Stocks wavered throughout trading in Monday, but finally settled
on a loss as traders took their cues from the currency markets,
where the euro continued to backpedal against the dollar. The Dow
Jones Industrial Average backpedaled away from the psychologically
significant 10,000 level as it shed more than 100 points. The Dow
is now testing support in the 9,800 neighborhood, which contained
its lows in early February. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 Index
endured a drop of 1.4%. Right before the closing bell rang, the SPX
found a foothold at the 1,050 level, which provided a floor for the
index earlier this year. Fitch Ratings rattled traders in Europe
after it said Great Britain's fiscal challenge is "formidable," and
that the U.K. must tackle debt reduction in a serious way.
Britain's new prime minister, David Cameron, on Monday warned that
the nation must make severe spending cuts. "We have been living
beyond our means," Cameron said in a major speech. Meanwhile,
traders in the U.S. are looking forward to Wednesday's release of
the Fed's Beige Book, a snapshot of the economy. Those traders
remain cautious this morning after two days of sharp losses,
although both the DJIA and the SPX are trading slightly above fair
value. Finally, the CBOE Market Volatility Index (
VIX
) managed only a modest increase of 3% on Monday.
New York & Co. (
NWY
) lowered its second-quarter outlook, noting its losses are likely
to widen from the forecast provided on May 20 based on same-store
sales over the past three weeks. The specialty apparel chain did
not provide specific figures, but had said in May that it "expects
a loss per diluted share from continuing operations for the second
quarter of fiscal year 2010 to be greater than the year-ago
period." New York & Co. reported a loss of 8 cents a share in
the second quarter last year.
Gannett Co. (
GCI
) said it is "comfortable" with second-quarter earnings at the
higher end of analysts' estimates of 47 to 58 cents a share. On
average, analysts were expecting a profit for the period ended June
30 of 52 cents a share. In a statement, Gannett Chief Financial
Officer Gracia Martore said the company sees "improving revenue
trends" across all of its businesses. "In publishing, we continue
to see improving trends and the percentage decrease in revenues is
anticipated to be in the low-to-mid single digits," Martore said.
The stock closed at $14.29 on Monday, with a gain of 56 cents.
Earnings Preview
On the earnings front, Bob Evans Farms Inc. (
BOBE
), Navistar International Corp. (
NAV
), Dollar General Corp. (
DG
), Pall Corp. (
PLL
), and The Talbots Inc. (
TLB
) are scheduled to release their quarterly reports today. Keep your
browser at
SchaeffersResearch.com
for more news as it breaks.
Economic Calendar
Market Statistics
Equity option activity on the Chicago Board Options Exchange (
CBOE
) saw 1,184,024 call contracts traded on Monday, compared to
724,006 put contracts. The resultant single-session put/call ratio
arrived at 0.61, while the 21-day moving average came in at
0.66.
**The volume data shown above is from the Nasdaq and NYSE
exchanges only. It does not include regional volume activity,
which means that other daily volume quotes you see may be
higher.**
Every morning, our research staff analyzes the prior day and
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Overseas Trading
Overseas trading is a little on the weak side this morning, as
only four of the 10 markets that we follow are in positive
territory. The cumulative average return on the group stands at a
loss of 0.53%. In Asia, most markets closed in the black. Traders
are waiting on Chinese economic data and a European Central Bank
meeting later in the week. European shares fell, extending a
decline to a third day, on intensified worries about debt levels in
Europe and with German utilities weaker as they face a tax hike.
Overseas market information comes to you courtesy of
Schaeffer's Daily Bulletin
.
Currencies and Commodities
The U.S. dollar is trading slightly higher this morning against
strength in the euro, with the U.S. Dollar Index up 0.02% in
pre-market trading. Elsewhere, crude futures remain weak on
concerns of over a weak economy and slackening demand in the U.S.
In electronic trading, the most active contract was down 14 cents
at $71.30 per barrel. Finally, gold has bounced back this morning,
added $9.50 to sit at $1,250.30 an ounce in London.
Unusual Put and Call Activity:
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