Paul Kangas' Stocks in the News
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
|
|
|
|
PAUL KANGAS: Sellers took command on Wall Street early today with stocks falling sharply on that Merrill Lynch loss and that home sales slide. Rising oil prices also helped to push the Dow to a 182-point loss by mid- day, with the NASDAQ off 67 points. The market stabilized and then rallied on a rumor that the Fed would make an emergency rate cut. The Fed itself declined to comment on that. But by the close of trading, losses were cut sharply. The Dow Industrial Average closed off less than a point, 0.98 at 13,675.25. The NASDAQ fell 24.50 points to 2,774.76, while the Standard & Poor's 500 lost only 3.71 ending at 1,515.88. In the bond market, the 10- year note climbed 18/32 to 103 7/32, putting the yield down to 4.34 percent.
New York exchange volume leader, interestingly, NYSE Euronext (NYX) trading 22.3 million shares, up $2.30, helped along by index fund buying since the stock was added to the Standard & Poor's 500 Index today.
Citigroup (C) down $0.62.
General Electric (GE) $0.25 loss.
Then Pfizer (PFE) losing $0.07.
And then came Merrill Lynch (MER) tumbling $3.90. It traded as low as $621.40 as you heard, taking that big $8 billion third quarter write off, a couple of corporate downgrades too.
Countrywide Financial (CFC) fell $1.22. The "Wall Street Journal" reports that the adjustable rate mortgages made by the company are going bad at a faster pace than the industry average.
Corning (GLW) fell $1.54 despite third quarter earnings nicely higher, $0.38 versus $0.27 a year ago, a penny above the Street, but the company says fourth quarter display glass volume will be up 2 to 5 percent. The Street was looking for as much as 8 percent.
Wells Fargo & Co (WFC) $0.28 rise there.
EMC Corp (EMC) fell $0.83.
Then Co Vale do Rio (RIO) down $1.14.
Boeing Co (BA) down $0.69 despite big third quarter earnings, $1.44 versus $0.89 last year, $0.20 above the Street estimate, but the company cut its 2008 revenue estimates because of plane delivery delays. The stock traded as low as $93.02.
Dupont (DD) moved up $0.73. The company boosting its quarterly dividend by 11 percent. It will go from $0.37 to $0.41 a share.
And then Bank of America (BAC) down $0.30. After the close, BAC said it's about to launch a major shake up in its investment bank, including a lay off of about 3,000 employees.
CME Group (CME) up $15.40. Third quarter earnings jumped at $3.87 versus $2.95 last year. That does exclude acquisition costs of the CBOT, Chicago Board of Trade.
Norfolk Southern (NSC), the big rail, up $1 - down $1.67. Third quarter earnings lower, $0.97 versus $1.02 last year.
Kennametal (KMT) had a great day up $6.18. First quarter earnings came in at $1.05, well above $0.82 a year ago and $0.05 above the Street estimate. The company also declared a two for one stock split and a 14 percent boost in the quarter dividend. It'll go to $0.24 a share.
CEC Entertainment (CEC), the parent of Chuck E. Cheese up $3.65. Third quarter earnings lower, $0.50 versus $0.53, but $0.02 better than the Street expected and the company set an additional $200 million stock buyback.
William Wrigley Jr (WWY) down $5.57. Third quarter earnings edged up to $0.59 from $0.53 a year ago, but a penny below the Wall Street consensus.
Plantronics (PLT), the maker of those headsets for electronics, down $5.78. Second quarter earnings higher, $0.39 versus $0.32 but the company sees third quarter earnings guidance short of Street estimates by as much as $0.06 a share.
Initial public offering today, Longtop Financial Tech (LPT), provides information technology services to China's financial sector, 10.4 million American depository shares offered at $17.50, opened at $27.01. The high of the day, $33.35, great day.
Apple (AAPL) $0.23 loss, topped the active list.
Followed by Google (GOOG) edging up a nickel.
Research in Motion (RIMM) down $0.63.
Amazon.com (AMZN) plunging just over $12. After the close yesterday as we reported, third quarter earnings $0.19, way up from $0.05, but that was only a penny above the Street estimate and there's concern about profit margins which are fading a bit. Today, Standard & Poor's says the stock's overvalued. Stifel Nicolaus repeated a "sell" recommendation.
Baidu.com (BIDU) down nearly $14 a share.
Microsoft (MSFT) moved up $0.35. The company confirmed after the close it has invested $240 million in facebook.com.
Intel (INTC) $0.79 loss.
Broadcom (BRCM) tumbling $7.14. After the close yesterday, Broadcom's third quarter earnings fell $0.02 short of Street estimates and profit margins there are falling a bit too.
Cisco Systems (CSCO) $0.28 loss.
And finally, Yahoo! (YHOO) rose $0.04 to $30.68 per share.
