The S&P / Case-Shiller 20-City Composite of home prices recorded a steeper than expected decline of 0.8% in February. Year-over-year the decline was 3.5% to a new low since the housing bubble popped in mid-2006. New Home Sales fell 7.1% in March to an annual rate of 328,000 units, with inventory at another record low of 144,000. Consumer Confidence remains weak with a reading of 69.2, well below the neutral zone of 90 to 120. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rebounded to a morning high at 13,050.30 above its 50-day simple moving average at 13,016, but afternoon weakness has the Dow on the cusp of its 50-day. The NASDAQ’s declined to a morning low at 2961.43, rose to 2979.08, then fell to an afternoon low at 2950.38 below its 50-day simple moving average at 3014.

Asian stocks were mixed on Tuesday. The Nikkei 225 ended their session at 9,468 – down 0.78% on the day. The Hang Seng ended their session at 20,677 – up 0.26% on the day. European exchanges ended high in a choppy session on Tuesday. The FTSE 100 ended their session at 5,711 – up 0.81% on the day. The DAX ended their session at 6,599 – up 1.16% on the day. The CAC 40 ended their session at 3,169 – up 2.29% on the day. The yield on the 10-Year US Treasury rose from 1.916 percent to 1.972 below its 50-day and 200-day simple moving averages at 2.080 and 2.102.

Gold rebounded from $1634.6 the Troy ounce to $1650.1 below the “death cross” defined by the 50-day simple moving average at $1683.4 being below the 200-day simple moving average at $1696.2. Crude oil rebounded from $102.79 per barrel to $104.10, staying below its 50-day simple moving average at $104.91. The euro versus the dollar rebounded from 1.3148 to 1.3217 testing its 50-day simple moving average at 1.3203.

Energy

Weatherford International (WFT) missed Q1 EPS estimates by four cents on revenue of $3.6 billion. Baker Hughes (BHI) beat Q1 EPS estimates by six cents on better than expected revenue. Noble Energy (NBL) declared a quarterly cash dividend of 22 cents per share. Cabot Oil & Gas (COG) is initiated with a Buy rating at Société Générale. Statoil ASA (STO), the Russian energy giant gets has been upgraded to Outperform from Underperform at BNP Paribas. Niska Gas Storage (NKA) has been upgraded to Market Perform from Underperform at Wells Fargo. Dow components – Chevron (CVX) gained 0.4% in morning trading with Exxon Mobil (XOM) up 0.6%.

Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) was trading at $69.33 at 3:30 PM on Tuesday, up 0.64% on the day – up 0.29% year-to-date.

Materials

U.S. Steel (X) beat Q1 EPS estimates by 21 cents with better than expected revenue. Celanese (CE) missed Q1 EPS estimates by five cents with in-line revenue. Ashland (ASH) beat Q2 EPS estimates by fourteen cents with in-line revenue. Air Products and Chemicals (APD) missed Q2 EPS estimates by four cents with a miss on the revenue line. Dow components – Alcoa (AA) picked up 0.3% still below the $10 threshold. DuPont (DD) gained 1.4%.
The Materials Select Sector SPDR (XLB) was trading at $35.95 at 3:30 PM on Tuesday, down 0.22% on the day – up 7.31% year-to-date.

Industrials

Ford (F) executives at the Beijing auto announced that they plan to offer four new SUV models to tap into the China’s middle class. At least two of the models will be built locally according to the report. Federal-Mogul (FDML) missed Q1 EPS estimates by eighteen cents with in-line revenue. Illinois Tool Works (ITW) beat Q1 EPS estimates by two cents with in-line revenue. PACCAR (PCAR) beat Q1 EPS estimates by thirteen cents with better than expected revenue. Parker-Hannifin (PH) beat their Q3 EPS estimates by 29 cents on better than expected revenue. 3M (MMM) beat Q1 EPS estimates by eleven cents with in-line revenue. Delphi Automotive (DLPH) beat Q1 EPS estimates by twelve cents with in-line revenue. United Technologies (UTX) beat Q1 EPS estimates by eleven cents but missed on the revenue line. Dow components – Boeing Co (BA) gained 1.0% in morning trading, with Caterpillar (CAT) up 1.3%, General Electric (GE) tacked on 2.1%, 3M Company (MMM) rallied 1.9%, and United Technologies (UTX) gained 0.7%.
The Industrial Select Sector SPDR (XLI) was trading at $36.78 at 3:30 PM on Tuesday, up 1.16% on the day – up 8.98% year-to-date.

Consumer Discretionary

Facebook’s (FB) reported that their Q1 net income fell 8.1% on the year to $205 million from $223 million, even as revenue jump 45% to $1.06 billion. A troubling statistic is ad revenue growth, which fell to 37% from 69% in 2011. This report questions the valuation of the Facebook IPO. Amazon (AMZN) has made an agreement with the State of Nevada to collect sales tax on purchases made on Amazon.com by Nevadans. This arrangement goes into effective in 2014, which is in line with a federal framework for sales tax on Internet purchases. Coach (COH) beat Q3 EPS estimates by two cents with in-line revenue. Leapfrog (LF) has been resumed with a Buy rating at Roth Capital with a price target at $11. Brinker International (EAT) has been upgraded by both Susquehanna, to Neutral from Negative, and Sterne Agee to Neutral from Underperform. Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) has been downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at Credit Suisse. Dow Components – Disney (DIS) gained 0.7% in morning trading with McDonalds (MCD) flat.
The Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY) was trading at $43.93 at 3:30 PM on Tuesday, down 0.52% on the day – up 12.58% year-to-date.

Consumer Staples

Netflix (NFLX) were crushed by 16.1% premarket in reaction to their Q1 earnings results, as the company forecast that it would add just 200K-800K online subscribers in Q2, well below analyst estimates of 1.2 million. The Department Of Justice has reportedly started a criminal probe of Wal-Mart (WMT) for allegations of systemic bribery in Mexico. Nestle (NSRGY.PK) may sell $1.2 to $1.8 billion of assets from the infant-nutrition unit the company is buying from Pfizer for $11.85 billion. The move should ease antitrust concerns in countries around the world. Reported suitors could include Heinz (HNZ), Abbott Labs (ABT) and private equity funds. Hershey Foods (HSY) beat Q1 EPS estimates by fifteen cents with better than expected revenue. Big Lots (BIG) shares were down about 15% after warning that Q1 US same-store sales growth would be slightly negative due to weak consumables and electronics sales versus the guidance for a 2%-4% increase. Dow components – Home Depot (HD) gained 0.6% in morning trading with Kraft (KFT) up 0.8%, Coca Cola (KO) up 0.7%, Procter & Gamble (PG) gained 0.4%, and Wal-Mart (WMT) was down another 1.7%.
The Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR (XLP) was trading at $33.77 at 3:30 PM on Tuesday, down 0.03% on the day – up 3.94% year-to-date.

Health Care

Watson Pharmaceuticals (WPI) is close to announcing a $5.6 billon bid buy Actavis, which is an important one for Deutsche Bank (DB), which holds billions of euros of Actavis debt after a leveraged buyout in 2007. Nestle (NSRGY.PK) may sell $1.2 to $1.8 billion of assets from the infant-nutrition unit the company is buying from Pfizer for $11.85 billion. The move should ease antitrust concerns in countries around the world. Reported suitors could include Heinz (HNZ), Abbott Labs (ABT) and private equity funds. Centene (CNC) missed Q1 EPS estimates by three cents but beat on the revenue line. Alexion Pharmaceuticals (ALXN) beat Q1 EPS estimates by seven cents with better than expected revenue. Health Management Associates (HMA) beat Q1 EPS estimates by two cents but missed on the revenue line. Dow Components – Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) gained 0.5%, Merck (MRK) was up 0.2%, and Pfizer (PFE) advanced by 1.8%.
The Health Care Select Sector SPDR (XLV) was trading at $37.13 at 3:30 PM on Tuesday, up 0.35% on the day – up 7.03% year-to-date.

Financials

Watson Pharmaceuticals (WPI) is close to announcing a $5.6 billon bid buy Actavis, which is an important one for Deutsche Bank (DB), which holds billions of euros of Actavis debt after a leveraged buyout in 2007. Regions Financial (RF) beat Q1 EPS estimates by three cents. Synovus Financial (SNV) beat Q1 EPS estimates by a penny. Zions Bancorp (ZION) beat Q1 EPS by five cents. BancorpSouth (BXS) beat Q1 EPS estimates by nine cents. Riverview Bancorp (RVSB), the small cap community banks has been downgraded to Sell from Hold with Wunderlich. Dow Components – American Express (AXP) gained 0.2%, Bank of America (BAC) dropped another 0.9%, JP Morgan (JPM) gained 0.6%, and Travelers (TRV) was up 0.8%.
The Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF) was trading at $15.20 at 3:30 PM on Tuesday, up 0.80% on the day – up 16.92% year-to-date.

Information Technology

Texas Instruments (TXN) reported Q1 EPS of 32 cents down from 55 cents, which beat forecasts. TI revenue fell 8% to an in-line $3.1 billion. Q2 guidance was better than expected and shares jumped 3.7% in after-hours trading. Apple (AAPL), whose shares are down 11% from a recently set all time high at $644 per share will report quarterly results after the close today. Apple’s EPS forecast is $10.06 per share with revenue at $36.8 billions. STMicroelectronics (STM) missed Q1 EPS estimates by nine cents with in-line revenue. F5 Networks (FFIV) is initiated with a Market Perform rating at Northland Securities with a price target at $134. Dow Components – Cisco Systems (CSCO) lost 1.3% in morning trading, Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) gained 0.3%, IBM (IBM) rallied 1.5%, Intel Corp (INTC) picked up just 0.1%, and Microsoft (MSFT) slipped 0.2%.
The Technology Select Sector SPDR (XLK) was trading at $29.00 at 3:30 PM on Tuesday, down 0.17% on the day – up 13.95% year-to-date.

Telecommunication Services

Fitch has downgraded Nokia (NOK) from BBB- to BB+, or junk status even though the handset maker sitting on 4.9 billion euros of net cash. AT&T (T) beat Q1 EPS estimates by three cents with in-line revenue. Clearwire Corp (CLWR) has been downgraded to Hold from Buy at Jefferies. Dow components – AT&T (T) surged 3.7% in morning trading with Verizon (VZ) up 2.0%.
The NASDAQ Telecommunications Index (IXTC) was trading at $206.74 at 3:30 PM on Tuesday, down 0.13% on the day – up 4.98% year-to-date.

Utilities

Dominion Resources (D) was down 0.2% in morning trading, Edison International (EIX) gained 1.1%, First Energy (FE) was up 0.4%, and PG&E Corp (PCG) gained 0.4%.
The Utilities Select Sector SPDR (XLU) was trading at $35.19 at 3:30 PM on Tuesday, up 0.92% on the day – down 2.20% year-to-date.

STOCKS: CVX, XOM, WFT, BHI, NBL, COG, STO, NKA, AA, DD, X, CE, ASH, APD, BA, CAT, GE, MMM, UTX, F, FDML, ITW, PCAR, PH, DLPH, DIS, MCD, FB, AMZN, COH, LF, EAT, CMG, HD, KFT, KO, PG, WMT, NFLX, NSRGY.PK, HNZ, HSY, ABT, BIG, JNJ, MRK, PFE, WPI, CNC, ALXN, HMA, AXP, BAC, JPM, TRV, RF, SNV, ZION, BXS, RVSB, CSCO, HPQ, IBM, INTC, MSFT, TXN, AAPL, STM, FFIV, T, VZ, NOK, CLWR, D, EIX, FE, PCG, ABVT