Is Goodrich an easy 5 points???

Yesterday we told you that Goodrich is going to be purchased by United Tecnologies for $127.50 per share CASH.  The word CASH is key, meaning that is the price you will get paid if you own the stock on the date that the buyout actually occurs. 

The stock is trading at 121.93 as I write this.  So, the questions are:

1. Will the buyout definitely happen???  Answer: In the agreement, United Technologies agreed to pay a breakup fee of $500 Million if they back away from the deal.

2. How long would I need to hold the stock before the buyout occurs???  Answer:  It was announced that the deal should be finalized in the 2nd quarter next year...so basically 9 months.

Is it worth it???  A 4.5 % gain in 9 months???

Wanna see another ugly chart???

Check out Ancestry.com (ACOM).  I had been waiting for this one to come back to reality.  The stock went public back in November 2009 at $15.  It ran up to $45.79 earlier this year, but looks like it is heading back to at least where it came out.

Here is the weekly chart:

Might be a good time to short First Solar...

As I pointed out a few weeks ago, Solar stocks have been crashing.  The one remaining Solar stock with a long way to drop is First Solar (FSLR).  As you can see from the monthly chart going back to 2007, FSLR has no support level from here...so no telling how low it goes.

This morning, the stock fell to 61.55.  As I write this, the stock has rebounded to where it is actually up 1.99 to 68.85.  Could be an easy 7 points if it goes back and hits new lows.

Upgrades and Downgrades...

These are some of this Friday’s top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen having an impact from Wall Street research calls.


Altera Corporation (NASDAQ: ALTR) Started as Outperform at William Blair.
Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE: NLY) Started as Neutral at UBS.
Archer Daniels Midland Company (NYSE: ADM) Started as Neutral at Goldman Sachs.
Corning, Inc. (NYSE: GLW) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.
McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE: MCD) Raised to Strong Buy at S&P Equity Research.
Pandora Media, Inc. (NYSE: P) Raised to Overweight at Morgan Stanley.
Patterson-UTI Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: PTEN) named value stock of the day at Zacks.
Pepsico, Inc. (NYSE: PEP) Cut to Hold at Stifel Nicolaus.
Rambus Inc. (NASDAQ: RMBS) Started as Overweight at JPMorgan.
Under Armour, Inc. (NYSE: UA) Started as Buy at Argus.
V.F. Corporation (NYSE: VFC) Raised to Buy at BofA/ML.
VimpelCom Ltd. (NYSE: VIP) Started as Sell at Goldman Sachs.
Xilinx Inc. (NASDAQ: XLNX) Started as Outperform at William Blair.
Youku.com Inc (NYSE: YOKU) Raised to Positive at Susquehanna.

Gold and Silver breaking down...

Thought I'd show you the Gold and Silver ETF charts. 

GLD has broken hard thru the critical support level of 170.

SLV had support at around 32.50.  It is breaking thru that level this morning.

Alexion may receive approval for Soliris...

Shares of Alexion Pharamaceuticals (ALXN) register a gain after the firm says it has received a positive opinion in Europe for Soliris with a final decision from the European Commission expected in about two months. Soliris is a first treatment for patients with a rare life-threatening blood disorder.

ALXN is up 2.14 to 65.52

Alexion is the Number 1 rated stock in Investor's Business Daily's Top 50.

What does HP have in common with eBay???

Hewlett-Packard (HPQ -5.3%) sinks to a six-year low $21.60/share, losing all the pop from the Apotheker firing. Investors apparently are not thrilled that H-P looks to have decided to do pretty much what Apotheker was going to do anyway. On Meg Whitman, the concern is that she "faces a learning curve" in the enterprise business after 30 years in the consumer space.

I don't get this hire at all. 

At 10:30 am....

Stocks are mixed as traders (both longs and shorts) try to decide whether to hold their positions over the weekend.  Art Cashin (the UBS market strategist - with 40+ years on the exchange) think this market is setting up for a crash on Monday.  He then thinks that will be quickly followed by a MASSIVE rally.  Now, he has been looking for capitulation for about 10 years.

Right now:

Dow -17
Nas +11
S&P +1 to 1130

If you are in the crash camp, it might be wise to put some protection on your accounts over the weekend. 

JP Morgan trying to prop up Pandora....

Shares of Pandora (P) gets an upgrade from Morgan Stanley to Overweight from Equalweight on valuation. Morgan put a $16 price target on the shares


Oh....by the way: JP Morgan was one of the lead underwriters of the Pandora IPO on June 15th, which was priced at....you guessed it...$16 a share.

Pandora is up 0.70 to 10.76 today.

Here's a surprising downgrade...

Moody's again downgrades the Greek banks, saying it "believes that private creditors may incur substantial economic losses on their Greek government bond holdings beyond the terms of the current debt exchange."

I think I could have made this downgrade.

Gold breaks down...

Gold legs down below $1,700/oz. for the first time since early August. A technician might look at a chart and say there is no support for the metal until $1,500. It was from this level on July 1 that gold took off in a straight line to $1,900 over the next 6 weeks.


The Gold ETF (GLD) is opening down 5.05 to 164


That is a huge breakdown on the charts. 

Good Morning. Futures down but off their lows...

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a lower open as growing concerns about the impact on the global economy from a possible Greek default eclipsed hopes for concrete action from G20 finance chiefs. European shares fell, extending the previous session's steep losses, on fresh concerns that European banks would take further write-downs on their Greek debt exposure.

Asian markets were largely down on fears of renewed recession in the developed world, which left investors largely unimpressed. Brent crude oil turned lower, falling more than $1 a barrel and extending the previous session's slide on concern about the outlook for the economy and oil demand.

Gold hit a one-month low and was set to post its sharpest weekly drop since May, hit by a sell-off in the commodities.

Stocks down but off their lows....

Stocks closed broadly lower in follow thru to the Fed's "Twist" move yesterday.  As I said earlier, it's amazing how sentiment and news can change that quickly.  Prior to 2 pm yesterday, things looked fine, after 2:15 pm, it's all doom and gloom.  It's all BS to me.  Here's how we closed:

Dow -391
Nas -82
S&P -37 to 1129

The good thing is we did close above 1100 on the S&P.  A move below that would cause me some concern.  Until then, it's just trading.

At 2:30 pm....

Stocks have taken another turn lower in the last hour...on news of another stalemate in the house on a spending bill.  Here we go again.

Dow -457
Nas -97
S&P -44 to 1122

Too many stocks pulled down...suggests that we are seeing program selling of ETF's.

At 1:00 pm....

Stocks still broadly lower.

Dow -373
Nas -69
S&P -34 to 1132

Nothing new to report.

Stocks continue to sell off....

At 11:50 am we are at:

Dow -365
Nas -67
S&P -34 to 1132

While the averages are at their day lows, some stocks have rebounded and cut their earlier losses in half. 

At 2:14 pm yesterday the Dow was at 11380, and now we are at 10745.  That is a 635 point drop since the Fed made the "twisted" announcement that was supposed to help our markets.  The selloff seems a bit overdone.

Let's keep an eye on the S&P 500.  A move back above 1150 would be a "buy" signal, a move below 1100 would not be good.

Wedbush says it's time to buy Netflix...

Wedbush upgrades Netflix (NFLX -0.3%) and raises its target to $155 from $110, based on a belief that the driver for the separation of Netflix into two businesses was to position the streaming business for sale to Amazon (AMZN -4.7%). Wedbush thinks Amazon has always wanted to be in streaming but has been constrained from buying Netflix by tax considerations.

Netflix is up 1.67 to 130.25 this morning.

Ugly open....

Stocks are getting hammered again this morning as it seems that all of a sudden the world is collapsing again.  So much of this is manipulated by negative headlines that seem to build up and are then conveniently released when the market weakens, like yesterday.  The big takeaways from yesterday's actions were the breakdown in the transports and gold.  The gold breakdown was to be expected by anyone who can pull away and look objectively at such a runup in price.  No different than the Housing bubble or the Tech bubble. 

More significant is the drop in Transports.  Strength in Transportation stocks is characteristic of a healthy world economy.  We need to keep an eye on this and heed its warnings.

As of 9:50 am:

Dow -341
Nas -75
S&P -35 to 1132

Here is a chart on the Dow Jones transports:

Bed, Bath and Beyond reports better than expected earnings...

Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (BBBY). The company posted a quarterly profit that beat Wall Street expectations, as more shoppers showed an interest in decorating their homes. Net income for the second quarter was $229.4 million, or 93 cents a share, compared with $181.8 million, or 70 cents a share, a year ago. The company's same-store sales rose 5.6 percent. For the third quarter, Bed Bath expects to earn 82-87 cents a share, compared with average analysts' expectations of 86 cents per share.

BBBY is down 1.50 to 56 this morning.

United Technologies buys Goodrich...

United Technologies Corp. (UTX). The diversified manufacturer has reached a $16.5 billion cash deal to acquire aircraft components maker Goodrich Corp (GR), in what would be United Tech’s biggest deal in a decade.  United Tech said on Wednesday it would pay $127.50 a share for Goodrich, a 47 percent premium over the stock's closing price last Thursday. It also includes $1.9 billion in assumed debt.


Goodrich had been running up on rumors of this buyout over the last few sessions.  Guess these rumors actually came true.  Here is the chart as of last night, where the stock closed at 109.49.  Note the stock should open today at around $127.50.

Gold prices breaking lower premarket....

The price of gold is currently down $70 to $1738 an ounce.  Take a look at the chart below.  Gold had been holding up above 1750, but is clearly breaking thru that level today.  If you own gold, be careful.  The next support level is 1700, after that "look out below".

Futures lower...

US stock index futures pointed to a sharply lower open on Wall Street Thursday after the Federal Reserve warned of significant risks to the struggling economy and as data showed a further contraction in China's manufacturing sector.

The Fed launched a new plan to lower long-term borrowing costs and bolster the battered housing market by saying it would sell $400 billion of short-term Treasury bonds to buy the same amount of longer-term US government debt. This was its latest attempt to kickstart growth that slowed to a crawl over the first half of the year, but global markets were unimpressed.

Stocks sell off on Fed action...

Stocks closed at the lows of the day:

Dow -283 to 11124
Nas -52 to 2538
S&P -35 to 1166

Transports got crushed losing nearly 6%.

Maybe something good will come out overnight.

Thank you Fed!!!

I mean, am I the only one who sees that the market clearly wants the Fed to STOP pulling out new ways to knock interest rates lower???

Today's action is supposed lead to lower mortgage rates...as if interest rates aren't low enough.  Here's the problem:  there is now nowhere to invest your safe money!!!

IDIOTS just don't get it.

Gold dropping as market sells off???

I've been tracking the performance of the Gold ETF lately and it is no longer a place to hide when markets sell off.  This afternoon, the Dow is down 171 points...and Gold is selling off, in fact looking like it it is going to break down.

Here is the GLD chart.  We'll keep a close eye on it:

Facebook changes front page...

Have you been on Facebook yet today???  Be prepared to see alot more crap on your front page.  Big Mistake Facebook!!!  Looks like Facebook is turning into an advertising site. 

If they don't change back to the old, uncluttered front page, I'm afraid they may have lost me as a user.

Fed initiates "Twist"...

The Fed announcement is in and the"Twist" is on - the central bank will swap $400B of Treasurys into longer maturities in a range of six to 30 years, by selling in a range of three years or less, to be completed by end of June 2012. Three voters dissent.

As the news was released, the market initially rose thinking the Fed was doing nothing, but as more details of the plan were read, the market sold off.  As I said, I think the market wanted nothing.

As I write this:

Dow -48
Nas +6
S&P -8

Hopefully we hold up here....but I'm not too optimistic.

Americans are grumpy...

Gallup's latest polling finds Americans in a grumpy mood. They're more skeptical than ever of the federal government’s spending habits, convinced it squanders more than half of each dollar it uses, and six in 10 don't think the economy will improve any time soon, a sharp increase in pessimism from two years ago.


6 in 10???..I think it's more like 9 in 10. 

Hansen Natuaral upgraded by UBS...

Hansen Natural (HANS) is up 1.6% after UBS reiterates a Buy, predicting the company's Monster energy drink line will continue posting double-digit growth through 2013. It also expects Hansen as a whole to average 20.5% annual earnings growth over the next 3 years.


I sense this stock has run up enough based on one energy drink.  We are taking our profits on this upgrade....locking in a 20% gain in 6 weeks.

Moody's also cuts Wells Fargo debt...

Moody's cuts Wells Fargo's (WFC -0.2%) rating from A1 to A2, expecting - as with Bank of America (BAC) - less likelihood of government support should things get rough again. "It is also more likely now than during the financial crisis to allow a large bank to fail should it become financially troubled."

Moody's cuts Bank of America debt...

Bank of America (BAC -3.2%) is downgraded by Moody's to Baa1 from A2. The move comes from a decrease in the probability the government would support the bank, if necessary, but "do(es) not reflect a weakening of the intrinsic credit quality of BofA."

Noon update...

Stocks are mixed at noon, as trading is slowing as we await Fed announcement at 2:15 pm.

Dow -44
Nas +11
S&P -4

Commodities are the weakest sector, but some of the familiar names are still moving higher:

Apple +6.50 to 420
Chipotle +7 to 340
Hansen +1.94 to 93.90
Mako +1.09 to 40.18
Amazon +5.04 to 238.30

As we saw yesterday, those gains could evaporate quickly if traders don't like what comes out of the Fed meeting.

I think the market would react more favorably if the Fed announces nothing new.  Traders have made it clear that they are now just wanting all problems to work themselves out on their own.  We really should not be doing anything else to push interest rates any lower. 

I'll be back after the Fed decision.

At 10:00 am....

Stocks are higher, but just barely.  Looks like we may just tread water here until the 2:15 pm announcement from the Fed on interest rates.

Dow +18
Nas +17
S&P +1 to 1203

Gold opened higher but is now selling off. 

MSFT Boosts dividend 25%...

Microsoft (MSFT) boosts its quarterly dividend +25% to $0.20 per share, payable December 8 to shareholders of record on November 17.

OK.  Not that I am against dividends, but Microsoft's stock was down 23 cents yesterday.  That is more than the quarterly dividend.  So, what's the point in buying a stock because of it's dividend???  Without growth, that dividend means nothing.

Coal stocks tumbling after Walter Energy warns...

Keep an eye on Market Vectors Coal ETF (KOL) following weak guidance from Walter Energy (WLT) (-10.7% premarket) and Alpha Natural Resources (ANR) (-11.2% premarket). WLT is a pure-play met coal producer, and ANR cited soft met coal shipments to Asia amid a surprising dip in customer activity.

I tell you...it's just not worth playing with these commodity stocks!!!

Now this is stupid to me....

Netflix (NFLX) has issued $200M in bonds, paying 8.5% interest, to buy back shares and boost its tumbling share price. The company now has less than half the cash it held five years ago, and subscriber defections are likely to accelerate, as it faces costly expansion and $2.4B in future commitments to license content for its streaming service.

Let's do the math:  The stock is currently at 130.  They need 8.5% (or 11 point) gain in the the stock to break even.  Problems start accelerating if the stock price goes lower. 

Problem is: No one has DISH...

DISH Network's (DISH) "A Stream Come True" event this Friday means more bad news for reeling Netflix (NFLX), Jefferies says. Blockbuster has strong legacy relationships with film and TV studios; its releases are available a month before Netflix and Redbox (CSTR); and a low-cost subscription to older content could rival Netflix and Amazon (AMZN) "at a potentially more attractive price point."

Senate investigates search results...

Execs from Google (GOOG) rivals Nextag, Yelp, and Expedia (EXPE) are in Washington DC set to testify at today's Senate antitrust hearing concerning if Google unfairly drives search engine visitors to its own branded sites. In previous discussions with lawmakers, Google has leaned on its constitutional right to air "opinions" as part of its search ranking system.

The Google search results are completely out of control.  Ever search for something and have to scroll thru 20 pages of results to find what you really wanted??

Stocks in the news...

Today's earnings calendar includes the latest quarterly numbers from General Mills (GIS) this morning, and from Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY) and Red Hat (RHT) after this afternoon's closing bell. 

Oracle (ORCL) is a stock to watch this morning, after fiscal first quarter earnings beat Street estimates and the company made upbeat comments about the current quarter.

Adobe Systems (ADBE) also beat estimates with its profits and forecast a strong finish to 2011.

Orexigen (OREX) surged in after-hours trading after announcing it would begin a new heart safety trial of its experimental obesity drug Contrave. It's hoping to reverse the FDA's prior stance that it could not approve the pill because of its cardiovascular effects.

UBS (UBS) is also on our watch list, as CEO Oswald Gruebel reportedly rules out a sale of the company's investment banking division.

Apache (APA) is buying some UK assets from Exxon Mobil (XOM) in a $1.75 billion deal.

And Boeing (BA) is reportedly in advanced discussions with Chinese airlines about its 787 Dreamliner aircraft that could lead to new orders.

Good morning...

An already volatile U.S. stock market could become more so today, with a Fed statement looming amid the ongoing headlines about Greece and the European debt crisis.

Stocks lost most of Tuesday's midday gains on worries about the failure of Greece to announce a definitive deal following a conference call with EU, ECB, and IMF leaders.

Federal Reserve policymakers conclude their two-day meeting with their latest policy statement at about 2:15pm ET, and the most widely anticipated outcome is the announcement of what's being referred to as Operation Twist, a move towards longer duration Treasuries in the Fed's portfolio.

Obama wants to tax Muni Bonds???

Pres. Obama's new tax plan includes a partial removal of the tax-exempt status given to muni bonds. As fund manager Ben Thompson explains it, investors could have to pay a tax rate as high as 11.6% on muni bond income, depending on their bracket. 

Stocks lose gains in last hour...

Selling programs kicked in in the last hour driving stocks to their lows of the day.  The Dow closed slightly higher but there was a significant pullback from earlier gains.

Dow +7 to 11408
Nas -22 to 2590
S&P -2 to 1202

Tomorrow afternoon we will get headlines from the Fed meeting that started today.  I have to think the market action will be muted until we hear from them.

Hard to believe, a crooked online gaming site???

The Justice Department accuses former online poker site Full Tilt Poker of running a Ponzi scheme that allowed insiders to take out $444M in funds that were supposed to be held in player accounts. Court filings amending an earlier complaint accuse board members - including well-known poker players - of bank fraud, money laundering and illegal gambling.

2 pm update...more of the same...

Stocks remain higher, with oils and banks joining some of the more familiar names.

Dow +116
Nas +16
S&P +12 to 1216

Leading the market higher:

Apple +9 to 420.83
Chipotle +9.64 to 345.78
IBM +3.59 to 176.77
Mastercard +11 to 359
Perrigo +1.98 to 98.42

Ag and fertilizer stocks are lower.

Perrigo hits all-time high...

Shares of Perrigo (PRGO) the generic healthcare products maker are breaking out to new highs again.  This one has a near perfect recent track record of Income and Revenue growth.

PRGO is up 2.70 to a new high of 99.14

Here is the daily chart:

That's right. Kick them when they're down...

Dish Network's (DISH +4%) Blockbuster unit is expected to announce Friday a video streaming service to compete with Netflix (NFLX -8.5%). Netflix shares are off 36% in 4 days, with a longer-term chart resembling that of a broken bubble.

Mastercard shooting to new all-time highs...

Mastercard is up another 11.85 to 359.80 this morning.

Here is a look at the weekly chart:

Jazz Pharmaceutical buys private company...

Jazz Pharmaceuticals Inc. (JAZZ). The company said it would buy privately held Azur Pharma Ltd in stock and form a specialty pharmaceutical company in Ireland. Jazz shareholders would own about 80 percent of the combined company, while Azur Pharma shareholders would own slightly over 20 percent. Jazz said the combined company, Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc, is expected to have revenue of over $475 million and generate cash of more than $200 million in the first year.


JAZZ is up 2.55 to a new high of 46.29

Gold on the rise again...

Gold stocks are gaining today, as the metal rises to $1,806/oz. and execs make positive remarks at the Denver Gold Forum.


The Gold ETF (GLD) is up 2.29 to 175.65 

At 11:00 am....

Stocks are moving higher again. 

Dow +114
Nas +25
S&P +13 to 1217

Leaders:

Apple +9.84 to 421.40
Priceline +20.54 to 551
Green Mountain +2.88 to 114.50
IBM +2.93 to 176
Perrigo +1.60 to 98.04
Jazz Pharmaceutical +3.11 to 46.85
Carbo Ceramics +2.71 to 156.39

Netflix is down another 10 to 133.75

Caterpillar global sales up...

Caterpillar (CAT +0.9%) says global sales in its bread-and-butter construction machinery segment rose 34%, headlining a strong sales report that shows gains in all global markets. Dealer-reported machines sales in North America came in on the low end at 30% Y/Y, down from 50% just 2 months ago. Analysts expects tough comparable to start dampening sales growth figures heading into the fall.

Today's Upgrades and Downgrades...

These are some of this Tuesday’s top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen having an impact from Wall Street research calls.


Alon USA Energy, Inc. (NYSE: ALJ) is the value stock of the day at Zacks.
Apache Corp. (NYSE: APA) Started as Buy at Deutsche Bank.
Carbonite, Inc. (NASDAQ: CARB) Started as Buy at Canaccord Genuity; Started as Outperform at Oppenheimer; Started as Outperform at William Blair; Started as Buy at BofA/ML.
Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE: CHK) Started as Hold at Deutsche Bank.
Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE: DVN) Started as Hold at Deutsche Bank.
JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd. (NYSE: JKS) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.
Logitech International SA (NASDAQ: LOGI) Cut to Sell at Goldman Sachs.
Marvell Technology Group Ltd. (NASDAQ: MRVL) Cut to Market Perform at JMP Securities.
MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) Raised to Overweight at Morgan Stanley.
Molycorp, Inc. (NYSE: MCP) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.
Mosaic Co. (NYSE: MOS) Raised to Sector Outperform at CIBC.
PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE: PHM) Raised to Buy at UBS.
SandRidge Permian Trust (NYSE: PER) Started as Outperform at Oppenheimer; Started as Market Weight at Wells Fargo; Started as Outperform at Baird.
SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) Raised to Outperform at Wells Fargo.
SM Energy Co. (NYSE: SM) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.
The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE: TRV) Raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs.
VMware, Inc. (NYSE: VMW) Started as Buy at Merriman (Monday night).

Housing Starts slow...

August Housing Starts: -5% to 571K vs. 590K expected and 601K (revised) last month.

Permits +3% to 620K vs. 590K expected and 601K (revised) last month.

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Good Morning....

Futures are up this morning following what I would call a positive day yesterday in the market.  Though the verages were lower, it is clear that funds were putting money to work, buying up shares of the recent market leaders.

The Federal Reserve begins a two-day policy meeting today, a gathering that was originally scheduled to be just one day. That means an exception from the Fed's new policy of holding a news conference following two-day meetings.


A handful of notable earnings will be out before the opening bell, with AutoZone (AZO), Conagra (CAG), and Carnival (CCL) set to report.

After the bell today, we get earnings reports from Oracle (ORCL) and Adobe Systems (ADBE)

Strange day ends...most of our stocks were up....

The averages didn't have a great day, but some of the more popular names we have been talking about were higher.

Dow - 108 to 11401
Nas -9 to 2612
S&P -12 to 1204

Bucking the trend:

Apple +11.13 to a new high of 411.63
Chipotle (CMG) +18.08 to a new high of 336.14
Amazon (AMZN) +2.39 to new high of 241.69
Universal Display (PANL) +2.76 to 58.36
Mako Surgical (MAKO) +4.21 to new high of 40.48
Green Mountain (GMCR) +3.63 to 111.62
Lululemon (LULU) +2.95 to 60.71
Priceline (PCLN) +5.98 to 531.45
Whole Foods (WFM) +3.05 to 72.10

Oils, banks, commodities and Gold were down on the day.

Netflix (NFLX) had opened 7 points higher, closed down 11 for the day. 

Noon Update....

The averages are still lower, but many stocks moving individually to the upside:

Dow -190
Nas -24
S&P -19 to 1196

Bucking the trend:

Apple +8 to 408.50
Chipotle +12 to 330.36
Panera +1.52 to 114.40
Green Mountain +3.22 to 111.20
Mako Surgical +2.14 to 38.41
Mastercard +2.79 to 349.74
Ulta +1.64 to 72.10

Netflix has reversed and is now down 3.55 to 151.65

At 10:50 am...

The averages are still lower, but traders are moving into some familiar names.

Dow -226
Nas -47
S&P -24 to 1191

Netflix +7.05
Chipotle +9.07
Deckers +0.93
Lululemon +0.93
Ulta +1.32
Mako +1.81

Art Cashin doesn't like Obama's proposal...

Art Cashin's take on Pres. Obama's proposed millionaire tax probably sums up Wall Street's view: "After the 1929 crash, Congress proceeded to raise the top marginal tax rate from 25% to 63% by the end of Hoover’s term... Hiking those rates may have made folks feel that rates were more equitable, but it sure didn’t help the economy."

At 10:15 am....

Stocks are selling off across the board. 

Dow -247
Nas -55
S&P -26 to 1189

Gold opened higher but is now selling off as well.

Netflix +5.81 on split up news
MAKO up 1.23 on new robotic technique
all 30 Dow stocks are lower

Lennar moves higher after earnings report...

Lennar’s (LEN +2.9%) FQ3 earnings slumped 31%, but Ticonderoga thinks results were “surprisingly good” - though EPS and revenue were merely in line - and "that should put a little bounce in investors’ steps." Management’s commentary on demand sounded a bit more upbeat, the firm says, with orders up a better-than-expected 11% Y/Y.

Lennar is up 0.63 to 14.44

MAKO unveils hip Arthroplasty...

MAKO Surgical Corp. (MAKO) today announced the commercial availability of the RIO(R) Robotic Arm Interactive Orthopedic System for use in total hip replacement procedures, called MAKOplasty(R) Total Hip Arthroplasty.

MAKO's total hip replacement application is designed to support the surgeon's ability to more accurately align and position the implants relative to the needs of a patient. This may reduce potential complications associated with conventional hip replacement surgery. MAKOplasty Total Hip Arthroplasty provides a surgeon with a pre-operative 3-D reconstruction of the patient's hip and is used to develop the patient-specific surgical plan. The robotic-arm then assists the surgeon during the procedure to accurately prepare the joint and optimally place hip implants.

MAKO is one of our favorite growth stcoks...it is currently up 1.13 to 37.42.  It is near all time highs.

Bristol Myers a takeout candidate???

Jefferies upgrades Bristol Myers (BMY) to Buy and increases its price target on shares to $35 from $27. The firm sees Bristol's underlying revenue and EPS ready to "rapidly take off mid-term," positioning the company as a "prime target for acquisition."

Happy Gilmore's grandmother dies....

Frances Bay, a veteran character actress known for playing sweet old ladies, died Thursday from pneumonia, the Associated Press reports. She was 92.

Classic line from the movie:

Grandma: Sir, can I trouble you for a glass of warm milk? It helps me go to sleep.

Nursing Home Orderly (Ben Stiller): You can trouble me for a warm glass of shut-the-hell-up! Now, you will go to sleep! Or I will PUT you to sleep. Check out the name tag. You're in MY world now, grandma!

Netflix to split DVD and streaming video....

Netflix (NFLX) is a stock to watch this morning, on news that it is separating its DVD and streaming video rental services.

The DVD by mail service will now be known as "Qwikster", while the streaming service will keep the Netflix brand name.

Not sure I understand why they even have two services in the first place.

Obama to speak, market sells off....

President Obama is expected to propose today $3.6T of deficit cuts over the next decade, including entitlement cuts and tax hikes on corporations and individuals. Medicare and Medicaid would both see reduced budgets, while Social Security would remain untouched. The proposal is unlikely to pass Congress because of Republican opposition to tax increases.

More of the same here....futures point to a lower open.

Nice week last week...

Stocks stepped higher Friday and stretched their winning streak to five days.

The Nasdaq and S&P 500 both rose 0.6%, while the NYSE composite added 0.3%. Volume increased sharply across the board, elevated by quadruple witching, the once-a-quarter expiration of options and futures.  The Nasdaq also closed above its declining 50-day moving average for the first time since July 29.

For a second straight day, the Nasdaq and S&P 500 ended above their respective areas of prior resistance, at 2600 and 1200. The next test for the S&P 500 will come around 1230, which is also close to its 50-day average.

For the week, the Nasdaq rose 6.3%, the S&P 500 5.4% and the NYSE 4.3%.

Walgreens feud with ESRX is opportunity for Catalyst Health...

Walgreen decided not to renew its agreement with Express Scripts (ESRX) as it considered the terms to be unfavorable. With this move, effective January 1, 2012, Walgreen’s 7,700 pharmacies will not be a part of Express Scripts’ pharmacy provider network.

Walgreen estimates that Express Scripts, as a pharmacy benefits manager, processes 90 million prescriptions that are not expected to be filled by Walgreen in fiscal 2011, representing approximately $5.3 billion in annual sales. Hence, we believe the decision not to renew the contract will affect the company’s future growth.

However, Walgreen is working toward establishing itself as a leading provider of pharmacy, and health and wellness solutions. The company has been taking steps over the last few years to align its assets These include the acquisition of Cardinal Health’s (CAH) Specialty Pharmacy business and agreement with Omnicare to divest its long-term care pharmacy business in exchange of the latter’s home infusion business.

Thereafter, during the third quarter of fiscal 2011, Walgreen sold its Pharmacy Benefit Management business to Catalyst Health (CHSI) for $525 million. By divesting its non-core assets, Walgreen will be able to better focus on its drug stores. On the other hand, the company acquired online retailer drugstore.com to gain a strong foothold in the online arena as it will be able to access more than 3 million online customers.

Catalyst Health (CHSI) broke out of a base on Friday rising 2.80 to 58.04

Investor's Business Daily Top 10 stocks...

1. Alexion Pharmaceuticals (ALXN)
2. Ulta Salon Cosmetics (ULTA)
3. Lululemon (LULU)
4. Acretive Health (AH)
5. Baidu (BIDU)
6. Apple (AAPL)
7. New Oriental Education (EDU)
8. Priceline (PCLN)
9. Yamana Gold (AUY)
10. Perrigo (PRGO)

Here are the weekly charts on each:

Stocks close higher...

Stocks made it five for five for the week with another positive day of trading.

Dow +75 to 11509
Nas +15 to 2622
S&P +7 to 1216

Leaders on the day:

Amazon +12.52 to 239.30 (New High)
Apple +7.54 to 400.50
Salesforce.com  +4.34 to 136.56
eBay +1.65 to 33.69
IBM +2.90 to 172.99
Hansen Natural +4.16 to 92.11

Losers:

Netflix -14.06 to 155.19
Research in Motion -5.61 to 23.93

Gold and silver were also slightly higher.  Nice week.  Hopefully more of the same next week.

Have a nice cool weekend!!!

Good read on ETFs by Jim Cramer...

Very accurate and I share the same exact view.

http://www.thestreet.com/story/11251161/1/cramer-etfs-are-market-parasites.html?puc=_booyah_html_pla2&cm_ven=EMAIL_booyah_html

Apple looking to break thru $400....

Apple (AAPL) stock is climbing again today.

It is currently up 6.89 to 399.82.  The previous high was 404.50 set on July 26 of this year.

Here is the weekly chart:

Amazon on fire....

Amazon.com (AMZN) is breaking out to new highs yet again.

The stock is up 7.74 today to 234.62

Here is a look at the weekly chart:

Hansen Natural (HANS) hitting new highs again....

This one is starting to look like something is going on behind the scenes...possible buyout???

Hansen is up another 4.25 to 92.20 today.

Here is the weekly chart:

At Noon....

Stocks are holding on to gains in a volatile session.

Dow +44
Nas +9
S&P +3 to 1211

Oils, banks and commodities are lower, Gold is slightly higher.

Nu Skin (NUS) breaks out to new highs...

"Based on highly favorable feedback and encouraging pre-launch enthusiasm from senior-level Nu Skin distributors we have surveyed, we believe the upcoming fall launches of a new ageLOC skin care product for the body (and related new Galvanic Spa device), and a new nutritional supplement called R2, will act as key fundamental catalysts to earnings performance in upcoming quarters," A Wedbush analyst wrote after the company's latest earnings release on August 31.

The analyst said the expected success of its upcoming product launches should solidify Nu Skin's reputation in the direct-selling industry and boost its shares about 20 percent higher than those of its competitors.

Today, the stock is up 0.65 to a new high of 44.28
Here is the weekly chart:

Sprint preparing for increase in demand...

Sprint's (S) CEO doesn't quite confirm the iPhone (AAPL) rumors, but says at a conference that the carrier is preparing for an influx of demand should it get a new smartphone. All the internal excitement at Sprint didn't quite prevent UBS from cutting EPS estimates and maintaining a Neutral rating on shares.

Sprint is down 0.08 today to 3.36

Wedbush likes eBay...

eBay (EBAY) rises after Wedbush upgrades shares to Outperform, and lifts its Price Target to $48, on bullishness regarding eBay's PayPal unit. The firm believes PayPal will continue growing at a 25-30% clip, and will account for over half of eBay's revenue by 2014. A new in-store payment system is seen as a key growth driver.

eBay is currently up 0.76 to 32.80 and is up 15% this week.

Earnings Growth Monsters...

When earnings growth slows, it often highlights the growth monsters—companies with extremely powerful growth drivers that continue to generate earnings when everyone else decelerates. Growth monsters are always around, but during a cyclical rebound it is not always easy to distinguish them from companies that temporarily have the wind at their back. Growth monsters are more apparent when everyone else is slowing down.


Relative strength tends to identify growth monsters very effectively. Below is a table of the top performing stocks in the S&P 500 and the S&P Midcap 400 for the trailing 12 months.

Consumer sentiment improving...

A gauge of consumer sentiment rose to 57.8 in the preliminary reading for September after tumbling to a nearly three-year low 55.7 in August, according to Friday reports on the gauge from Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan.

Economists polled by MarketWatch had expected a slight rise to 57.3 with stock volatility and weak employment maintaining downward pressure on consumers' sentiment. In August, sentiment had reached the lowest level since November 2008 with Washington's protracted debt-ceiling negotiations taking a toll on consumers.

The sentiment reading, which covers how consumers view their personal finances as well as business and buying conditions, averaged about 87 in the year before the start of the most recent recession.

Market opens higher...again...

At 10:00 am stocks are broadly higher traders are buying the blue chips again.  27 out of 30 Dow stocks are higher.

Dow +51
Nas +8
S&P +5 to 1214

Netflix is down another 7 points to 162
Research in Motion is down 6 to 23.46

Market preview...

Stocks go for a clean sweep in the win column this week, but S&P futures -0.2% as investors eye a meeting of euro-zone finance ministers for signs of progress toward a debt crisis solution. European shares are broadly higher. RIM -23.6% premarket after big EPS and revenue misses. Quadruple witching could add volatility.

Where are we???

It all depends on your perspective.  The S&P 500 currently sits at 1209.  This is the same value the S&P held on each of the following dates:

November 11, 2010
April 26, 2010
September 16, 2008
November 2, 2005
March 3, 2005
August 3, 2001

If you bought $100,000 worth of an S&P 500 Index fund on the following dates, your account would currently be worth:

March 24, 2000 (height of Tech Bubble)  $79,200
Sept 11, 2001 (9/11)  $110,700
January 1, 2009  $133,880
March 9, 2009  (Bottom after finanical crisis) $178,846
September 16, 2010  (Last year) $107,560
January 1, 2011 (Year to date) $96,200

RIMM misses earnings...

Research In Motion (RIMM): FQ2 EPS of $0.80 misses by $0.07. Revenue of $4.17B (-10% Y/Y) misses by $300M. Company expects FQ3 revenue of $5.3B-$5.6B and EPS of $1.20-$1.40, compared with consensus of $5.27B and $1.36. Expects FY12 EPS at low end of prior range of $5.25-$6.00, but above $5.10 consensus.

The company said 10.6M BlackBerrys shipped during quarter, below expectations of 11M-12.5M. 200K PlayBook tablets shipped, below a Bloomberg consensus of 490K. 13.5M-14.5M BlackBerry shipments expected for FQ3, slightly below Street expectations of 14M-15M.

RIMM is trading down 5 points to 24.54 in the after hours market.

Stocks close higher....

Stocks rallied for the fourth straight session.

Dow +186
Nas +34
S&P +20 to 1209

RIMM reports after the bell today...

After a series of increasingly disappointing quarterly earnings announcements, Wall Street is hoping that Research in Motion (RIMM) will deliver better results today.

The Canadian phone maker — most famous for its iconic Blackberry devices — will be reporting its second quarter earnings after the markets close later today.

Analysts are predicting earnings of 87 cents a share for the period, which is within RIM’s own guidance range of adjusted profit of between 75 cents and $1.05 per share.  Higher would be better, based on the hope is that sales of its most recent smartphones with the Blackberry 7 operating system and also its lackluster PlayBook tablet will help its results, after a downward slide that has been painful.

Here is a look at RIMM's weekly chart:

Whole Foods breaking out to new all-time highs...

Whole Foods (WFM) stock is breaking out today to new highs.  It is currently up 1.70 to 68.51

Whole Foods has raised its guidance for this fiscal year and has provided strong guidance for next year. Management is confident about the company's prospects going forward, and so are we. Whole Foods leads its industry in terms of margins, growth, balance sheet quality, and the quality of the food it sells. Whole Foods is leading its shoppers to healthier food.

Whole Foods has beaten earnings estimates for 11 straight quarters.

Here is the weekly chart:

At 3:00 pm....

Stocks are broadening their rally.  All 30 Dow stacks are now higher, and we are seeing substantial moves in Oil, Banks, and commodity stocks.  Gold and silver still selling off.

Dow +177
Nas +35
S&P +20 to 1206

Netflix is the day's big loser.  It is now down 38 points to 170.

Postal Service proposes changes...

The U.S. Postal Service proposes "sweeping changes" to save up to $3B a year - including potentially closing 250 processing facilities. Shares of Stamps.com (STMP -3.6%) have gained 81% in a 3-month tear anticipating a breakdown of business as usual (losses) at the USPS.

Noon Update...

Stock averages are still higher, led by Blue Chip names.  28 of 30 Dow stocks are higher, while technology and previous leaders are taking a day off.

Dow +103
Nas +15
S&P +10 to 1198.

Gold and silver are both down.  Banks, oils, and consumer stocks higher.  Healthcare started slowly but now are turning positive.

Foreclosures rising...

Foreclosure filings were reported on 228,000 properties in August, +7% M/M, with 78,800 default notices, +33% M/M and the highest monthly gain in four years, RealtyTrac reports. The jump may mean that lenders are pushing through more of the foreclosures delayed by robo-signing. Bank of America (BAC) reportedly has been ramping foreclosures into overdrive.

Gold breaking down....

Gold is breaking thru major support levels today.  It has been weak over the last several sessions, but had been holding up.  Today it is breaking down.

Take a look at GLD, the Gold ETF.  It had been holding up at the 175 level.  Today it is down 3.96 to 173.24.  A break below 165 might start the end of the gold mania.:

Cooperman Bullish on stocks...

Thinking that Pres. Obama will shift his "anti-business" views for "political reasons," hedge fund titan Leon Cooperman remains bullish on stocks. His favorite: Spectrum Brands (SPM), because of its focus on middle-income shoppers that are becoming more "thrifty" by moving to lower-cost products. Other favorites:

Apple (AAPL)
Boston Scientific (BSX)
KKR (KKR)
Qualcomm (QCOM)
Sallie Mae (SLM)

This is one of the few Hedge Fund managers whose opinions I respect....

Treasury yields jump...

U.S. Treasuries dive following what appears to be a coordinated QE from the major Western central banks. Both the 10 and 30 years are down more than a full point in price.

The yield on the 10 year up 12 basis points to 2.12%, the 30 year up 8 bps to 3.36%.

20 minutes in....

Stocks are climbing in reaction to the strengthening moves in the Euro.  Taking a look at my board, it looks like money is flowing into the blue chip names as opposed to the high beta names that have been moving over the last few days.

Dow +104
Nas +17
S&P +9 to 1198

US Fed moves to help ECB...

Stocks jump on news that the ECB will offer European banks dollar loans coordinated with the Fed and other central banks. European shares are flying following central bank announcements of dollar funding availability to EU banks. Stoxx 50 +4.5%.

The dollar is getting sold across the board. Gold is tumbling, -2% to $1,790/oz.

Amazon launches in Spain...

Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN). The company launched an online store in Spain on Wednesday, a move that may be the start of a new international push for the world's largest Internet retailer. Customers can sign up as Amazon Prime members and get free two- to three- day shipping for 14.95 euros, or about $20, a year.

Groupon back on track for IPO...

The Groupon IPO is back on track, according to sources, with the company aiming to go public in late October/early November. While a resolution of the SEC investigation helps, of more import is the company's confidence that market conditions have improved.

I think they better hurry up and get this thing out there before the window of opportunity closes.  Amazon, Living Social, Yahoo, Google, Facebook are all getting into this business...if you want to call it that.  I think it's garbage personally.

Netflix lowers outlook...

Netflix (NFLX) is down 30 points to 178 premarket after lowering its Q3 U.S. subscriber growth forecast to 21.8M streaming and 14.2M DVD, from a previous (July 25) 22M and 15M.

"Despite the guidance revision, we remain convinced that the splitting of our services was the right long-term strategic choice. We know our decision to split our services has upset many of our subscribers, which we don't take lightly, but we believe this split will help us make our services better for subscribers and shareholders for years to come."

A couple things hurting Netflix:  They just raised their monthly subscription rate and they just lost the Starz content, which in my opinion was their only movie content worth paying for.

Futures unchanged....

Stock index futures move off of their highs following the 8:30 economic reports pointing towards higher inflation and weakening growth.

Coming off of three straight days of gains, we may be due for a slight pullback.  Keeping an eye in the 1200 level in the S&P 500 and also on Gold prices.