I was looking for a recovery today but early morning news on YHOO gives me the distinct impression they want to take the NAZ even lower. It reminds me exactly of the cyclicals situation last year. They're pushing $ out of tech for the time being. I am really underwater on a couple of positions. Gemstar into the 50s!! I had added more at 86. Moreoever, see Mike Buckley's posts on G&K and it looks like GMST may have entered the classic "tornado." So it's just a crummy time and hold for recovery for a while.
IE this on MSFT from Goldman Sachs:
Alert: Goldman Cuts Microsoft Mar Quarter Revs to $5.75 Bln From $5.95 Bln (NasdaqNM:MSFT)
The timing is no coincidence, and MSFT the biggest single component of the NAZ.
And this general Reuter's piece:
U.S. stocks were seen opening lower on Wednesday as the Nasdaq market is expected to continue its slide amid nagging worries about lofty technology share valuations.
The Standard & Poor's 500 futures index for June was off one point at 1518 while the Nasdaq 100 futures index for June lost three points at 3,952.
``I am looking for a shaky opening in the Nasdaq,' said Peter Coolidge, senior equity trader at Brean Murray & Co. ``There is a little case of the nerves in the market. The good news is that there seems to be a rotation out of technology into the more traditional 'old economy' sectors. The money is not necessarily flowing out of the equities market.'
Wall Street will be waiting for what Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan has to say on what lies ahead for stock trading as he testifies on the future of the securities markets before a Senate committee.
Investors are also awaiting news on how import and export prices changed in March, but more key economic data is due out later this week with reports on inflation and the producer and consumer level due out Thursday and Friday, respectively.
The U.S. Treasury 30-year bond slipped another 17/32, driving the yield up to 5.80 percent from Tuesday's close of 5.77 percent. Tuesday's drop in the long bond's price came as investors sought higher returns elsewhere.
Technology stocks continued their slide on Tuesday as investors reckoned ``old economy' stocks such as heavy machinery makers and consumer products manufacturers were safer bets as the Nasdaq market remains subject to high volatility.
The tech-stacked Nasdaq composite index (^IXIC - news) lost another 132.30 points, or 3.16 percent, to 4,055.90, its second consecutive down day. Since the Nasdaq composite notched its record high close of 5,048.62 on March 10, it has fallen 19.7 percent and it is now off 0.33 percent for the year.
``I see continued selling in tech,' said James Volk, co-director of institutional trading at D.A. Davidson & Co.
Reflecting the switch out of tech issues, the blue-chip Dow Jones industrial average (^DJI - news) gained 100.59 points, or 0.90 percent, to 11,287.08, building on the previous session's 75-point advance.
Since last week, the Nasdaq's pain has been the Dow's gain as investors look for other places to put their money amid mounting concern about high prices for shares of technology companies that have little or no earnings.
Among broader gauges, the Standard & Poor's 500 stock index (^SPX - news), which includes many technology names, slipped 3.87 points, or 0.26 percent, to 1,500.59.
Among the stocks expected to move on Wednesday, U.S. commercial and investment bank J.P. Morgan & Co. Inc. (NYSE:JPM - news) said on Wednesday its first-quarter profits rose nearly 5 percent to a record $628 million, surging past expectations, as earnings were bolstered by its investment banking, money management and stocks businesses. The Dow component's stock closed at 134-7/16.
StarMedia Network Inc. (NasdaqNM:STRM - news), a Latin American online network, on Tuesday posted a first-quarter loss that was wider than a year earlier but narrower than analysts had expected. Audience traffic and page views increased. The stock closed at 25-1/2 on Tuesday.
Harley-Davidson Inc. (NYSE:HDI - news), whose motorcycles have become icons of American pop culture, said Tuesday its first-quarter profits rose 36 percent, driven by strong sales growth and a one-time gain from the sale of its credit-card program. Its stock closed at 43-11/16.
Bestfoods (NYSE:BFO - news), the maker of Skippy peanut butter and Hellmann's mayonnaise, on Tuesday posted a 10.9 percent rise in first-quarter net income as sales volume outstripped unfavorable currency rates and operating income at the company's baking business surged. Its stock ended at 47-3/4.
Investment bank Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE:GS - news) is financing a Web-based service that will bring together parties involved in commercial real-estate leasing deals and sales transactions, the Wall Street Journal reported. Its stock closed at 104-13/16.
The Wall Street Journal's ``Heard on the Street' column reported analysts are struggling to come up with new ways to justify the soaring share prices of technology giants. |
