Active broad-market exchange-traded funds at mid-day:
SPDR S&P 500 (
SPY
): +1.04%
Financial Select Sector SPDR (
XLF
): +0.84%, near year high
iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Index (
EEM
): +1.18%
PowerShares QQQ Trust, Series 1 (
QQQ
): +1.34%
iShares Russell 2000 Index (
IWM
): +0.61%
In ETF news, investment management firm BlackRock (BLK) said
late Monday that it will be reducing the fees on six of its
exchange-traded funds and introducing four more new ETFs, according
to a report on Reuters. The report stated that the most significant
cut on an existing BLK ETF is on $362.5 million iShares Core
S&P Total U.S. Stock Market ETF (ISI), which will see a cut of
0.07% from 0.20%. The new ETFs are also generally cheaper than
existing ETFs, the report added. BLK's move follows the price
reductions of ETFs from is competitors, low cost firm, Vanguard
Group, which gained market share from BLK, and Charles Schwab Corp
(SCHW), the report stated further.
Broad Market Indicators
Broad-market exchange-traded funds, including SPY, IWM, IVV and
others, are firmer. Actively traded PowerShares QQQ (
QQQ
) is up 1.34%.
U.S. stocks continue to trade in the green, finding traction on
upbeat earnings reports - particularly Goldman Sachs (GS) and
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) - as well as news reports that Spain is
close to a possible bailout request. The markets took mixed
economic results in stride, with the Federal Reserve reporting that
industrial production in the U.S. rose more than was expected in
September; consumer prices, on the other hand, jumped in September
due to higher gas costs, with core prices increasing a seasonally
adjusted 0.1%.
Winners and Losers
Technology -
Tech ETFs Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK), iShares Dow
Jones US Technology ETF (IYW), iShares S&P North American
Technology ETF (IGM) and iShares S&P North American
Technology-Software Index (IGV) are all leaning higher and at the
top end of their 52-week trading range.
Semiconductor ETFs, SPDR S&P Semiconductor (XSD) and
Semiconductor Sector Index Fund (SOXX) and SPDR S&P
International Technology Sector ETF (IPK) are all up by more than
2%.
In sector news, Identive Group (INVE) is up near 25% but off day
highs after the company earlier launched a new smart card reader,
the iAuthenticate, for Apple (AAPL) mobile devices.
Energy -
The energy sector is outperforming the broader market, and
Energy ETFs are logging gains: Dow Jones U.S. Energy Fund (IYE) is
up 1.56%; Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) is up 1.7%.
In sector news, Calumet Specialty Products Partners (CLMT) is up
8.5% after announcing that it will increase its quarterly cash
distribution to $0.62 per unit for the quarter ended September 30,
2012 on all of its outstanding limited partner units. This
distribution represents an increase of 5.1% over the previous
quarterly distribution.
Commodities -
Crude was up 0.24% while natural gas was down 0.92%. United
States Oil Fund (USO) has turned positive and is now up 0.1%.
United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) is down 1%.
Gold was up 0.45%; silver was up 0.6%. Among rare metal funds,
SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) is up 0.4%; iShares Silver Trust (SLV) is up
0.8%.
Healthcare -
Healthcare ETFs Health Care SPDR (XLV), up 1%, near its year
high; Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT), up 0.9% and also near 52 week
highs; and iShares Dow Jones US Healthcare (IYH), up 0.9%, pushing
near its 52-week high. Biotech ETF iShares NASDAQ Biotechnology
Index (IBB) is up 0.9%.
In corporate news, Isis Pharmaceuticals (ISIS) is down 18% as
StreetInsider reports the FDA will review the cancer risk for
Kynamro. The FDA asked an advisory panel on Oct 18th to discuss an
"imbalance" in tumors seen in studies of Kynamro. Kynamro was also
tied to increased cancers in rat studies, the report said.
Consumer -
Consumer ETFs are higher and near 52 week highs too: Consumer
Staples Select Sector SPDR (XLP), up 0.1%; iShares Dow Jones US
Consumer Goods (IYK), up 0.2%; and Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF
(VDC), up 0.11%.
Retail ETFs are firmer: SPDR S&P Retail (XRT), up 0.85%;
PowerShares Dynamic Retail (PMR), up 1.35%; and Market Vectors
Retail ETF (RTH), up 0.5%, after hitting a new year high.
In sector news, Mattel (MAT) is up 4.9% and has hit a new
52-week high of $37.20 after it reported Q3 earnings of $1.04 per
share, ex one-time items, versus the Capital IQ consensus of $0.99.
Revenues were $2.08 bln, versus the analyst estimate of $2.07 bln.
In the same period last year, the company reported EPS of $0.86 on
revenues of $1.99 bln.
Power Play -
Financial -
Select Financial Sector SPDRs (
XLF
) is up 1%, near its 52-week high. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X
shares (FAS) is up 2.5%. Its bearish counterpart, FAZ, is down
2.4%.
Among financial stocks, State Street (STT) is up 5% after the
company earlier reported Q3 earnings of $0.99 per share, ex
one-time items, versus the Capital IQ consensus of $0.96. Operating
revenues were $2.35 mln, versus the analyst estimate of $2.38 bln.
In the same period last year, the company reported EPS of $0.96 on
revenues of $2.43 bln.