Riverbed Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: RVBD) is getting hit very hard, perhaps even too hard, after its 53% profit gains beat expectations and revenue met estimates more or less.  The problem is that the company’s guidance for the quarter ahead remains challenging.  Riverbed was up 1.2% at $29.92 today but now the stock is down almost 13% in the after-hours session to $26.00 per share in active trading.

So, as far as Juniper is concerned, its non-GAAP profit fell to $0.28 EPS from $0.35 a year earlier while revenue fell to $1.12 billion from $1.19 billion a year earlier.  Those were more or less in-line with estimates, but the company talked about the current quarter being a challenging one and it cut sales expectations to $960 to $990 million versus a target of about $1.1 billion.  That is just heading very much in the wrong direction no matter how you cut it.  Juniper closed down 1% today and the after-hours earnings reaction has shares down almost 8% at $20.60 in active after-hours trading.

There is an old saying that a tail cannot wag the dog.  Unfortunately that is not proving to be the case this evening.  Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the king of the networking space and its shares are down 1% at $19.62 in the after-hours after closing flat at $19.83.  Cisco is in a turnaround and it is believed by many that Cisco is trying to win back much of its lost business in a leaner operating structure.  We’ll know in the coming weeks if that is true or not.

Stay tuned.

JON C. OGG

InterDigital Inc. (NASDAQ: IDCC) was down 3.3% today as is, but now the company is getting slashed and burned on news of what many had considered an obvious coming outcome.  The company ended its strategic review process and it did not find a buyer for its deep patent collection.  Now it is going to proceed on its own licensing or selling patents.  Shares are down over 16% at $37.10 in the after-hours against a 52-week range of $34.61 to $82.50.
 
NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA) was down 3% after the Texas Instruments earnings but now shares are down “only” about 0.6% after closing up 2.7% on the day.

Polycom Inc. (NASDAQ: PLCM) has a history of big hits and bad misses, but tonight’s reaction has shares on the up and up.  After beating earnings handily, Polycom shares are up 9.6% at $20.29 and that is after closing up almost 4% today. 

Texas Instruments Inc. (NYSE: TXN) was down initially due to headlines showing GAAP earnings above estimates but the chip giant is now up over 3% ay $34.25 in the after-hours session against a 52-week range of $24.34 to $36.71.

VMware Inc. (NYSE: VMW) closed down 2.4% at $86.00 today but shares are up 5% at $90.50 on almost 1 million shares after just over an hour after the 4PM closing bell.  The virtualization leader said sales rose 27% to $1.06 billion and it sees revenues of $1.015 billion to $1.04 billion for the first quarter of 2012.  These are being taken as above plan.  The news has the (former) parent company of EMC Corporation (NYSE: EMC) up about 1.8% at $23.87 on over 2 million after-hours shares.

Western Digital Corporation (NYSE: WDC) may have seen earnings drop almost 36%, but the update is proving to be above plan and it claims to be making much more progress in Thai floods.  Shares closed up marginally today and the after-hours reaction has shares up 4.4% at $36.25 versus a 52-week range of $22.64 to $41.87.

Zions Bancorporation (NASDAQ: ZION) posted earnings light at $0.30 versus estimates of $0.33.  Its book value per common shares grew to $25.02 from $24.78 one quarter earlier and shares are down 3% at $17.98 in the after-hours.

JON C. OGG

Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE: CHK) beat earnings at $0.72 EPS versus $0.66 estimates; shares were even higher right after the news but the stock is still up 5% at $30.50 on more than 1.3 million shares in the after-hours session.

Entropic Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: ENTR) managed to beat estimates at $0.12 EPS, but the after-hours reaction is down 11% at $5.28 on more than 130,000 shares since the close.

First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) closed up 2% at $48.18 and shares are up another 4% at $50.08 after the company announced manufacturing consolidation moves that will delay a Vietnam plant from opening.

Keynote Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: KEYN) beat sales and revenue estimates but gave a mixed guidance picture.  Shares were down 11% at $22.25 in more than 60,000 shares in the after-hours session.

LinkedIn Corporation (NYSE: LNKD) closed up 3.5% today, but the company reported a loss and said it was selling $100 million in new stock.  Shares are down 8.5% at $79.70 in the after-hours reaction.

MasTec, Inc. (NYSE: MTZ) was getting hit in the after-hours session after beating earnings but giving guidance that was mostly in-line; shares were down 12.8% at $19.10 on more than 55,000 shares in the after-hours session.

OXiGENE Inc. (NASDAQ: OXGN) is down a sharp 28% at $1.31 after showing its final data from Phase 2 FALCON study for its ZYBRESTAT in treating Non-Small Cell Lung cancer.

Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ: SBUX) closed up 0.5% today and the stock is up 2.8% at $42.55 after earnings in the after-hours.  The coffee destination retailer posted a 29% rise in profits and it raised the dividend and increased shares under a buyback plan.

VIVUS, Inc. (NASDAQ: VVUS) reported after the close that Qnexa’s Phase III data published in obesity showed a 14.4% average weight loss in severely obese patients completing one year of treatment. Shares were up over 3% at $9.80 after the close on more than 50,000 shares.

JON C. OGG

American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE: AEO) lives and dies by guidance around same-store sales.  Shares are surging on a report of third quarter sales rising 11% and the stock is up 6.5% at $14.15 in the after-hours session.

Dendreon Corporation (NASDAQ: DNDN) has changed its name to better reflect its stock ticker: “Do Not Do Not!”… shares closed down 1.7% at $10.46 but Provenge sales were only $66 million.  Shares are down over 11.5% from the close at $9.25 in active trading.

Fusion-io, Inc. (NYSE: FIO) was up 6% already and the recent IPO beat estimates.  Shares are up a sharp 12.6% more at $36.05 on more than 100,000 shares in the after-hours session.

Hansen Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ: HNSN) was up ahead of earnings on the same hope of Intuitive Surgical.  It didn’t happen… Third quarter total revenue was $5.4 million, up 53% year over year and 1% sequentially.  Shares are down 17.2% to $2.60 in the after-hours. 

MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ: MELI) is surging after closing up more than 1%.  It reported that Q3 gross merchandise volume rose 51.8% to $1.3 billion, items sold rose 38.1% to 14.4 million; and revenue rose 45.9% to $81.6 million.  This ADR is up 17% at $74.17 in active trading after the close.

NutriSystem Inc. (NASDAQ: NTRI) reported that revenues were $85.6 million versus $121.2 million a year ago.  Shares are down almost 16% at $10.10 on well over 100,000 shares in the after-hours.

QUALCOMM Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM) rose 4% to $52.18 ahead of earnings and beating earnings and bringing guidance is worth a gain of another 9.1% to $56.99 on highly active trading.

RealD Inc. (NYSE: RLD) showed a 35% revenue gain and was said to beat estimates but something awful must have been said in its conference call.  Shares closed up 9.5% at $11.26 but the stock is now down 13.3% at $9.76 in the after-hours.

ValueVision Media, Inc. (NASDAQ: VVTV) reported Q3 estimates of sales growth of 2% to $135 million and an adjusted EBITDA loss of $0.5M to$0.7M; Shares closed up 7% at $3.27 but the stock is down almost 15% from the close at $2.79 on more than 27,000 shares. 

Whole Foods Market, Inc. (NASDAQ: WFM) was up ahead of earnings, but the company missed revenues.  Raising the dividend and a 31% income pop just aren’t enough for a high-valued luxury grocery store.  Shares are down 5% at $67.50 in active trading in the evening session. $ 66.22  4.34  6.15%  582,256 

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A brief summary of the news and the after-hours reaction is available on each below.

American Express Company (NYSE: AXP) beat earnings estimates at $1.03 EPS versus $0.95 estimates.  Shares were down 1.2% today and shares are currently down another 1.2% at $45.59 in the after-hours session.

Buffalo Wild Wings Inc. (NASDAQ: BWLD) beats earnings at $0.61 EPS versus $0.63 EPS estimate; revenues rose over 30%; it sees meeting a goal of 13% unit growth and 23% net earnings growth for 2011. The dining, beer, and sports destination also sees 2012 with 12% unit growth and net earnings growth of 20% in 2012.  Shares fell 0.8% on the day but the stock is up 3.3% at $59.81 in the after-hours session.

Cirrus Logic Inc. (NASDAQ: CRUS) beats earnings but guided next quarter below estimates as it is seeing softness in some areas of business due to global economic issues.  Shares were down 5.5% at $17.01 on the regular trading day and shares are down another 12% at $14.73 in after-hours.

Cubist Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: CBST) beat $200 million in sales for the quarter and shares are up almost 8% at $39.33 after closing down 1.75% today.

eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY) met its $0.48 EPS target and sees $0.55 to $0.58 EPS versus $0.58 EPS targets in Q4.  Shares were down 2% on the day and down another 4.3% at $31.83 in after-hours trading. 

E*TRADE FInancial Corporation (NASDAQ: ETFC) is now up after having been down.  It appears to have met the $0.16 estimate but revenues were light; shares closed down 2.6% on the day but are back up almost 2% at $9.52 in after-hours.  No word on any merger, again.

Riverbed Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: RVBD) may be getting its mojo back… It beat earnings and guided higher.  After falling 2.8% on the day shares are up over 11% at $25.10 in the after-hours and the 52-week range is $12.57 to $44.70.

Western Digital Corporation (NYSE: WDC) was down 9% today on Thai flood concerns and shares are down another 2% at $24.00 in the after-hours session despite $1.01 EPS.  The floods could impact they key quarter ahead.

Wynn Resorts Ltd. (NASDAQ: WYNN) was down over 5% on its own today and now the high-end casino operator posted $1.05 EPS versus $1.15 estimates even though revenues were in line and up 29%.  Shares are down another 5.2% at $123.48.

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JON C. OGG

The thresholds will lower the broad market decline percentage triggers, shorten the duration of the trading halts, and also change the reference index.  The existing market-wide circuit breakers were originally adopted in October 1988 and have only been triggered on one day in 1997.

The basic proposals are as follows:

• Lower the market decline percentage thresholds from 10%, 20%, and 30% down to new levels of 7%, 13%, and 20% from the prior day’s closing price.
• The duration of the trading halts that do not close the market for the day would go from 30 minutes, 60 minutes, or 120 minutes down to 15 minutes.
• Rather than six time periods, the only two relevant trigger time periods would be before 3:25 P.P. and on or after 3:25 P.M. 
• The new proposal would strip the Dow Jones Industrial Average as the reference index and would change to the S&P 500 Index as the pricing reference.

Normally, we might not support changes of this magnitude.  Our concern is that the Flash Crash of 2010 was damaging enough that some measures needed to be reviewed.  More importantly than that, some estimate that trading machines, the computer to computer trading, now accounts for up to 75% of the trading in the liquid stocks out there.  That figure varies wildly depending upon the day, but all you have to do is read what we wrote about the dangers of  nanonsecond trading.  

Imagine if the machines actually dumped 1 billion trades upon the market in one second.  A stretch, yes.  Theoretically possible, yes.  If you do not trust our notion on this matter, remember this: a survey on Wall Street noted that high-frequency trading (HFT) is mostly bad for everyone except the HFTs themselves.

A public comment period will take place but here are the full proposals from the SEC site.

JON C. OGG

Aeropostale, Inc. (NYSE: ARO) fell 2.3% today and the stock is down another 8.9% at $11.38 in the after-hours.  This troubled apparel player managed to beat earnings but guided lower for the coming quarter.  The turnaround just won’t turn.

Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADSK) is regaining half of its losses in the after-hours.  Shares fell 8% today and the stock is back up 4% at $26.51 this evening.  Keep in mind that today was a 52-week low.  The company beat estimates and did not guide lower for the coming quarter.

Barnes & Noble, Inc. (NYSE: BKS) may have fallen almost 7% today but the stock is up almost 3% at $12.42 in the after hours session.  Liberty Media is not going to acquire the company but it is making a strategic investment in the company.

Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE: HPQ) is the gift that keeps on taking and it now trades at less than six-times forward earnings.  The stock fell 6% to $29.51 after the re-activated trading after earnings before the close today and the shares have fallen even worse.  H-P shares are down 9% at $26.82 in the after-hours and the old 52-week low was $28.64.

LDK Solar Co. Inc. (NYSE: LDK) is one that if it was in Mexico the stock brokers would be telling their sales managers that clients are pulling “El D.K.” to get out of the trade.  The solar player lowered guidance for the year for revenues, shipments, and margins.  Shares fell 3.5% today and the stock is down 19% at $5.30 in the after-hours.

Marvell Technology Group Ltd. (NASDAQ: MRVL) was down almost 7% ahead of earnings but the mobile chip designer managed to beat estimates.  Shares were up 13% at $13.70 in the after-hours session.

Silicon Graphics International Corp. (NASDAQ: SGI) beat earnings and grew again.  Shares fell 7.3% today but the stock was up 10.2% at $13.15 on last look in the after-hours session.

JON C. OGG

Hot Topic Inc. (NASDAQ: HOTT) is higher as a turnaround stock, but it lost $6.2 million for the quarter to come in at -$0.14 EPS.  The boost is from a $25 million share buyback plan.  Shares fell 1% in regular trading to $6.95, but the stock is up 4% at $7.23 in the after-hours.

Invesco Mortgage Capital Inc. (NYSE: IVR) had already had one secondary offering not too long ago at the end of June, and now it has signaled that it will sell 20 million more in shares.  Shares are trading down 3.3% at $18.65 in the after-hours session.

JDS Uniphase Corporation (NASDAQ: JDSU) is down considerably after turning in a mere $0.04 net EPS on $0.23 adjusted EPS.  The guidance is where the trouble comes into play.  Shares closed down 1.7% at $11.70 and the stock is now down what is approaching double-digits in percentage terms at $10.60.

Limited Brands, Inc. (NYSE: LTD) is bucking some of the margin issues in retail apparel stores.  The company posted $0.48 EPS vs. $0.46 estimates and it raised 2011 guidance to $2.35 to $2.40 EPS after giving same-store sales guidance for the next quarter in the high single-digit range.  Shares were down 1.4% at $34.34 today but the stock is now up 3.6% at $35.50 in the after-hours.

NetApp, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP) is hurting: The company reported earnings of $0.54 EPS before items and gave guidance for earnings down at $0.38 to $0.42 EPS for next quarter.  The company also announced the retirement of its CFO.  Shares were down over 3% at $41.66 today, but now the stock is down more than 11% more at $36.95 in the after-hours session.  What will hurt more than anything is that the prior 52-week low was $38.00.  So much for this one being immune to the market and economy.

PetSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ: PETM) looked ok on the surface at $0.54 EPS vs. $0.51 estimates.  The company also put 2011 guidance at $2.40 to $2.48 EPS versus a prior target of $2.32 to $2.42 EPS. The problem is that Thomson Reuters was already at $2.43 EPS.  Shares closed down $0.03 at $41.56 and the after-hours market is down more than 3% at $40.15 in the after-hours.

Synopsys Inc. (NASDAQ: SNPS) said revenue rose almost 15% to $386.8 million and gave guidance for next quarter for revenues to be in a range of $386 to $392 million.  It also gave guidance of $1.531 to $1.537 billion in 2011 sales, all of which are slightly above estimates from Thomson Reuters.  Shares closed up 3.8% at $23.44 and the stock is up another 1.5% at $23.80 in the after-hours session.

Gentium S.p.A (NASDAQ: GENT) is getting whacked after announcing that the company was withdrawing its NDA for Defibrotide after recent correspondence from the FDA identifying numerous “Refuse to File” issues regarding the completeness of the datasets for both the treatment and prevention studies. The FDA has also requested that Gentium conduct additional quality reviews and requested additional details regarding the conduct and monitoring of the trials by the independent review committee.  Ouch.  Shares closed down 2% at $8.79 but the stock is down close to 30% at $6.30 in the after-hours session.

Some of these prices may be grossly different after the conference calls and by the morning.

JON C. OGG

Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC) was up almost 1% at $7.66 in the after-hours session on more than 15 million shares in the hour after the close.  CEO Brian Moynihan defended the bank’s finances and the bank’s capital on a CNBC interview, but keep in mind that the rally back was 16% today during normal trading hours.

Cree Inc. (NASDAQ: CREE) is higher after beating earnings even though guidance looked soft on first look. Shares rose 10% to $29.49 today and the after-hours reaction to the earnings was up 5.8% to $31.30 this evening.

Demand Media, Inc. (NYSE: DMD) enjoyed a 7% gain on the day, but it announced after the close that it was extending its advertising relationship with Google and that had shares up almost 17% at $10.50 as many have feared that Google would penalize it for accusations of content farming. The post-IPO range is $7.65 to $27.38.

MBIA Inc. (NYSE: MBI) has moved around a bit after a near-90% drop in earnings.  The numbers were distorted due to prior gains and aided by cost cuts in the current quarter.  Shares were up 2,9% today and the after-hours reaction has shares down 1.3% at $6.65.

Motricity, Inc. (NASDAQ: MOTR) has been a rough stock and the rough patch is getting even rougher.  The company missed earnings expectations and announced a CFO transition… Shares appear to be down by HALF… That is -55% at $2.05 versus a prior 52-week range of $4.18 to $31.95.

Vitesse Semiconductor Corporation (NASDAQ: VTSS) rose substantially in the after-hours.  While revenues were lower, the company returned to profitability and margin rose.  Shares were up 19% at $3.92 in the after-hours session.

Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) managed to perform on earnings growth of 11%, but the studio segment decline on Cars 2 cancelled out the gains of theme parks and TV.  Shares were down almost 2% at $34.10 in the after-hours session but that was on the heels of a 5% gain with a strong DJIA on Tuesday.

JON C. OGG

CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CF) reported a key beat on its earnings expectations after the close as its profits literally tripled.  The company also said it is not selling an operation to Mosaic and it is multiplying its dividend rate.  CF shares closed down over 8% today and the stock is up about 6% at $150.00 in the after-hours session.

Fluor Corporation (NYSE: FLR) is not your normal earnings gainer.  Shares were down more than 9% today but the engineering and design firm exceeded earnings estimates with a 5% profit gain as backlog rose over 30%.  Shares are indicated up 3.3% at $56.42 in the after-hours session against a 52-week trading range of $44.04 to $75.76.

Kodiak Oil & Gas Corp. (NYSE: KOG) reported in-line earnings and it beat on revenues with $0.04 EPS and revenues rose some 260% to $22.1 million (above $700K higher than estimates).  Shares are trading up 5.7% at $6.09 in the after-hours session against a 52-week range of $2.43 to $7.70.

LinkedIn Corporation (NYSE: LNKD) fell by over 9.5% today with the market, but the company now said it has over 120 million members as it posted not just a beat on earnings but positive earnings as sales more than doubled to $121 million.  Shares are now indicated up over 4% at $99.00 in the after-hours.

priceline.com Incorporated (NASDAQ: PCLN) tanked by more than 7% ahead of earnings, but the online travel site is gaining back all of its losses and then some.  The company beat earnings as revenues rose 44%.  Bookings rose and even a trend of deceleration on growth did not upset William Shatner and friends.  Shares are up over 9.5% at $531.25 in the after-hours.

Spreadtrum Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: SPRD) was hit by more than 7% but the results have it way up.  Earnings were $0.10 above estimates at $0.65 EPS and revenue was up over 15% at $160.2 million vs. $155+ million expected.  It also raised guidance to $172 to $178 million versus almost $166 million expected.  Shares are up over 13% at $15.00 in the after-hours session.

Web.com Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: WWWW) had a solid day as one of the few great winners after it beat earnings and said it is making an accretive buyout of Network Solutions for some $560 million.  Shares were up 19% today to $10.37 and the stock is up 7% at $11.13 in the after-hours session because the CEO is supposed to speak to Jim Cramer.  Where this really ends up tonight is anyone’s guess, but this one is a winner from that deal.

It is possible that some of the gains will dry up if the panic continues.  After all, the NASDAQ: was down over 100 points and the DJIA fell more than 500 points today.  It happens, and we have the key unemployment non-farm payrolls data that could drive the markets even that much more in the morning.

JON C. OGG