Active broad-market exchange-traded funds at mid-day:
SPDR S&P 500 (
SPY
): +2%
iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Index (
EEM
): +3.7%
iPath S&P 500 VIX Short Term Futures (
VXX
): -5.2%
iShares Russell 2000 Index (
IWM
): +2.8%
Financial Select Sector SPDR (
XLF
): +2%
Broad Market Indicators
Broad-market exchange-traded funds, including SPY, IWM, IVV and
others, are firmer. Actively traded PowerShares QQQ (QQQ) is up
2.7%.
U.S. stocks are trading higher, looking to close the week in
high spirits following news that EU leaders have agreed to a EUR
120 bln growth package that will help troubled countries in the
region. The officials also announced a range of measures aimed at
bringing down the rising borrowing costs faced by Spain and Italy.
Optimism over the new EU measures are offsetting a round of mostly
lackluster economic data, with May consumer sentiment dipping to
its lowest levels since December, although personal income and
disposable income (adjusted for inflation) went up in May.
Winners and Losers
Technology -
Tech actives continue to point higher: Apple (AAPL) is up 2%;
Microsoft (MSFT), also up 2%; Intel (INTC), up 2.8%; Google (GOOG)
up 2.3%; Cisco (CSCO), up 3.2%; and Yahoo (YHOO), up 2%.
Research in Motion (RIMM) is down 18% and has hit near decade
lows. Yesterday, the company posted disappointing earnings results,
reporting a Q1 net loss of $0.37 a share, on $2.8 billion in sales.
Analysts, on average, were expecting a $0.01 a share loss on $3.11
billion in revenue. The loss excludes a $335 million pre-tax
impairment charge for goodwill -- including that charge, the GAAP
net loss would have been $0.99 a share. RIMM shipped about 7.8
million of its BlackBerry smartphones and about 260,000 of its
BlackBerry PlayBook tablet computers. It said restructuring efforts
now underway will include about 5,000 job cuts.
TIBCO Software (TIBX) is up 9.5%, reversing losses of more than
1.5% in yesterday's after hours session when it reported Q2 sales
of $247.4 million and non-GAAP EPS of $0.26. The Thomson Reuters
mean was for sales of $244.87 million and EPS of $0.23.
The ETF space is logging gains at mid-day: iShares Dow Jones US
Technology ETF (IYW), up 2.8%; Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF
(XLK), up 2.4%; iShares S&P North American Technology ETF
(IGM), up 2.7%; and iShares S&P North American
Technology-Software Index (IGV), up 3.9%.
SPDR S&P Semiconductor (XSD) is up 3.2%; Semiconductor
Sector Index Fund (SOXX) is up 3.9%.
SPDR S&P International Technology Sector ETF (IPK) flat.
Industrial -
ETFs in the sector are firmer: Vanguard Industrials (VIS) is up
3%; iShares Trust Dow Jones U.S. Industrial Sector Index Fund
(IYJ), up 2.7%; and Select Sector SPDR-Industrial (XLI), up 3%.
KBH Home (KBH) is up 14% after it reported a Q2 earnings loss of
$0.31 per share; analysts were predicting a loss of $0.34 a share.
KBH also beat on revenues, with sales of $302.9 million over
consensus expectations of $301.3 million.
Energy -
Dow Jones U.S. Energy Fund (IYE) is up 2.3%; Energy Select
Sector SPDR (XLE), up 2.4%.
BP Plc (BP) and Transocean Ltd. (RIG) are reportedly close to
settlements with the U.S. Department of Justice for civil and
criminal charges related to the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
People familiar with the process have told The Wall Street Journal
that settlement discussions have picked up recently, though they
did not provide specific details of those discussions. BP is up
3.8% while RIG is up 3.9%.
Peabody Energy Corporation (BTU) is up 4.8% after it announced
that it is leasing 721 million tons of ultra low sulfur coal
reserves adjacent to its North Antelope Rochelle Mine in the
Southern Powder River Basin of Wyoming. The company submitted a bid
of $1.10 per mineable ton for control of the North Porcupine
reserve area to the Bureau of Land Management, which awarded the
lease following a sealed bid auction process.
Commodities -
Crude is up 5.82%. Natural gas is also up 1.13%. Among ETfs,
United States Oil Fund (USO) is up 6.8% while United States Natural
Gas Fund (UNG) has lost early gains and has turned slightly
negative.
Gold is up 3%; silver is up 4.64%. Among rare metal funds, SPDR
Gold Trust (GLD) is up 2.9%; iShares Silver Trust (SLV), up
4.5%.
Healthcare -
ETFs in the sector are in the green: Health Care SPDR (XLV) is
up 1.6% near year highs; iShares NASDAQ Biotechnology Index (IBB),
up 2.4% near year highs; Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT), up 1.7%,
has hit near year highs; and iShares Dow Jones US Healthcare (IYH),
up 1.7%, has hit new year highs.
GlaxoSmithKline plc (GSK) is up 1.3% after Reuters reported that
the company once again extended its $2.6 billion offer to buy
long-time partner Human Genome Sciences (HGSI) until July 20. The
offer price remains unchanged at $13 a share. Reuters said the
decision to push back the closing date for the bid comes as no
great surprise, since Human Genome effectively extended the war two
weeks ago by setting a July 16 deadline for definitive takeover
offers. HGSI has once again rejected the offer. HGSI shares are up
1.1%.
Consumer -
Consumer ETFs are joining the broader market rally: Consumer
Staples Select Sector SPDR (XLP) is up 1.4% to year highs; iShares
Dow Jones US Consumer Goods (IYK), up 1.4%; and Vanguard Consumer
Staples ETF (VDC), up 1.8% and hit new year highs.
SPDR S&P Retail (XRT) is also higher, up 3.6%; PowerShares
Dynamic Retail (PMR), up 2.5%; and Market Vectors Retail ETF (RTH),
up 1.9% at year highs.
Constellation Brands (STZ) is up 23.3% and has hit new year
highs after it reported Q2 EPS of $0.40, a penny higher than
estimates. Revenue for the quarter came in at $635 million versus
the consensus estimate of $645.5 million. The company reaffirmed
its FY2012 guidance.
On the downside, Nike (NKE) is down 8% and hit as low as $85.10
after reporting a 6% drop in fiscal Q4 earnings to $1.17 a share --
or $0.20 below the analyst consensus, according to Capital IQ.
Revenues rose 12% year over year to $6.5 billion, roughly in-line
with forecasts.
Finish Line (FINL) is up 10%, reversing earlier losses, after it
posted Q1 EPS of $0.24, a penny ahead of the analyst consensus on
Thomson Reuters. Sales were $319 mln, vs. expectations of $321 mln.
Based on first quarter results, the company now expects earnings
per share for the fiscal year ending March 2, 2013 to increase
between 6% to 7% over the $1.53 in fiscal 2012, which excludes the
$0.07 impact from the 53rd week, up from its previous guidance of
mid-single digit growth. This guidance assumes an annual comparable
store sales increase of 5% to 6%.
Power Play -
Financial -
The sector continues to see gains at mid-day following news that
EU leaders have agreed to a EUR 120 billion growth package that
will help troubled countries in the region. The official also
announced a range of measures aimed at bringing down soaring
borrowing costs faced by Spain and Italy.
Select Financial Sector SPDRs (
XLF
) is up 2%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X shares (FAS) is up
6.4%. Its bearish counterpart, FAZ, is down 6.5%.
Actives in the finance sector are firmer: Bank of America (BAC)
is up 3.8%, Goldman Sachs (GS), up 2.3%, Morgan Stanley (MS), up
3%; Citigroup (C), up 3.2%.
Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) is up 2.9%, tracking the
sector's rally. Earlier, a report on Reuters stated RBS could face
a fine of $233 million or GBP 150 million related to its
involvement in interest rate rigging. RBS is among four British
banks that the Financial Services Authority has found to have
mis-sold products to protect small businesses against a rise in
interest rates. The banks, Barclays (BCS), RBS, HSBC (HBC) and
Lloyds (LYG), have settled with the agency, the report stated. RBS
has stated that it will continue to cooperate with regulators on
the ongoing investigation, but an unnamed source claimed that a
resolution to the case could take months, the report stated
further.
Credit Suisse Group (CS) is up 4.4% after it stated today that
it expects to be profitable in its second quarter. In an unexpected
statement that responded to media reports, the bank said that based
on its quarter-to-date information, all its divisions are
anticipated to turn in a profit for Q2. Analysts polled by Capital
IQ expects EPS of $0.67.