From Briefing.com: 4:15 pm : The S&P 500 settled just above its 200-day moving average after FedEx raised its forecast and new home sales figures for June proved better than expected. Trading volume was light, though.
FedEx (FDX 83.39, +4.43) helped improve the mood of market participants this morning when it added $0.20 to its first quarter earnings per share outlook. The global shipment company now believes that profits for its first fiscal quarter will range from $1.05 to $1.25 per share, which exceeds the consensus call of $1.01 per share. While the broader market showed a positive response to the announcement, gains were much more pronounced among industrial plays (+1.7%) and in the Dow Jones Transportation Index (+2.6%).
A near 24% month-over-month surge in new home sales increased interest in stocks. The stronger-than-expected spike in sales took the annualized rate to 330,000 for June. New home sales had been expected to hit a more modest annualized rate of 310,000 units after they recorded record lows in May. That helped the S&P homebuilder ETF (XHB 15.82, +0.40) outperform.
The positive headlines helped drive stocks higher, but resistance at the S&P 500's 200-day moving average kept a cap on gains until another round of buying helped the broad market measure settle above the key hurdle for the first time in one month.
Some market watchers will no doubt be quick to point out that participation was modest and that light volume can exaggerate the stock market's moves - hardly 1 billion shares trading hands on the NYSE. The lack of volume suggests that many investors prefer to remain on the sidelines amid uncertainty over whether stocks will hold recent gains or if the global economy's recovery effort is strong enough to warrant those gains in the first place.
There weren't any major earnings announcements for traders to digest this morning, but Genzyme (GENZ 67.38, +4.86) continues to find itself in the center of ongoing takeover chatter.
In other news, Tony Hayward, current CEO of embattled BP (BP 38.65, +1.79), will resign his position as company head in October. Speculation on the matter had started to intensify during the weekend.
The euro had a strong session. Specifically, the currency climbed 0.7% against the greenback to settle near $1.30, which puts it within striking distance of its two-month high. Conversely, the Dollar Index dropped 0.5% to set its lowest level since early May.
Advancing Sectors: Industrials (+1.7%), Financials (+1.6%), Telecom (+1.5%), Consumer Discretionary (+1.5%), Health Care (+1.4%), Energy (+1.1%), Utilities (+0.7%), Tech (+0.6%), Materials (+0.5%), Consumer Staples (+0.4%)
Declining Sectors: (None) DJ30 +100.81 NASDAQ +26.96 NQ100 +0.8% R2K +2.2% SP400 +1.8% SP500 +12.35 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 2044/2.17 bln/639 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 2442/1.02 bln/579
4:31PM Advanced Micro announces pricing of private offering of $500 mln of senior notes (AMD) 8.07 +0.25 : Co announced that it has agreed to sell $500 mln aggregate principal amount of its 7.75% Senior Notes due 2020 in a private offering. AMD intends to close the transaction on or around August 4, 2010. AMD estimates that the net proceeds from the issuance and sale of the senior notes will be ~$489.8 mln after deducting the initial purchasers' discounts and estimated transactions expenses. AMD intends to use the net proceeds, along with existing cash, to purchase its 6.00% Convertible Senior Notes due 2015 validly tendered pursuant to the co's tender offer for such notes, which was previously announced. Net proceeds not used in the tender offer, if any, will be used for general corporate purposes.
6:42PM Rambus confirms ITC issues notice of final determination in Rambus matter regarding NVIDIA products (RMBS) 19.59 +0.60 : Co confirmed that the International Trade Commission (ITC) issued its notice of final determination in the action brought by Rambus against NVIDIA Corporation and other Respondents. In its notice, the ITC has affirmed the findings of the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ), with certain modifications. The final determination, including such modifications, has yet to be released.
4:18PM Integrated Device beats by $0.03, beats on revs (IDTI) 5.63 +0.17 : Reports Q1 (Jun) earnings of $0.14 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.03 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.11; revenues rose 36.5% year/year to $158.3 mln vs the $151.6 mln consensus.
4:08PM Sanmina-SCI misses by $0.02, beats on revs; guides Q4 EPS in-line, revs in-line (SANM) 15.74 +0.58 : Reports Q3 (Jun) earnings of $0.32 per share, $0.02 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.34; revenues rose 34.4% year/year to $1.63 bln vs the $1.6 bln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for Q4, sees EPS of $0.35-0.41 vs. $0.38 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees Q4 revs of $1.65-1.70 bln vs. $1.65 bln Thomson Reuters consensus.
4:07PM Volterra Semi beats by $0.03, reports revs in-line (VLTR) 27.64 +0.64 : Reports Q2 (Jun) earnings of $0.40 per share, $0.03 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.37; revenues rose 76.3% year/year to $40.2 mln vs the $40.1 mln consensus.
4:05PM Veeco Instruments beats by $0.18, beats on revs; guides Q3 EPS above consensus, revs above consensus (VECO) 44.66 +1.93 : Reports Q2 (Jun) earnings of $1.01 per share, $0.18 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.83; revenues rose 251.4% year/year to $253 mln vs the $232 mln consensus. Co issues upside guidance for Q3, sees EPS of $1.23-$1.43 vs. $1.05 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees Q3 revs of $290-$315 mln vs. $282.60 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. VECO says that based on its strong backlog and current order visibility, co is currently forecasting that 2010 revenues will be over $1 billion, with strong YoY growth from 2009 in revenue and profitability in all three business segments.
4:01PM PLX Tech reports EPS in-line, revs in-line; guides Q3 revs in-line (PLXT) 4.57 +0.15 : Reports Q2 (Jun) earnings of $0.07 per share, in-line with the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.07; revenues rose 63.2% year/year to $29.7 mln vs the $29.9 mln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for Q3, sees Q3 revs of $30-32 mln vs. $31.30 mln Thomson Reuters consensus.
6:38AM Fairchild Semi confirms court's decision that it willfully infringed Power Integrations patents (FCS) 10.28 : Co said it expects to appeal a federal court's decision Friday that the company willfully infringed Power Integrations (POWI) patents. The ruling has no impact on Fairchild's business. The company voluntarily stopped U.S. sales of affected products in 2007, replacing them with products that Power Integrations agrees do not infringe the asserted patents. Meanwhile, the two companies continue to fight three other lawsuits... Fairchild maintains that its products do not violate Power Integrations patents and that it respects the intellectual property rights of its competitors. |
