DJ MARKET TALK: Yahoo Gets MVP Award From Henry Blodget
13 Mar 12:37
Edited by Thomas Granahan
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
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12:36 (Dow Jones) Yahoo! (YHOO) remains the most valuable web-only property,
despite losing market share to Microsoft (MSFT), according Merrill Lynch
analyst Henry Blodget. In sorting through the February Web ratings report,
Blodget notes that Yahoo's minutes and pageviews - important when it comes to
monetizing traffic - are still among the highest in the industry among web-only
usage. Blodget, though, is concerned that Yahoo is losing market share to
Microsoft, which has secured the No. 2 spot behind AOL. (GSX)
12:19 (Dow Jones) Morgan Stanley Dean Witter analyst Henry McVey lowered
earnings per share estimates Tuesday for Merrill Lynch (MER) to $3.91 from
$4.02 for 2001 and to $4.48 from $4.56 for 2002. He also reduced his price
target to $75 from $82. Shares traded recently at $53.23, up 3.9%. McVey said
in a research note that he considers additional downsizing and asset sales
likely and believes Merrill must deliver margin improvement at the business
unit level, in particular asset management and retail brokerage. (CWN)
12:08 (Dow Jones) June S&Ps are pulling off contract lows as floor traders
believe the market might be trying to return to about halfway back on the day,
around 1192. Floor traders suspect part of the weakness was margin call
selling, but they add if it was, the selling was light. "It didn't trade like
there was a lot of redemptions because it's coming back a little," he says.
(DMC)
11:59 (Dow Jones) Nymex oil complex sinks under pressure from persistent
signs of economic slowdown, underscored by stocks sell-off Monday. "The
market's weak and very quiet," analyst says. "It's surprising given inventory
numbers last week. It's probably in sympathy with the stock markets." April
crude -30c at $27.70/bbl. (MSX)
11:46 (Dow Jones) Stocks weakening across board, following growing softness
in DJIA. 3M, IP, MRK, and KO biggest losers on Dow. Nasdaq holding gains but is
well off highs. Technicians warned to look out for this sort of scenario -
early gains followed by a pullback - and if it picks up some momentum, heads
up. DJIA off 96 at 10112, Nasdaq gains 16 to 1939, and S&P 500 falls 8 to 1171.
(TG)
11:41 (Dow Jones) Economist Larry Kudlow laments that "Greenspan & Co. remain
in denial about the stock market message as they continue to delay much-needed
liquidity additions and interest rate cuts." (JC)
11:35 (Dow Jones) Rebel attacks in Indonesia have forced Exxon Mobil (XOM) to
shut down some production in the Aceh province temporarily. Banc of America's
Tyler Dann does not think shareholders should be concerned because the effect
to Exxon Mobil's earnings will be "minimal." In a worst case scenario, the
event might shave a penny off 1Q earnings, Dann said. Exxon's Indonesian
natural gas operations, in total, account for about $500 million in annual
earnings, or 15 cents a share, Dann estimates. (CCC)
11:23 (Dow Jones) Alliance Pharmaceutical (ALLP) investors can breathe a sigh
of relief. Not only do data seem to point to the idea that the company's lead
drug Oxygent did not cause strokes, but it plans to re-initiate clinical
testing that had suspended enrollment in January and had jeopardized its
relationship with collaborative partner Baxter International (BAX). Alliance
shares traded 53.2% higher. (BMM)
11:15 (Dow Jones) "Caution" and "selectivity" are the key words for electric
utility investing, says Lehman's Daniel Ford, whose research team launched
coverage of more than 40 stocks Tuesday. He recommends investors overweight
independent power producers in their portfolios through the third quarter.
Among his top picks are NRG Energy (NRG) and Calpine (CPN). In the electric
utility sector, Ford favors DTE Energy (DTE), FPL Group (FPL), and Xcel Energy
(XEL). Active Power (ACPW) is Ford's top pick in the electro-technology sector.
All Ford's top picks are rated a strong buy. (CCC)
11:08 (Dow Jones) You think Yahoo (YHOO) shares have suffered enough? Fred
Moran doesn't. The Jefferies analyst reiterated his "hold" rating and $10 price
target Tuesday, saying the stock no longer warrants a premium valuation. The
shares recently were at $16.56, up 19 cents. Yahoo warned last week that it
will break even in 1Q and it withdrew guidance for full-year 2001. "Given
negative growth and margin pressure, we believe the stock remains vulnerable to
further declines," Moran says. Based on Monday's close, Yahoo trades at 9.2
times projected 2001 revenue, more than twice the multiple of Yahoo's peer
group, he says. (PDL)
10:55 (Dow Jones) Stocks mixed. Nasdaq up 50 at 1973, DJIA flat at 10205, and
S&P 500 up 3 at 1183. Oils and drugs soft, financials, computers move up. As
stocks look for direction, keep in mind that biggest of selloffs on the DJIA
have often been followed by large gains the next session. Last April's
600-point collapse, for example, was followed up by a 276-point advance. (TG)
10:46 (Dow Jones) June DJIA struggles to hold gains, traders say. "S&Ps are
holding up the Dow," one floor trader says. "If we can hold, then the Dow
should be OK." He points out, though, if stocks in general start to weaken, it
could be margin call selling in cash hitting the futures. "We don't know if
that's going to happen, but it's something to keep an eye out for," he says.
(DMC)
10:42 (Dow Jones) What economic slowdown? At a time with other industrial
companies are stumbling and tightening their belts amid the slowing economy,
Tyco International (TYC) rolls on. With Tuesday's deal to buy CIT Group Inc.
(CIT), the Bermuda-based conglomerate continues a brisk acquisition pace. Tyco
said its balance sheet will remain strong after the $9.2 billion deal so it can
do more deals if necessary. For good measure, Tyco also issueda positive
earnings outlook. (CCW)
10:33 (Dow Jones) Technicians like to look at Fibonacci retracement levels to
determine where a stock or index may be heading. Common retracement levels from
an index's high are 38.2%, 50%, and 61.8%. On Nasdaq, these retracement levels
- 3295, 2727, and 2160 - have all been taken out. Another common retracement
level is 76.4%, which puts the Nasdaq's next leg of support at 1457, according
to Al Schwartz of Schaeffer's Investment. (TG)
10:24 (Dow Jones) "We expect a distinctly weak tone in the economic data to
be released over the next four weeks," say economists at Goldman Sachs. (JC)
10:15 (Dow Jones) Monday's action in stocks was not capitulation and did not
represent climactic selling, says Dick Dickson of Scott & Stringfellow. Why?
"Not enough volume," he says. Watch the quality of today's rally (if we get
one) as an indication of whether we get an oversold bounce or something
longer-lasting - several weeks at least. "Be careful of an early rally that
fails, though, because that could mean the market is going into a capitulation
phase," he says. (TG)
10:00 (Dow Jones) Only 10% of global fund managers expect a swift "V" shaped
U.S. recovery, the latest Merrill Lynch/Gallup survey shows. Some 64% of those
questioned in all the regular surveys expect a gradual "U" shaped recovery,
with 18% looking for sustained slow growth for 12 months. Fed funds are
expected to be cut by 89 BP over next 12-months to 4.61%. A total of 222
institutions with $8,644B under management took part in the surveys, from March
2-7. (NK)
(END) DOW JONES NEWS 03-13-01
12:37 PM |
