24/7 Wall St. » DRYS

Closing Bell for Thursday on Wall Street: Markets Stall on Japan Losses

Paul Ausick — Thu, 23 May 2013 20:05:54 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened sharply lower this morning, taking a lead from Japan’s Nikkei, which fell more than 7% for the day. Japan’s government bond yields spiked until the Bank of Japan intervened. Japan-focused ETFs got clobbered today. Nearly missed in the flurry surrounding the Japanese debacle was the decline in China’s manufacturing PMI<>. Europe followed Japan’s lead as well, even though eurozone manufacturing PMI rose. The bad news is that the eurozone’s manufacturing PMI continues to contract. In the U.S., new claims for jobless benefits fell, while data on new home sales and house prices continued to improve. U.S. equities ended the day with a small loss after the dust settled.

The U.S. dollar index is trading down 0.73% today, now at 83.7360. The GSCI commodity index is down 0.8% at 625.96. WTI crude oil closed down fractionally, at $94.25 a barrel. Brent crude trades down 0.1% at $102.46 a barrel. Natural gas is up 1.7% today at about $4.26 per million BTUs following a relatively small addition to the nation’s inventories<>. Gold settled up 1.8% today at $1,391.80.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down nearly 13 points to 15,294.50 (-0.08%), the NASDAQ fell nearly 4 points (-0.11%) to 3,459.42, and the S&P 500 fell -0.29% or nearly 5 points to 1,650.53.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including:

Sanmina Corp. (NASDAQ: SANM) cut to ‘sell’ at Deutsche Bank;
Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) started as ‘underperform’ at Credit Suisse;
Seagate Technology PLC (NASDAQ: STX) raised to ‘buy’ at Deutsche Bank;
VeriFone Systems Inc. (NYSE: PAY) raised to ‘buy’ at SunTrust; and
Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc. (NYSE: DO) raised to ‘neutral’ at Goldman Sachs.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have resulted in some price changes for reporting companies as of the last half hour of trading today:

DryShips Inc. (NASDAQ: DRYS) is down 6.2% at $1.96;
L Brands Inc. (NYSE: LTD) is down 0.4% at $X51.25X;
PetSmart Inc. (NASDAQ: PETM) is up 1.9% at $70.35;
SeaWorld Entertainment Inc. (NYSE: SEAS) is down 1.3% at $37.24;
Workday Inc. (NYSE: WDAY) is up 0.9% at $66.34;
Dollar Tree Inc. (NASDAQ: DLTR) is up 4% at $50.29;
GameStop Corp. (NYSE: GME) is down 1.1% at $35.85;
Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL) is down 2.5% at $183.46; and
Stein Mart Inc. (NASDAQ: SMRT) is up 4.8% at $12.28, a new 52-week high.

Before markets open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear earnings from Aeropostale Inc. (NYSE: ARO), America’s Car-Mart Inc. (NASDAQ: CRMT), Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS), Marvell Technology Group Ltd. (NASDAQ: MRVL), Pandora Media Inc. (NYSE: P), Ross Stores Inc. (NASDAQ: ROST), Salesforce.com Inc. (NYSE: CRM), Zumiez Inc. (NASDAQ: ZUMZ), Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF), and Foot Locker Inc. (NYSE: FL).

Some standouts among heavily traded stocks today include:

Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ) is up 16.8% at $24.79 after posting a new 52-week high of $24.91 earlier today. The printer and computer maker posted better-than-expected earnings last night.

MannKind Corp. (NASDAQ: MNKD) is up 8.1% at $6.74 after posting a new 52-week high of $6.99 earlier today. The biopharmaceuticals firm continues to see shares rise following a report yesterday that the company is a likely takeover target.

Cirrus Logic Inc. (NASDAQ: CRUS) is down 19.8% at $17.70. The semiconductor maker lowered its outlook, this morning.

Stay tuned for Friday. We have noted the following event on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – Durable goods orders

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: ANF, ARO, CRM, CRMT, CRUS, DLTR, DO, DRYS, FL, GME, GPS, HPQ, JNJ, LTD, MNKD, MRVL, P, PAY, PETM, RL, ROST, SANM, SEAS, SMRT, STX, WDAY, ZUMZ

Closing Bell for Wednesday on Wall Street: Markets Blunted on Fed Comments, Minutes

Paul Ausick — Wed, 22 May 2013 20:06:21 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened barely higher this morning following a report that mortgage loan applications had fallen by 9.8% from the previous week, on top of a 7% decline for the prior period. In Asia, the Bank of Japan said it would maintain its key interest rate at 0.10% and would increase the country’s monetary base. The eurozone reported a current account surplus of €25.9 billion, far greater than the expected surplus of €15 billion. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke testified before a joint Congressional committee this morning, and that, coupled with a mid-afternoon release of the FOMC minutes sent stocks solidly lower for the last two hours of today’s session.

The U.S. dollar index is trading up 0.55% today, now at 84.3240. The GSCI commodity index is down 0.6% at 631.02. WTI crude oil closed down 2%, at $94.28 a barrel on the first day of trading the July contract and following another large rise in U.S. gasoline inventories. Brent crude trades down 1.4% at $102.51 a barrel. Natural gas is down 0.1% today at about $4.19 per million BTUs. Gold settled down 0.6% today at $1,370.10.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down about 80 points to 15,307.56 (-0.52%), the NASDAQ fell nearly 39 points (-1.11%) to 3,463.30, and the S&P 500 fell -0.83% or nearly 14 points to 1,655.35.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including:

SodaStream International Ltd (NASDAQ: SODA) cut to ‘neutral’ at J.P. Morgan;
Carnival Corp. (NYSE: CCL) cut to ‘neutral’ at HSBC;
Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (NYSE: BMY) raised to ‘buy’ at Citigroup;
Monster Beverage Corp. (NASDAQ: MNST) started as ‘outperform’ at BMO Capital Markets; and
Popular Inc. (NASDAQ: BPOP) started as ‘outperform’ at Wells Fargo.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have resulted in some price changes for reporting companies as of the last half hour of trading today:

Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ: INTU) is up 0.4% at $58.14;
NetApp Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP) is up 1.2% at $37.05;
American Eagle Outfitters Inc. (NYSE: AEO) is up 1% at $20.51;
Lowe’s Companies Inc. (NYSE: LOW) is up 0.6% at $42.71 after posting a new 52-week high of $43.84 earlier today;
Staples Inc. (NASDAQ: SPLS) is up 2% at $15.05 after posting a new 52-week high of $15.50 earlier today;;
Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT) is down 4.6% at $67.96; and
Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE: TOL) is up 2.8% at $37.00 after posting a new 52-week high of $39.25 earlier today.

Before markets open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear earnings from DryShips Inc. (NASDAQ: DRYS), Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ), L Brands Inc. (NYSE: LTD), PetSmart Inc. (NASDAQ: PETM), SeaWorld Entertainment Inc. (NYSE: SEAS), Workday Inc. (NYSE: WDAY), Dollar Tree Inc. (NASDAQ: DLTR), GameStop Corp. (NYSE: GME), Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL), and Stein Mart Inc. (NASDAQ: SMRT).

Some standouts among heavily traded stocks today include:

MannKind Corp. (NASDAQ: MNKD) is up 15.1% at $6.17 after posting a new 52-week high of $6.54 earlier today. The biopharmaceuticals firm was touted as a likely takeover target.

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) is up 1.7% at $29.26. The drugmaker said it plans to sell its majority holding in animal drug spinoff Zoetis Inc. (NYSE: ZTS).

Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. (NYSE: STP) is down 22.9% at $0.99. The solar energy PV maker has sold one of its projects to another company at a steep discount, and the local government of Wuxi province, where Suntech has its main manufacturing plant, has filed a $2.5 billion claim against the company on behalf of more than 500 creditors.

Stay tuned for Thursday. St. Louis Fed President James Bullard is giving a speech. We have also noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – New claims for unemployment benefits
8:58 a.m. – Flash PMI manufacturing index
9:00 a.m. – FHFA house price index
10:00 a.m. – New home sales
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly natural gas storage report
11:00 a.m. – Kansas City Fed manufacturing index
1:00 p.m. – Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) auction
4:30 p.m. – Fed balance sheet and money supply

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: AEO, BMY, BPOP, CCL, DLTR, DRYS, GME, HPQ, INTU, LOW, LTD, MNKD, MNST, NTAP, PETM, PFE, RL, SEAS, SMRT, SODA, SPLS, STP, TGT, TOL, WDAY, ZTS

Nine Early Bird Stocks on the Move (CIEN, DRYS, HIMX, JRCC, JDSU, WFR, OCLS, PETM, SCTY)

Jon C. Ogg — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 13:25:35 +0000

24/7 Wall St. is tracking many movers on high volume this morning. Some are earnings and others are on individual news. Shortly after 8:00 a.m., these are the nine stocks that active traders will be focused on for Thursday:

Ciena Corp. (NASDAQ: CIEN) is surging higher, with gains of 12% to $16.80 after upside was shown on earnings and guidance. More than 500,000 shares were recorded very early, so this is one to watch as average volume is 3.5 million shares per day.

DryShips Inc. (NASDAQ: DRYS) is down 6% at $1.86 after reporting a loss of $0.15 per share, versus -$0.11 per share expected, but sales looked to above plan.

Himax Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: HIMX) is continuing its surge higher after seeing very large volume spikes this week. The stock already backed down off the highs to $3.80 as of yesterday, but now we have the stock up another 25% at $4.70 on strong premarket volume of more than 400,000 shares. The average volume is 960,000 shares but has been more active in recent days.

James River Coal Co. (NASDAQ: JRCC) is down more than 11% at $2.25 on yet another quarterly and annual loss. It also showed more layoffs, even as it tried to talk up the coal market in 2013.

JDS Uniphase Corp. (NASDAQ: JDSU) is up more than 5% at $14.95 this morning. As of 8:00 a.m. EST there was no obvious news, but perhaps it is riding Ciena’s wave.

MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. (NYSE: WFR) is up more than 4% at $5.45 on news that Goldman Sachs raised the rating to Buy on the solar and chip wafer turnaround stock.

Oculus Innovative Sciences Inc. (Nasdaq: OCLS) is already considered a penny stock, but its shares are down a sharp 22% at $0.42 to a new 52-week low (prior low $0.50) on news that it is raising capital in a stock and securities sale of 7.5 million shares.

Petsmart Inc. (NASDAQ: PETM) beat earnings yet again with 4.6% same-store sales gains in the quarter. Unfortunately, the pet supplies retailer signaled that the coming same-store sales would be in a 2% to 4% range. Shares are down 7.5% at $61.50 on the news.

Solarcity Corp. (NASDAQ: SCTY) was supposed to be immune from the solar woes since it is the installer and manager of systems. Unfortunately it posted a loss on lighter-than-expected sales. Shares were down more than 10% last night but the stock is down almost 7% at $17.99 this morning.

Filed under: Active Trader, Earnings Tagged: CIEN, DRYS, featured, HIMX, JDSU, JRCC, OCLS, PETM, SCTY, WFR

DryShips Raising Capital Via Ocean Rig UDW Share Sale (ORIG, DRYS)

Jon C. Ogg — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 21:40:44 +0000

Ocean Rig UDW Inc. (NASDAQ: ORIG) has announced that DryShips Inc. (NASDAQ: DRYS) will be selling a total of 5 million shares of common stock in Ocean Rig. The move will raise capital via an underwritten public offering under Ocean Rig’s effective shelf registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Deutsche Bank Securities and Credit Suisse are acting as joint book-running managers for the offering.

The press release showed that all net proceeds from the stock sale will be received by DryShips, so the selling shareholder will receive all of the proceeds rather than Ocean Rig adding any capital into its treasury. This is not likely to be the last share sale either as DryShips is still expected to own approximately 61.3% of Ocean Rig’s outstanding shares after the offering.

Ocean Rig UDW closed at $17.55, so this would add some $87.8 million into the DryShips cash balance if the share sale managed to somehow go off at the closing price. Ocean Rig is worth some $2.3 billion in market cap versus $893 million in market cap for DryShips.

Over the last year DryShips shares have traded in a range of $1.46 to $3.84. Its closing bell price of $2.16 generates a market value of about $893 million.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, IPOs & Secondaries, Oil & Gas, Transports Tagged: DRYS, featured, ORIG

Dry Bulk Shippers Pin Hopes on Iron Ore, China

Paul Ausick — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 17:01:27 +0000

Shares of a host of shipping companies are getting a big boost today on a report from Bloomberg that the 2013 outlook for shipping rates, especially for iron ore, are set to rise substantially during the year. Another way of putting it is that rates have nowhere to go but up.

Eagle Bulk Shipping Inc. (NASDAQ: EGLE) leads today’s charge, up nearly 38%. That would be phenomenal if the shares weren’t still nearly 70% below their 52-week highs. Other shippers getting a boost today include DryShips Inc. (NASDAQ: DRYS), up 19%; Excel Maritime Carriers Ltd. (NYSE: EXM), up almost 26%; Frontline Ltd. (NYSE: FRO), up nearly 10%; Genco Shipping & Trading Ltd. (NYSE: GNK), up nearly 7%; and Diana Shipping Inc. (NYSE: DSX), up about 5.5%.

The main measure of dry bulk shipping rates, the Baltic Dry Index, closed 2012 at just under 700, more than 50% below where it started the year. Lower demand from China for iron ore gets a lot of the blame.

But demand — and price — for iron ore has picked up in China, and is expected to remain higher at least temporarily. Or perhaps we should say, at most temporarily. Iron ore prices have risen to above $140 a metric ton (tonne) from below $88 a tonne in September.

The contributing factor is iron ore production. Many of the big mining companes like Vale SA (NYSE: VALE), Rio Tinto plc (NYSE: RIO), and BHP Billiton Ltd. (NYSE: BHP) have cut production in the face of lower prices and higher costs. Bringing new production on line to meet rising demand slowed but never stopped, and growth will continue this year, pushing down prices.

That may be good news for the dry bulk shippers who will benefit if ore prices remain low and demand from China grows. The big question is how long the spurt will last.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, China, Commodities & Metals, Transports Tagged: BHP, DRYS, EGLE, EXM, FRO, GNK, RIO, VALE

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (AEO, NLY, CMO, CHKP, CIT, DRYS, FSP, FTR, GPS, HTS, IVR, JBLU, MFA, NTAP, PANW, RSG, SDRL, TGI)

Jon C. Ogg — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 13:34:12 +0000

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen in Wall St. research calls this Friday.

American Eagle Outfitters Inc. (NYSE: AEO) cut to Market Perform at BMO.

Annaly Capital Management Inc. (NYSE: NLY) raised to Outperform at Wells Fargo.

Capstead Mortgage Corp. (NYSE: CMO) raised to Outperform at Wells Fargo.

Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: CHKP) started as Outperform at Wells Fargo.

CIT Group Inc. (NYSE: CIT) raised to Buy at Nomura.

DryShips Inc. (NASDAQ: DRYS) cut to Neutral at boutique firm Global Hunter Securities.

Franklin Street Properties Corp. (NYSEMKT: FSP) named as value stock of the day at Zacks.

Frontier Communications Corp. (NASDAQ: FTR) cut to Sell at Goldman Sachs.

Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS) raised to Hold at Canaccord Genuity.

Hatteras Financial Corp. (NYSE: HTS) raised to Outperform at Wells Fargo.

Invesco Mortgage Capital Inc. (NYSE: IVR) raised to Outperform at Wells Fargo.

JetBlue Airways Corp. (NASDAQ: JBLU) cut to Sell at Goldman Sachs.

MFA Financial Inc. (NYSE: MFA) raised to Outperform at Wells Fargo.

NetApp Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP) raised to Buy at Argus.

Palo Alto Networks Inc. (NYSE: PANW) started as Market Perform at Wells Fargo.

Republic Services Inc. (NYSE: RSG) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.

SeaDrill Ltd. (NYSE: SDRL) raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Triumph Group Inc. (NYSE: TGI) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls Tagged: AEO, CHKP, CIT, CMO, DRYS, FSP, FTR, GPS, HTS, IVR, JBLU, MFA, NLY, NTAP, PANW, RSG, SDRL, TGI

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — November 15, 2012: Markets Slide After Higher Open (CVC, WLT, F, HAL, AAPL, DRYS, NTAP, PETM, SPB, GME, ROST, VIAB, TGT, WMT, AMAT, ADSK, DELL, GPS, MRVL, SHLD, FL, SJM, DMND, VELT, BXG)

Paul Ausick — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 21:03:48 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened higher this morning but quickly turned south and bounced around lower all day. In Europe, the eurozone notched its second consecutive quarter of negative GDP growth, tossing the single currency group into an official recession (more coverage here). In Asia, China’s new leadership was officially announced today and Japan’s Nikkei index hopped nearly 2% on an announcement from the leader of the country’s opposition party that he would urge the Bank of Japan to lower its interest rate to zero, or even below. New U.S. jobless claims skyrocketed, the consumer price index came in as expected (up 0.1%), and the Empire State manufacturing survey came in around its expected level (more coverage here).

The U.S. dollar index rose slightly today, now up 0.01% at 81.065. The GSCI commodity index is up 0.6% at 637.39, with commodities prices mostly lower today. WTI crude oil closed down 1% today, at $85.45 a barrel, following a mostly inline report on inventories (more coverage here). Brent crude trades down about 0.4% at $108.03 a barrel. Natural gas is down 1.3% today at about $3.71 per thousand cubic feet, following a reported drawdown that was again inline with expectations (more coverage here). Gold settled down 0.9% today at $1,713.80 an ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down more than 29 points to 12,541.62 (-0.23%), the NASDAQ fell nearly 10 points (-0.35%) to 2,836.94, and the S&P 500 fell -0.16% or about 2 points to 1,353.30.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Cablevision Systems Corp. (NYSE: CVC) cut to ‘sell’ at Goldman Sachs; Walter Energy Co. (NYSE: WLT) cut to ‘underperform’ at BofA/ML; Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) reiterated as ‘buy’ with a target price of $19 at Argus; Halliburton Co. (NYSE: HAL) raised to ‘buy’ at CLSA; and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) reiterated as ‘outperform’ with a target price of $750, with near-term risk-reward prices of $520 and $630 at Credit Suisse.

Earnings reports of interest since U.S. markets closed last night have resulted in some price moves today, including these as of the last half hour of trading: DryShips Inc. (NASDAQ: DRYS) is down 18.3% at $1.70 after posting a new 52-week low of $1.69 earlier today; NetApp Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP) is up 11.1% at $30.13; PetSmart Inc. (NASDAQ: PETM) is up 3.9% at $67.40; Spectrum Brands Holdings Inc. (NYSE: SPB) is up 0.3% at $43.42; GameStop Corp. (NYSE: GME) is up 4.6% at $24.56 (more coverage here); Ross Stores Inc. (NASDAQ: ROST) is down 1.4% at $54.35; Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAB) is up 2.8% at $49.33; Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT) is up 1.8% at $62.48 (more coverage here); and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) is down 3.7% at $68.71 (more coverage here).

After markets close today and before they open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear from Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ: AMAT), Autodesk Inc. (NASDAQ: ADSK), Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL), Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS), Marvell Technology Group Ltd. (NASDAQ: MRVL), Sears Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ: SHLD), Foot Locker Inc. (NYSE: FL), and J.M. Smucker Co. (NYSE: SJM).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Velti Plc (NASDAQ: VELT) is down 33.9% at $4.39 after posting a new 52-week low of $4.27 earlier today. The Ireland-based software maker posted a loss last night and said today that it will sell some of its businesses in countries with weak economies.

Diamond Foods Inc. (NASDAQ: DMND) is down 21.7% at $15.26 after posting a new low of $14.50 earlier today. The snack food maker dumped $56.5 million in profits when it restated previous earnings. More coverage here.

Bluegreen Corp. (NYSE: BXG) is up 55.9% at $9.67, after posting a new 52-week high of $9.67 earlier today. The resort time-share company agreed to be acquired by BFC Financial Corp. for shares last year, but the offer was today switched to $10 a share, all in cash. BFC already owns 54% of Bluegreen and has topped a competing offer from Diamond Resorts for $6.50 a share in cash.

Stay tuned for Friday. Atlanta Fed President Dennis Lockhart is giving a speech. We have also noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

9:00 a.m. – Treasury International Capital (TIC) data
9:15 a.m. – Industrial production

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: AAPL, ADSK, AMAT, BXG, CVC, DELL, DMND, DRYS, F, FL, GME, GPS, HAL, MRVL, NTAP, PETM, ROST, SHLD, SJM, SPB, TGT, VELT, VIA-B, WLT, WMT

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — November 14, 2012: Markets Can’t Hold Gains, Lose Again Today (ABX, JCP, POT, HD, SOHU, CSCO, IAG, RENN, ANF, SPLS, TYC, DMND, DRYS, NTAP, PETM, SPB, GME, ROST, VIAB, WMT, FB, ANF, IAG)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 21:02:51 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened higher this morning, but the three major indexes fell below the neutral line after the first hour or so of trading. In Europe, Greece said its GDP contracted by 7.2% in the third quarter and there were street demonstrations against austerity measures in France, Portugal, Italy, and Spain. In Asia, China is set to make official appointments to its Politburo and Japan’s prime minister will dissolve the country’s parliament next week, setting up new elections. U.S. producer prices fell by 0.2% in October, but retail sales also declined, by 0.3% (more coverage here). Mortgage applications in the U.S. spiked higher last week as rebuilding from the effects of Hurricane Sandy begin (more coverage here). The release of the FOMC minutes pushed equity prices down even more late this afternoon (more coverage here).

The U.S. dollar index fell slightly today, now down 0.07% at 81.024. The GSCI commodity index is down 0.2% at 633.32, with commodities prices mostly higher today. WTI crude oil closed up 1.1% today, at $86.32 a barrel. Brent crude trades up about 1.1% at $109.61 a barrel. Natural gas is up 0.5% today at about $3.76 per thousand cubic feet. Gold settled up 0.3% today at $1,730.10 an ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down nearly 185 points to 12,571.34 (-1.45%), the NASDAQ fell nearly 37 points (-1.28%) to 2,847.03, and the S&P 500 fell -1.39% or about 19 points to 1,355.50.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Barrick Gold Corp. (NYSE: ABX) cut to ‘hold’ at Argus; J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (NYSE: JCP) cut to ‘neutral’ at JPMorgan; Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan (NYSE: POT) cut to ‘hold’ at Canaccord Genuity; The Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD) cut to ‘market perform’ at Raymond James; and Sohu.com Inc. (NASDAQ: SOHU) started as ‘underweight’ at HSBC.

Earnings reports of interest since U.S. markets closed last night have resulted in some price moves today, including these as of the last half hour of trading: Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) is up 4.9% at $17.68 (more coverage here); Renren Inc. (NYSE: RENN) is down 0.9% at $3.35; Staples Inc. (NASDAQ: SPLS) is up 2.4% at $11.52 (more coverage here); and Tyco International Ltd. (NYSE: TYC) is down 1.9% at $26.80.

After markets close today and before they open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear from Diamond Foods Inc. (NASDAQ: DMND), DryShips Inc. (NASDAQ: DRYS), NetApp Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP), PetSmart Inc. (NASDAQ: PETM), Spectrum Brands Holdings Inc. (NYSE: SPB), GameStop Corp. (NYSE: GME), Ross Stores Inc. (NASDAQ: ROST), Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAB), and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) is up 12.8% at $22.41. The social media company’s shares are rising despite the unlocking of more than 800 million shares today. More coverage here.

Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) is up 33.2% at $41.53. The apparel retailer handily beat third-quarter expectations this morning. More coverage here.

Iamgold Corp. (NYSE: IAG) is down 19.4% at $11.99. The Canadian gold miner missed both earnings and revenue expectations this morning as production faltered.

Stay tuned for Thursday. Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker, Chicago Fed President Charles Evans, Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher, and Philadelphia Fed President Charles Plosser are giving speeches. We have also noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – Consumer price index
8:30 a.m. – New claims for unemployment benefits
8:30 a.m. – Empire State manufacturing survey
10:00 a.m. – Philadelphia Fed survey
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly natural gas storage report
11:00 a.m. – EIA weekly petroleum status report
1:20 p.m. – Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke speaks
4:30 p.m. – Fed balance sheet and money supply

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: ABX, ANF, CSCO, DMND, DRYS, FB, GME, HD, IAG, JCP, NTAP, PETM, POT, RENN, ROST, SOHU, SPB, SPLS, TYC, VIA-B, WMT

Market Slides on Central Banks’ Inaction

Paul Ausick — Thu, 02 Aug 2012 20:03:08 +0000

The three major US stock indexes opened lower this morning as the Bank of England left interest rates alone (our coverage here) and the European Central Bank (ECB) did the same (our coverage here and here). The lack of any concrete action by either the British or the Eurozone to deal with the European financial debacle weighed markets down all day. The US report on factory orders was lower than expected (our coverage here), though retail sales were better than expected (our coverage here). But tomorrow’s report on US non-farm payrolls, which is expected to show a gain of about 100,000 jobs, could put some life back into the markets.

The US dollar index rose today, now up 0.33% at 83.328. The GSCI commodity index rose by about 0.3% to 637.61, with commodities prices mixed today. WTI crude oil fell -2% today, closing at $87.13/barrel. Brent crude trades up 0.04% at $106.00/barrel. Natural gas is down -7.7% today to $2.927/thousand cubic feet, following a larger-than-expected addition to inventories (our coverage here). Gold settled at $1,590.70/ounce, down -1% for the day.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down more than 91 points to 12,879.86 (-0.70%), the NASDAQ fell more than 10 points (-0.36%) to 2,909.77, and the S&P 500 fell -0.74% or about 10 points to 1,365.01.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Knight Capital Group (NYSE: KCG) cut to ‘market perform’ at Raymond James (more coverage here); Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan (NYSE: POT) cut to ‘hold’ at Dahlman Rose; Starbucks Corp. (NASDAQ: SBUX) cut to ‘hold’ at Argus; DryShips Inc. (NASDAQ: DRYS) cut to ‘hold’ at Deutsche Bank; and Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) cut to ‘neutral’ at Baird and to ‘overweight’ at Piper Jaffray.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: Atlas Pipeline Partners LP (NYSE: APL) is up 0.3% at $33.10; Avis Budget Group Inc. (NASDAQ: CAR) is up 9.4% at $15.42; CVR Energy Inc. (NYSE: CVI) is down -2.9% at $27.37; First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) is up 23.2% at $18.24 (more coverage here); General Growth Properties Inc. (NYSE: GGP) is up 1.6% at $18.50 after posting a new 52-week high of $18.70 earlier today; GT Advanced Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: GTAT) is down -3.1% at $4.76; Onyx Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ONXX) is down -0.4% at $72.86; Seaspan Corp. (NYSE: SSW) is up 0.6% at $15.68; American Superconductor Corp. (NASDAQ: AMSC) is up 21.7% at $4.31 (more coverage here); Apache Corp. (NYSE: APA) is -5% at $82.53 (more coverage here); Beam Inc. (NYSE: BEAM) is down -1% at $60.92; Boise Inc. (NYSE: BZ) is up 4.4% at $7.35; Duke Energy Corp. (NYSE: DUK) is down -0.4% at $67.25; Lear Corp. (NYSE: LEA) is up 1.9% at $36.40; Monster Worldwide Inc. (NYSE: MWW) is down -14.8% at $6.06 after posting a new 52-week low of $5.72 earlier today; and Time Warner Cable Inc. (NYSE: TWC) is up 3.1% at $88.29 after posting a new 52-week high of $88.77 earlier today.

After markets close today we are set to hear from Activision Blizzard Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI), American Water Works Co. Inc. (NYSE: AWK), Body Central Corp. (NASDAQ: BODY), CBS Corp. (NYSE: CBS), Kodiak Oil & Gas Corp. (NYSE: KOG), Molycorp Inc. (NYSE: MCP), and Westport Innovations Inc. (NASDAQ: WPRT).

Before markets open tomorrow we are scheduled to get earnings results from Agrium Inc. (NYSE: AGU), Beazer USA Homes Inc. (NYSE: BZH), NYSE Euronext (NYSE: NYX), Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAB), and Wellcare Health Plans Inc. (NYSE: WCG) among others.

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Knight Capital Group Inc. (NYSE: KCG) is down -62.4% at $2.61 after posting a new 52-week low of $2.27 earlier today. The financial services company is collapsing. More coverage here.

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. (NASDAQ: GMCR) is up 28.8% at $23.07. The specialty coffee supplier lowered estimates last night, but the share price jumped today on valuation.

First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) is up 23.2% at $18.24. The solar PV maker’s earnings have raised all solar boats today. More coverage here and here.

Stay tuned for Friday. We have noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – Non-farm payrolls
10:00 a.m. – Institute for Supply Management (ISM) non-manufacturing index

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Active Trader, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: AGU, AMSC, ANF, APA, APL, ATVI, AWK, BEAM, BODY, BZ, BZH, CAR, CBS, COG, CVI, DRYS, DUK, FSLR, GGP, GMCR, GTAT, KCG, LEA, MCP, MWW, NYX, ONXX, POT, SBUX, SSW, TWC, VIA-B, WCG, WPRT

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (ANF, AMGN, MT, BIIB, DVN, DRYS, ERJ, FSLR, GRMN, HSNI, KCG, MCD, MGM, POT, RNR, SBUX, VE)

Jon C. Ogg — Thu, 02 Aug 2012 12:23:04 +0000

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen from Wall St. research calls this Thursday morning.

Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) cut to Neutral at Baird and cut to Overweight at Piper Jaffray.

Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) cut to Hold at Argus on valuation.

ArcelorMittal (NYSE: MT) cut to Neutral at BofA/ML.

Biogen Idec Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.

Devon Energy Corp. (NYSE: DVN) cut to Neutral at Macquarie.

DryShips Inc. (NASDAQ: DRYS) cut to Hold at Deutsche Bank.

Ebraer SA (NYSE: ERJ) started as Buy at UBS.

First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) raised to Buy at Cantor Fitzgerald and raised to Outperform at Baird.

Garmin Ltd. (NASDAQ: GRMN) raised to Outperform at Wedbush.

HSN Inc. (NASDAQ: HSNI) cut to Hold at Stifel Nicolaus.

Knight Capital Group (NYSE: KCG) cut to Market Perform at Raymond James.

McDonald’s Corp. (NYSE: MCD) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.

MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) cut to Neutral at BofA/ML.

Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan (NYSE: POT) cut to Hold at Dahlman Rose.

RenaissanceRe (NYSE: RNR) raised to Hold at Deutsche Bank.

Starbucks Corp. (NASDAQ: SBUX) cut to Hold at Argus.

Veolia Environnement SA (NYSE: VE) cut to Neutral at BofA/ML.

If you enjoyed the top analyst upgrades and downgrades, you can join our free email newsletter that includes analyst summaries each morning sent right to your inbox. We also cover top issues such as IPOs, special financial exclusives, mergers and more. Sign up in the box below.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls Tagged: AMGN, ANF, BIIB, DRYS, DVN, ERJ, FSLR, GRMN, HSNI, KCG, MCD, MGM, MT, POT, RNR, SBUX, VE