The US dollar index rose today, now up 0.32% at 82.659. The GSCI commodity index rose fractionally to 658.72, with commodities prices mixed today. Corn hit an all-time high of $8.27/bushel before pulling back a little. WTI crude oil was essentially flat today, closing at $93.36/barrel. Brent crude trades up 0.95% at $113.20/barrel. Natural gas is down -0.14% today to $2.929/thousand cubic feet. Gold settled at $1,620.20/ounce, up 0.3% for the day.
The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down more than 10 points to 13,165.19 (-0.08%), the NASDAQ rose more than 7 points (0.25%) to 3,018.64, and the S&P 500 rose 0.04% or less than 1 point to 1,402.79.
There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) raised to ‘Conviction Buy List’ at Goldman Sachs and raised to ‘overweight’ at Piper Jaffray (more coverage here); Seagate Technology PLC (NASDAQ: STX) started as ‘buy’ at Lazard; Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE: TOL) cut to ‘underweight’ at JPMorgan; Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) started as ‘buy’ at Stifel Nicolaus; and Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. (NASDAQ: MPEL) started as ‘underperform’ at Jefferies.
Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: Affymax Inc. (NASDAQ: AFFY) is down -5.8% at $16.00; CenturyLink Inc. (NYSE: CTL) is up 1.4% at $42.60 after posting a new 52-week high of $43.43 earlier today; Continental Resources Inc. (NYSE: CLR) is up 3.6% at $72.04; Education Management Corp. (NASDAQ: EDMC) is down -20.8% at $3.16; Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ: JACK) is down -0.35% at $25.97 (more coverage here); Kinross Gold Corp. (NYSE: KGC) is up 2.7% at $8.04 (more coverage here); Monster Beverage Corp. (NASDAQ: MNST) is down -9.7% at $61.23; Yamana Gold Inc. (NYSE: AUY) is up 2.3% at $15.43; Advance Auto Parts Inc. (NYSE: AAP) is down -3% at $68.43; AMC Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: AMCX) is up 0.9% at $43.71; Clean Diesel Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: CDTI) is down -2.3% at $2.38; Hillshire Brands Co. (NYSE: HSH) is up 2.9% at $25.88; James River Coal Co. (NASDAQ: JRCC) is up 16.1% at $2.59; Royal Gold Inc. (NASDAQ: RGLD) is down -2.3% at $76.95; and The Wendy’s Co. (NASDAQ: WEN) is up 0.6% at $4.56.
After markets close today we’re scheduled to hear from DeVry Inc. (NYSE: DV), Nordstrom Inc. (NYSE: JWN), Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ: NVDA), and Codexis Inc. (NASDAQ: CDXS).
Before markets open on Friday we are scheduled to get earnings results from J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (NYSE: JCP).
Some standouts from today include the following stocks:
Robbins & Myers Inc. (NYSE: RBN) is up 27.3% at $59.58. The previous high was $53.50. The oil field drilling equipment maker is being acquired by National Oilwell Varco Inc. (NYSE: NOV) for $2.5 billion, or $60/share.
Allscripts Healthcare Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ: MDRX) is up 18% at $11.34. The medical records software company raised quarterly profit estimate.
SunPower Corp (NASDAQ: SPWR) is down -10.6% at $4.20. The solar PV maker reported so-so results last night, but new guidance was lower than expected. More coverage here.
Stay tuned for Friday. We have noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):
- 8:30 a.m. – Import and export prices
- 2:00 p.m. – Treasury budget
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Paul Ausick
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