RECAP & STOCKS TO WATCH FOR TUESDAY, 2-13-01
The Nasdaq broke its three-day losing streak today, paced by the chip and biotech sectors, on the heels of a broad-based rally that lifted all the major indexes. Much of the rally was fueled by short covering ahead of tomorrow’s testimony by Fed chief Alan Greenspan before the Senate Banking Committee. Greenspan is expected to give reassurance that the Fed stands ready to stimulate the economy, but his remarks most likely won’t be a market-moving event.
The session started off on a sour note after Emulex (EMLX) said that it is experiencing a sales slowdown. Analysts construed the comments as a “warning” for Q3 and immediately cut estimates. Shares of Emulex lost nearly half their value, and also affected similar companies such as Qlogic Corp. (QLGC) and McData (MCDT).
The Nasdaq Composite gained 18 points to close at 2,489. Volume was 1.75 billion shares, with advancers beating decliners by 10 to 9. Blue chips followed the techs as the Dow lost 99 points to finish at 10,781. Volume on the Big Board was 1 billion shares with advancers beating decliners by 19 to 11.
From a technical standpoint, support on the Nasdaq Composite stands at 2,300, with resistance at 2,660-2,700. The DJIA bounced off support 10,750, and is once again poised to test the 11,000 resistance level. The Semiconductor Index (SOX) has reversed off of support at 620, with resistance at 680 and 700.
Earnings Spotlight: The following companies are among those due to report this week: Applied Materials (AMAT), Clarus (CLRS), Human Genome (HGSI), and Sycamore Networks (SCMR) on Tuesday, and Ciena Corp. (CIEN), Agile Software (AGIL), Hewlett-Packard (HWP), and Novell (NOVL) on Thursday.
PurchasePro.com (PPRO): Reported Q4 earnings of $0.11 a share, excluding a $30 mln "strategic marketing expense." Actual net loss per share applicable to common stockholders was $0.55. The First Call consensus was ($0.01). Revenues rose 1159.5% to $33.59 mln from a year-ago of $2.67 mln.
BMC Software (BMCS): Company announced the acquisition of privately held, Perform, SA, a French Web-based network optimization software developer.
Echelon Corp. (ELON): Company announced the acquisition of ARIGO Software, a hardware and software company specializing in power line devices, gateways, and Web-enabled connectivity products. Echelon does not believe that the acquisition will have a material impact on full year 2001 reported earnings per share. Terms were not disclosed. |
