Stocks finish higher....

but the tape was somewhat negative.  Several recent winners sold off as traders booked profits and moved to other names.  Tomorrow should be interesting.

Dow +53 to 11613
Nas +3 to 2579
S&P +6 to 1218

End of the month ....

Today is the last day of the month.  Looks like we are getting a little "window dressing" into the close.

With 15 minutes left:

Dow +79
Nas +5
S&P +1

Market turns negative....

As I thought earlier, this rally just didn't look right...too much selling going on this morning in the high beta names.  Hopefully we hold up into the close.

Dow -5
Nas -13
S&P -2

Hansen sells off on insider selling....

Shares of Hansen Natural (HANS -5.08 to 84.50) fall after SEC filings show insider selling in the last week while the stock was rising. Share are still up 10% over the last month and 61% for the year.

I find that insider selling has virtually no accuracy when looking for clues from insider action.  Why????  Because we have no idea why that insider is selling.

Market holding gains...

At noon the market is holding on to gains, however we are definitely seeing some weakness off of the open.  It looks like we need some sort of positive news to push this market higher.  It is clear that traders are a little nervous right here, considering we have rallied 10% off of the bottom hit on August 9.

Dow +66
Nas +8
S&P +8

Today's upgrades and downgrades...

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

Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE: ALU) Maintained Underperform and cut estimates at Credit Suisse.
Apollo Residential Mortgage, In (NYSE: AMTG) Started as Buy at Stifel Nicolaus; Started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.
BMC Software Inc. (NYSE: BMC) Started as Outperform at Wells Fargo.
Boston Properties Inc. (NYSE: BXP) Reiterated Buy with $120 target at Argus.
Citrix Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CTXS) Started as Outperform at Wells Fargo.
Corning Inc. (NYSE: GLW) Reiterated Buy with $28 target at BofA/ML.
Crawford & Co. (NYSE: CRD-B) Started as Outperform at William Blair.
Francesca’s Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ: FRAN) Started as Neutral at Goldman Sachs; Started as Buy at Jefferies; Started as Hold at Stifel Nicolaus.
Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (NYSE: HMC) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.
Linear Technology Corporation (NASDAQ: LLTC) Maintained Underperform as Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Navigant Consulting, Inc. (NYSE: NCI) Raised to Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
Red Hat, Inc. (NYSE: RHT) Started as Outperform at Wells Fargo.
Steel Dynamics Inc. (NASDAQ: STLD) Cut to Neutral at Goldman Sachs.
Tesoro Corporation (NYSE: TSO) Raised to Outperform at RBC.
Toyota Motor Corporation (NYSE: TM) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.
VMware Inc. (NYSE: VMW) Reiterated Buy with $104 target at BofA/ML.

Ag stocks take a breather....

While the Dow remains up 85 points right now, Ag stocks are selling off.  These stocks have all made nice moves in the past two weeks.

CF Industries (CF) is down 6.35 to 183.42
Mosaic (MOS) is down 1.65 to 71.50
Agrium (AGU) is down 1.22 to 86.48
Potash (POT) is down 1.25 to 57.83

Bucking the trend is Terra Nitrogen (TNH).  It is up another 2.36 to 197

One hour into the day....

Kind of a strange tape.  Stock indexes are higher, but traders are clearly taking profits in some of the stocks that have made big moves of late.  That kind makes me a little wary of this move.  Let's see what happens as the day wears on.  Here's where we are now:

Dow +116
Nas +31
S&P +15 to 1228

The key for the S&P 500 is that it remain above the 1200 level.

Goldman likes the metals...

Goldman Sachs says demand for metal should remain “fairly healthy,” driven by emerging markets, and the recent pullback in metals and mining stocks has created a “particularly attractive entry point for select names." Goldman reiterates Buy ratings on Freeport McMoran (FCX +3.3%) and Alcoa (AA +4.1%) following sharp pullbacks.

Nice open for stocks....

After twenty minutes of trading, stocks are broadly higher. 

Dow +85
Nas +21
S&P +12

Gold is down slightly.

Joy Global tops views...

Joy Global (JOYG +5.6%) opens with a bounce after topping Q3 earnings views, and raising full-year earnings and revenue guidance. The mining equipment maker also says it will sell its LeTourneau drilling operation to Cameron International (CAM +1%) for $375M. JOYG is in the process of buyng China's International Mining Machinery Holdings.

HP seems like a confused company...

Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) says it will temporarily resume manufacturing of its TouchPad tablet just 11 days after killing it. The resurrection follows a spike in demand after H-P, desperate to clear out unsold inventory, slashed the price from $399 to $99. But the decision to manufacture a second run is puzzling, since the basic TouchPad costs ~$306 to manufacture.

Premarket movers....

Premarket gainers:

CTIC +18%. FRO +5%. JOYG +5%. SINA +4%. UBS +3%. ARMH +3%. JDSU +3%. MU +3%.

Losers:
 
LTXC -14%. DRYS -8%. NBG -7%. JVA -5%. TQNT -4%.

A Milkshake to treat Alzheimer's....

A vanilla milkshake for Alzheimer's patients provides energy to the brain, says the company that sells it. A company-funded clinical trial found short-term positive effects in cognition and memory, but scientists say so far there is insufficient evidence that the drink is effective.

The brains of Alzheimer's patients don't convert glucose into energy as efficiently as healthy brains, which can result in a decrease in cognitive function, according to privately held Accera Inc., the Broomfield, Colorado company that sells the milkshake, called Axona. The shake contains caprylic triglyceride, a compound derived from coconut oil that is metabolized in the liver to produce ketone bodies, which serve as alternate brain fuel for Alzheimer's patients, the company says.

Here is a link to the company's website:

http://www.accerapharma.com/index.html

Gaddafi forces given 5 days to surrender...

Libya’s rebel leadership on Tuesday ordered forces loyal to longtime leader Moammar Gaddafi to surrender by Saturday or face a military assault aimed at completing the rebels’ takeover of the country. 

Mustafa Abdel Jalil, head of the rebel’s governing Transitional National Council, said his forces would attack Gaddafi’s home town of Sirte, where the loyalists have gathered, on Saturday, the day when celebrations marking the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan will end.

“This window of opportunity closes with the end of the official holiday Eid al-Fitr," Abdel Jalil said. “We can act decisively to end this in a military manner. We do not wish to do so, but we cannot wait any longer.”

Amazon vs. Apple....

The 10-inch version of Amazon's (AMZN) much-anticipated tablet won't go into mass production until Q1 2012, according to DigiTimes. However, the 7-inch version is expected to start shipping in October. Apple (AAPL) is expected to launch its next 9.7-inch iPad, believed to feature a higher-resolution display, early next year.

These stories that Amazon's tablet will rival Apple's iPad is a joke to me.  There is no comparison between the Kindle and the iPad. 

Jobs number less than expected....

August ADP Jobs Report: +91K vs. +100K expected and +109K prior (revised from +114K). The data "suggests that the trend in employment moderated somewhat in August at a pace below what would be consistent with a stable unemployment rate."


Stock Futures remain positive...