4:02 (Dow Jones) Green means up, right? Stocks post modest gains, bouncing
off their lowest close in about five months and taking in some mixed economic
data and war rhetoric. Nothing decisive in Wednesday's action - it smells more
like the typical bounce seen after deep selloffs in the past few months.
Treasurys rallied, too. A tad more volume, while Big Board breadth was a shade
to the good side. The back end of the week holds some big numbers; Wall Street
is already talking about a higher unemployment rate Friday, while tomorrow
brings the much-less-anticipated weekly claims numbers, along with monthly
factory orders. DJIA climbs 69 to 7774, Nasdaq Comp adds 6 to 1314, and S&P 500
better by 8 to 830. (TG)
3:37 (Dow Jones) The scramble in forex markets sparked by Snow's comments
underscores an important lesson for the new Treasury Secretary: If you have
nothing new to say, it's best to say nothing. "They criticized Paul O'Neill for
making these exact same problems," said Marcel Kasumovich, at Merrill Lynch. "I
know it's hard when you're asked the same question over and over to have the
same answer. But they should have a strategy." (GMM)
3:30 (Dow Jones) Standard & Poor's has assigned a single-B credit rating to
Playboy Enterprises' (PLA) $110 million junk bond offering. S&P cited Playboy's
"significant presence in the noncyclical adult entertainment industry," among
other things. PLA off 1.7% at $8.08. (TGS)
3:18 (Dow Jones) Cohen Bros. reiterated its outperform rating on Provident
Financial Group (PFGI) despite the company's restating financial results for
1997 through 2002 because of accounting errors. The firm says Provident
management "was clear in its position that this was an isolated event and not
the tip of a proverbial iceberg." The announcement does set back management's
efforts to build credibility, though, Cohen says. While maintaining its rating,
the firm cautioned it regards the investment to be "higher risk" than most
other companies it follows. Cohen lowered its price target on Provident shares
to $28 from $31. PFGI down 19% to $22.64. (DWB)
3:03 (Dow Jones) Following on the heels of two of its rivals, Grant Thornton,
the fifth-largest accounting firm in the U.S., said Wednesday it favors the
mandatory expense of stock options. Last month, Ernst & Young, long an opponent
of mandatory options expense, reversed its position to support new rules that
would force companies to count options as a compensation expense. No. 1
PricewaterhouseCoopers also supports such a move. Unlike their rivals, Deloitte
& Touche and KPMG, the No. 2 and No. 3 accounting firms, respectively, have
expressed concerns about possible new rules in recent letters to the body that
sets the nation's accounting standards. (JAW)
2:54 (Dow Jones) Gart Sports (GRTS), the retailer merging with Sports
Authority (TSA), will report 4Q Thursday. Consensus is $1.03. GRTS reiterated
its guidance just a couple of weeks ago, so the scope for significant upside or
downside looks limited. The market will look for further details on TSA tie-up,
particularly cost savings, currently seen at $20M pretax in '04. Stephens
analyst Richard Nelson believes the synergies look conservative. He has a $30
target, and expects any sales shortfall to be offset by gross margin
improvement and lower expenses. He also expects company to express comfort with
current '03 EPS estimates and comparative store sales targets in the 2-3%
range. Shares down 7% at $16.35 and have been weakening throughout the session.
(NPB)
2:33 (Dow Jones) Powell saying Iraq concessions are not compliance, and
generally sounding fairly hawkish, is weighing on the dollar and, to some
extent, on stocks. USD/CHF down to CHF 1.3275. EUR starting to set sights again
on $1.10 mark, now at $1.0983. DJIA up 9, Nasdaq Comp flat. (JNP)
2:23 (Dow Jones) The positives coming from optical component maker Finisar's
(FNSR) 3Q report - lowering operating costs, maintaining optical module sales
projections - were offset by flat guidance and weak revenue from test
equipment, says SoundView Technology Group analyst Dennis Gallagher. "The
prospects of profit sooner than anticipated should blunt the sting of weak
end-market demand, but does not provide a ready catalyst for shares to trade
up," he says. (JDB)
2:11 (Dow Jones) Fox Pitt Kelton analyst Reilly Tierney raised his estimate
for Goldman Sachs' (GS) 1Q to 95 cents a share from 83 cents because he
believes the firm will post strong trading results from its fixed income,
currency and commodities business. Tierney said he made the revision after
meeting with company management. GS up 1.9% to $67.02. (LMC)
2:00 (Dow Jones) The Beige Book says overall growth was subdued in January
and February as the prospect of war and economic uncertainty has hurt
consumption and clouded the outlook. Firms in most regions say they are not
hiring due to the war and economic uncertainty, and that they have had little
success passing on rising insurance and energy costs. Manufacturing continues
to show signs of improvement, though it remains weak, and retail sales have
generally been flat, furthering overall weakness. Households are still
borrowing, but businesses are not, the report says. (SV)
1:52 (Dow Jones) Harken Energy (HEC) is seeking shareholder approval to
increase the number of authorized shares of its common stock. The company wants
to raise the number of authorized shares from 225 million, but it didn't say
how many shares it wants. Harken needs the additional shares to redeem prior to
maturity its remaining outstanding 5% senior convertible notes due May 26, its
7% senior convertible notes and 5% convertible notes due Nov. 26, and issue
shares of common stock to the convertible noteholders for the redemptions. The
redemptions may result in the issuance of a significant number of shares that
may exceed the number of shares presently authorized. (MW)
1:39 (Dow Jones) Upwards of $3.7B in fresh supply hit the high-grade market
on Wednesday. Added to the $3.9B already printed this week, that's a lot of
bonds. "One of two things is happening here. Either investors are stocking up
pre-war or companies are taking advantage of lower rates while they can,"
according to one market player. Either way, deals are getting done. (KG)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
03-05-03 1601ET |
