3 0.84 Johnson & Johnson JNJ NYSE 65.89 -7.1 0.60 Citigroup C NYSE 36.67 -6.6 0.73 iShrs Russell Microcap IWC ARCA 51.55 -6.0 0.07 Goldman Sachs GS NYSE 123.51 -6.0 0.81 Mosaic MOS NYSE 55.95 -5.4 0.76 Micron Tech MU NASD 8.25 -5.2 0.53 Raymond James Notes 2042 RJD NYSE 25.60 -5.0 0.03Comments »
52 Week Highs and Lows
NYSE
New Highs 64 COMPANY SYMBOL HIGH VOLUME ------- ------ ---- ------ AegonNVNon Cum Sub Nts AEK 26.18 30,867 Aetna AET 50.60 745,372 Allergan AGN 96.34 306,749 Alliance Data Sys ADS 127.55 78,836 Amer Campus Communities ACC 44.84 37,908 Amer Vanguard AVD 21.50 8,926 Ball Corp BLL 42.98 68,906 CBS Corp B CBS 33.42 1,223,289 CBS Corp A CBS/A 33.79 3,300 CDI Corp CDI 18.25 11,302 Cantel Med CMN 25.55 3,767 Carriage Services CSV 7.59 2,742 Carters CRI 50.14 132,741 Colgate-Palmolive CL 97.32 211,765 Corrections Corp Of Amer CXW 27.64 81,423 DaVita Inc DVA 89.99 41,868 Demandware Inc DWRE 31.98 33,266 Essex Property Trust ESS 151.41 59,789 Extra Space Storage EXR 28.72 66,902 First American Financial FAF 16.96 42,627 FortuneBrandsHome&Sec FBHS 22.32 44,766 HBFuller FUL 33.48 40,682 GNC Holdings A GNC 35.20 200,458 GP Strategies GPX 18.05 6,068 Gap Inc GPS 27.00 1,705,653 GenCorp GY 7.14 44,251 Global Cash Access GCA 7.83 38,033 H&Q Life Sciences HQL 13.81 4,622 Haemonetics HAE 70.82 3,996 Hitachi Ltd HIT 64.98 13,399 Hospitality Properties Tr HPT 26.71 76,881 IBM IBM 208.92 367,844 Jarden Corp JAH 40.71 46,538 Kayne Andrsn Midstr Engy KMF 27.48 19,918 LeapFrog Cl A LF 8.53 73,171 Lowe's Cos LOW 31.57 1,104,311 Macerich MAC 57.42 51,772 McCormick & Co MKC 54.61 64,782 McGraw-Hill MHP 48.00 241,961 Mead Johnson Nutrition MJN 83.95 85,229 Navigant Consulting NCI 14.48 19,005 Nordstrom Inc JWN 55.69 195,854 Old Natl Bancorp ONB 13.30 37,091 PS Business Parks PSB 65.40 5,808 Par Pharma PRX 39.42 16,044 Post Properties PPS 46.70 19,849 Prestige Brands Hldgs PBH 17.86 10,175 RPM Intl RPM 26.45 36,505 Realty Income O 38.96 34,323 Scana Corp SCG 45.87 59,253 Sempra Energy SRE 60.10 287,838 JM Smucker SJM 81.55 35,783 Speedway Motorsports TRK 18.23 1,039 Taubman Ctrs TCO 72.72 13,297 Terra Nitrogen TNH 252.61 20,552 Toyota Motor TM 87.15 50,067 UnitedHealth Group UNH 59.03 1,736,879 Vaalco Engy EGY 9.85 83,589 Valmont Indus VMI 118.99 26,332 VMware Inc VMW 113.76 404,397 WellCare Health Plans WCG 72.27 80,259 Wstrn Asset Gl Def Opp Fd GDO 19.48 10,603 Wyndham Worldwide WYN 46.99 355,880 Xinyuan Real Estate XIN 3.40 130,539 New Lows 3 COMPANY SYMBOL LOW VOLUME ------- ------ ---- ------ Kimco Realty Dep 6 Pfd I KIMpI 24.47 17,554 Promotora de Info ADS PRIS 3.18 9,510 Taro Pharmaceutical Indus TARO 38.80 100
NASDAQ
New Highs 50 COMPANY SYMBOL HIGH VOLUME ------- ------ ---- ------ ASML Hldg NV ASML 50.12 432,684 Acorn Energy ACFN 10.48 55,779 Adept Technology ADEP 5.28 11,647 Agenus AGEN 6.85 176,547 Amylin Pharm AMLN 25.74 1,261,910 Analogic ALOG 68.78 4,722 Bridge Capital Hldgs BBNK 13.20 732 Brightcove BCOV 25.50 31,478 Carmike Cinemas CKEC 14.20 14,876 Centerstate Banks CSFL 8.28 5,957 Charming Shoppes CHRS 6.10 294,608 Computer Task CTGX 15.34 6,554 Discovery Comm C DISCK 47.62 122,572 Discovery Comm A DISCA 50.88 453,809 Dorman Products DORM 51.34 4,396 Dynavax Techs DVAX 5.00 130,701 Edgewater Tech EDGW 4.00 4,600 Equinix EQIX 159.50 196,341 Euronet Worldwide EEFT 20.97 21,936 EXACT Sciences EXAS 11.22 73,351 Exar EXAR 8.54 15,516 F5 Networks FFIV 136.46 216,257 First California Finl Grp FCAL 5.55 2,621 Home Bancorp HBCP 17.50 200 Home Loan Servicing Sols HLSS 14.00 16,403 JB Hunt Transport JBHT 55.30 51,570 ICU Medical ICUI 49.74 1,794 IRIS Intl IRIS 13.92 4,230 Insight Enterprises NSIT 22.73 51,398 Intel INTC 28.45 4,131,797 Interval Leisure Gp IILG 17.70 6,942 Inventure Foods SNAK 5.00 6,000 MarketAxess Hldgs MKTX 37.95 7,312 MetroCorp Bancshares MCBI 10.59 2,449 Monster Beverage MNST 63.18 64,310 Old Line Bancshrs OLBK 10.75 1,699 Old Second Bancorp OSBC 1.98 29,800 Pinnacle Fincl Partners PNFP 18.55 7,587 QCR Holdings Inc QCRH 12.45 213 Repligen RGEN 6.00 28,640 Ruths Hsptlty Gr RUTH 7.74 34,876 SBA Comm SBAC 51.51 95,771 John B Sanfilippo & Son JBSS 12.61 2,730 Tessco Techs TESS 26.53 15,103 Tetra Tech TTEK 26.49 20,698 Threshold Pharmaceuticals THLD 8.99 1,507,376 TIBCO Software TIBX 33.00 1,574,918 Town Sports Intl Hldgs CLUB 13.32 27,094 TripAdvisor TRIP 36.15 182,174 Umpqua Hldgs UMPQ 13.86 69,015 New Lows 6 COMPANY SYMBOL LOW VOLUME ------- ------ ---- ------ CafePress PRSS 18.93 153,017 Cereplast CERP 0.57 66,954 Princeton Review REVU 0.05 2,020,871 SatCon Tech SATC 0.38 303,658 Telestone Techs TSTC 3.15 78,882 Trio Merger TRIO 9.00 200Comments »
Mastercard, $MA, Warns Over a Data Breach
“MasterCard Inc. MA -0.95% said Friday that it is investigating a possible breach of cardholder account data involving a U.S.-based payment processor.
The Purchase, N.Y., credit-card company said law enforcement has been notified of the matter and an “independent data security organization” is conducting an ongoing forensic review of the matter. The company is alerting card-issuing banks regarding “certain MasterCard accounts that are potentially at risk.”
“MasterCard’s own systems have not been compromised in any manner,” a company spokesman said.
The spokesman declined to say how many cards may have been compromised or how many banks it is notifying.
The breach was reported early Friday by the Krebs On Security blog, which also said that Visa Inc. V -0.64% was also notifying banks about a breach involving a third-party payment processor.
Representatives for Visa couldn’t immediately be reached for comment Friday morning.
Visa and MasterCard don’t lend or issue cards to consumers; rather, they process transactions for banks that issue their cards and those that handle transactions for merchants.
Representatives of several banks, including Bank of America Corp. BAC -0.72% andJ.P. Morgan Chase JPM +0.13% & Co., either couldn’t be reached for comment or declined to comment Friday morning.
MasterCard said it will “continue to both monitor this event and take steps to safeguard account information.”
Cardholders who are concerned about their accounts should contact the banks that issued them their cards, the company said.”
Comments »U.S. Officials Confirm Israeli Mossad Trained Assassins of Iranian Nuclear Scientists
Rail Traffic Continues to Show Mixed Results
“More mixed news on the rail front this week as total carloads posted a sharp 7.2% decline and intermodal traffic posted a 4.2% increase. The declines in coal are dragging down the overall data substantially. Nevertheless, the 10 week moving average in intermodal declined a bit to 3.2% and is consistent with a sluggish, but growing economy. The AAR has the details on this week’s report:
Comments »“The Association of American Railroads (AAR) today reported mixed weekly rail traffic for the week ending March 24, 2012, with U.S. railroads originating 278,393 carloads, down 7.2 percent compared with the same week last year. Intermodal volume for the week totaled 232,401 trailers and containers, up 4.2 percent compared with the same week last year.
Twelve of the 20 carload commodity groups posted increases compared with the same week in 2011, with petroleum products, up 26.8 percent; coke, up 15.1 percent, and motor vehicles and equipment, up 13.8 percent. The groups showing a significant decrease in weekly traffic included coal, down 17.4 percent, and grain, down 14.2 percent.
Weekly carload volume on Eastern railroads was down 4.3 percent compared with the same week last year. In the West, weekly carload volume was down 9.1 percent compared with the same week in 2011.
For the first twelve weeks of 2012, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 3,392,128 carloads, down 2.2 percent from last year, and 2,685,673 trailers and containers, up 2.4 percent from last year.”
Chicago PMI: Prior 64, Market Expects 63, Actual 62
A Public Service Announcement: Smart Phone App Allows for Identity Theft
FLASH: CRACK SPREADS ARE ABOVE $35
Apple’s Gadget Maker Foxconn Tries to Clean Up Image After Major Labor Practice Abuses Declared
“Workplace abuses were uncovered in an audit that equated to “a full body scan” of three Chinese factories pumping out covetedApple gadgets, independent investigators reported on Thursday.
Employees at each of the factories exceeded a work-week limit of 76 hours set by Chinese law and, in some cases, worked more than seven days straight without a required 24-hour break, according to the Fair Labor Association.
“The Fair Labor Association gave Apple’s largest supplier the equivalent of a full-body scan through 3,000 staff hours investigating three of its factories and surveying more than 35,000 workers,” said FLA president Auret van Heerden.
“Apple and its supplier Foxconn have agreed to our prescriptions, and we will verify progress and report publicly.”
Along with excessive overtime and not always compensating workers properly for extra hours that were put in, the nearly month-long investigation uncovered health and safety risks and “crucial communication gaps.”
Comments »Whole Foods to Stop Sale of Unsustainable Seafood
“ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) – Whole Foods Market said Friday that it will stop selling fish caught from depleted waters or through ecologically damaging methods, a move that comes as supermarkets nationwide try to make their seafood selections more sustainable.
Starting Earth Day, April 22, the natural and organic supermarket chain will no longer carry wild-caught seafood that is “red-rated,” a color code that indicates it is either overfished or caught in a way that harms other species. The ratings are determined by the Blue Ocean Institute, an advocacy group, and the Monterey Bay Aquarium in California.
Among the seafood disappearing from Whole Foods shelves will be octopus, gray sole, skate, Atlantic halibut and Atlantic cod caught by trawls, which can destroy habitats. The company will stock sustainable replacements like cod caught on lines and halibut from the Pacific….”
Comments »House Passes G.O.P. Budget Plan, Mostly Along Party Lines
” A fierce two-day debate over a Republican budget plan portrayed as either a path to prosperity or a road to ruin ended Thursday with House passage of a blueprint that would transformMedicare, cut domestic spending to levels not seen since World War II and order up a drastic overhaul of the tax code.
The plan, which passed 228 to 191, with no Democratic votes and 10 Republican defections, will form the template around which much of the 2012 election will be fought. Democrats will try to hang its extensive changes to Medicare around the necks of vulnerable Republican candidates, along with the accusation that Republicans supported a program to punish the poor and elderly while rewarding the rich with still more tax cuts. Republicans will say theirs is the party willing to make the tough choices to tame a soaring federal debt.
“It is so rare in American politics to arrive at a moment in which the debate revolves around the fundamental nature of American democracy and the social contract, but that is exactly where we are today,” said Representative Paul D. Ryan of Wisconsin, chairman of the House Budget Committee and the architect of the blueprint, adding, “Today’s budget is a vote of confidence for the American experiment.”
Democrats said they saw nothing brave in voting to decimate programs for the poor, like food stamps andMedicaid, while offering potentially huge tax cuts for the rich.
The White House press secretary, Jay Carney, said, “Today’s vote stands as another example of the Republican establishment grasping onto the same failed economic policies that stacked the deck against the middle class and created the worst financial crisis in decades.”
Comments »Gapping Up and Down This Morning
Gapping up
THLD +6.5%, DRJ +5.9%, SNSS +4.8%, ZAZA +1%, MOS +0.9%, BAC +0.8%
Gapping down
XRTX -8.8%, FINL -8.8%, CPF -4.4%, FFN -3.7%, RIMM -2.4%, DNKN -0.8%
Comments »U.S. Equity Preview: WEC, X, TIBX, RIMM, INVN, FINL, DRRX, & CASC
Cascade Corp. (CASC) : The materials-handling equipment maker reported fourth-quarter earnings per share of $1.16, exceeding the average analyst estimate of $1.09.
Durect Corp. (DRRX) : The maker of drug-delivery systems said Hospira Inc. (HSP) is returning development and commercialization rights to the pain-relief product Posidur in the U.S. and Canada.
Finish Line Inc. (FINL) dropped 9.2 percent to $23. The athletic apparel retailer projected 2013 earnings per share growth in the “mid-single digits,” falling short of the average analyst estimate of 13 percent.
InvenSense Inc. (INVN) (INVN US) fell 1.8 percent to $19.25. The producer of gyroscopes for consumer electronics was cut to perform from outperform at Oppenheimer & Co., citing increased competition. The rating means that Oppenheimer expects the stock to perform in line with the S&P 500 within the next 12 to 18 months.
Research In Motion Ltd. (RIM) declined 1.1 percent to $13.58. The BlackBerry maker reported revenue and profit that fell short of analysts’ estimates and said it will discontinue giving financial forecasts as demand for BlackBerry smartphones wanes.
Tibco Software Inc. (TIBX) : The business software developer reported first-quarter revenue of $225.7 million, beating the average analyst estimate of $222.3 million. Tibco also said that it will initiate a $300 million share repurchase program.
U.S. Steel Corp. (X) gained 1.6 percent to $29.86. The steelmaker was rated a buy in new coverage at Nomura International Plc.
Wisconsin Energy Corp. (WEC) : The state’s largest utility owner provided first-quarter earnings per share guidance of no more than 73 cents, falling short of the average analyst estimate of 77 cents, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Comments »Upgrads and Downgrades This Morning
Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY) Maintained Hold at Argus.
Buffalo Wild Wings Inc. (NASDAQ: BWLD) Started as Equal-Weight at Morgan Stanley.
Crane Company (NYSE: CR) named as Value stock of the day at Zacks.
EMC Inc. (NYSE: EMC) Reiterated Buy and Raised target to $36 at Argus.
Exterran Partners L.P. (NYSE: EXLP) Started as Neutral with $23 target at Credit Suisse.
Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS) Raised to Buy at Janney.
ICICI Bank Ltd. (NYSE: IBN) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.
InvenSense, Inc. (NASDAQ: INVN) Cut to Perform at Oppenheimer; Started as Equal-weight at Morgan Stanley.
Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ: LULU) Started as Buy at UBS.
Micron Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MU) Reiterated Buy with $11 target at Jefferies.
Pan American Silver Corporation (NASDAQ: PAAS) Started as Buy at Deutsche Bank.
Peabody Energy Corporation (NYSE: BTU) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Raytheon Co. (NYSE: RTN) Cut to Sector Perform at RBC.
Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) Maintained Underperform with $12 target at Jefferies.
VIVUS Inc. (NASDAQ: VVUS) Raised to Buy at Brean Murray.
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In Play and On the Wires
Personal Income: Prior 0.3%, Market Expects 0.3%. Actual 0.2%….Consumer Spending: Prior 0.2%, Market Expects 0.6%, Actual 0.8%
Not Surprised: Former Pentagon Official Says All Chinese Electronics In The US Could Have Built-In Trapdoors
“Richard Clarke Has another disturbing prediction for America.
Clarke worked with four White House administrations during 30 years of government service before opening his own cybersecurity firm in the corridors of Arlington, Va outside the nation’s capital.
He was at the State Department, the Department of Defense, has a master’s Degree from MIT and was the Bush counter-terrorism guy who told the White House that al Qaeda was plotting a grand attack on American soil in the weeks leading up to 9/11.
After the attack, Clarke sat before the 9/11 commission and told them directly: “Your government failed you.”
Clarke recently spoke to Ron Rosenbaum at Smithsonian Magazine and told him the government is slipping up again, that while we now have the ability to coordinate a successful cyberwar, like slipping the Stuxnet virus into Iran’s nuclear system, the U.S. has absolutely no cyber defenses.
Which is a bad thing for a superpower that gets the lionshare of its electronic components, both civilian and military from China, one of its biggest global adversaries….”
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