Challenger, Grey and Christmas reported that planned layoffs rose to 115,730 in September to levels not seen since April 2009. ADP reported to the contrary that the private sector added 91,000 jobs in September. Non-manufacturing ISM came in at 53.0 in September with the Employment component at 48.7 implying job losses. Tomorrow we get Initial Jobless Claims and then on Friday the Employment Data for September. The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded to a new year-to-date low at 10,404.49 on Tuesday, then rebounded 3.9% in the final hour of trading to a close at 10,808.71, as the Dow could not stay below its 200-week and 120-month simple moving averages at 10,649 and 10,607. On Wednesday the Dow slumped to 10,738.10 then rebounded to 10,950.89 in afternoon trading. The NASDAQ traded to a new year-to-date low at 2298.89 on Tuesday then rebounded 4.6% in the final hour of trading to closes at 2404.82. On Wednesday the NASDAQ fell to 2380.96 then rose to 2466.50 in afternoon trading.
Asian stocks slumped again on Wednesday with the Nikkei 225 down 0.86% to 8,383 with the Hang Seng closed at 16,250. European stocks rebounded on hopes that the EU bank plan will prevent a wave of bank failures. The FTSE 100 rebounded 3.19% to 5,102 with the DAX surging 4.91% to 5,473 and the CAC 40 popping 4.33% to 2,974. The yield on the 10-Year US Treasury traded higher from 1.814 percent to 1.914 staying above its September 23rd all time low at 1.671 percent. Gold traded down to $1596.6 the Troy ounce then rebounded to $1648.9 on Wednesday. Crude oil traded up from $76.94 to $79.82 per barrel staying well below its 200-week simple moving average at $83.58. The euro versus the dollar traded down to 1.3264 then up to 1.3383.
Energy
Yingli Green Energy (YGE) gets cut to Sell from Hold at Citigroup. In afternoon trading: Shares of Suntech Power (STP) are up about 20.5%. Shares of Magnum Hunter (MHR) are up about 17.5%. Shares of James River (JRCC) are up about 15%. Shares of Trina Solar (TSL) are up about 14.75%. Shares of Hercules Offshore (HERO) are up about 14.5%. Shares of Yingli Green Energy are up about 14%. Shares of Patriot Coal (PCX) are up about 13.25%. Shares of LDK Solar (LDK) are up about 12.5%. Shares of ATP Oil & Gas (ATPG) are up about 12.25%. Shares of General Maritime (GMR) are down about 13.5%.
Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) was trading at $60.52 at 4:00 PM on Wednesday, up 3.68% on the day – down 11.33% year-to-date.
Materials
Rockwood Holdings (ROC) is raised to Overweight from Neutral at JP Morgan. In afternoon trading: Shares of Tronox (TROX) are up about 13.25%. Shares of Kronos Worldwide (KRO) are up about 10.5%. Shares of Teck Resources (TCK) are up about 9.5%. Shares of RPM International (RPM) are up about 9.5%. Shares of Rockwood Holdings are up about 9%. Shares of Headwaters (HEAD) are up about 8.5%. Shares of Southern Copper (SCCO) are up about 8.5%.
The Materials Select Sector SPDR (XLB) was trading at $30.82 at 4:00 PM on Wednesday, up 3.98% on the day – down 19.76% year-to-date.
Industrials
Clean Harbors (CLH) is resumed with a Neutral at Goldman Sachs. Nielsen (NLSN) is now Buy from Neutral at Goldman Sachs. In afternoon trading: Shares of SmartHeat (HEAT) are up about 26.5%. Shares of Fushi Copperweld (FSIN) are up about 14%. Shares of Meritor (MTOR) are up about 11.75%. Shares of YRC Worldwide (YRCW) are up about 10.5%. Shares of kforce (KFRC) are up about 9.25%. Shares of Hill International (HIL) are down about 13.75%.
The Industrial Select Sector SPDR (XLI) was trading at $29.81 at 4:00 PM on Wednesday, up 2.12% on the day – down 14.51% year-to-date.
Consumer Discretionary
Costco’s (COST) FQ4 earnings rose a better-than-expected 11% to $478M ($1.08/share) as it continues to post sales and membership-fee growth. Same-store sales rose 11% in the U.S. and 14% internationally. Gap (GPS) gets initiated with an Outperform at Credit Agricole. Netflix (NFLX) is a new Neutral at Sterne Agee. Walt Disney (DIS) is upgraded to Buy from Hold at Citigroup, which also increases CBS Corp (CBS) to Buy from Hold. Apollo Group (APOL) gets upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse. Regal Entertainment (RGC) is increased to Neutral from Sell at Janney Montgomery Scott. Home Depot (HD) is now Neutral from Buy at Goldman. PetSmart (PETM) is moved to Neutral from Buy at Goldman. In afternoon trading: Shares of Corinthian Colleges (COCO) are up about 16.25%. Shares of Xueda Education (XNY) are up about 14.5%. Shares of Imax (IMAX) are up about 11%. Shares of Eastman Kodak (EK) are up about 10.5%.
The Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY) was trading at $35.55 at 4:00 PM on Wednesday, up 1.83% on the day – down 4.97% year-to-date.
Consumer Staples
Costco’s (COST) FQ4 earnings rose a better-than-expected 11% to $478M ($1.08/share) as it continues to post sales and membership-fee growth. Same-store sales rose 11% in the U.S. and 14% internationally. In afternoon trading: Shares of American Oriental Bioengineering (AOB) are up about 18%. Shares of Star Scientific (CIGX) are up about 11.5%. Actives: Shares of Wal-Mart (WMT) are down about 1.1%. Shares of Kraft Foods (KFT) are down about 0.9%. Shares of CVS Caremark (CVS) are up about 0.8%. Shares of Altria Group (MO) are down about 0.6%.
The Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR (XLP) was trading at $29.55 at 4:00 PM on Wednesday, up slightly on the day – up 0.82% year-to-date.
Healthcare
Allergan (AGN) is a new Market Perform at JMP Securities. Thermo Fisher (TMO) is initiated with an Outperform and $63 objective at Oppenheimer. Genomic Health (GHDX) is initiated with a Perform at Oppenheimer. In afternoon trading: Shares of StemCells (STEM) are up about 19.25%. Shares of Nabi Biopharmaceuticals (NABI) are up about 17.75%. Shares of Pacific Biosciences (PACB) are up about 16.25%. Shares of Orexigen Therapeutics (OREX) are up about 15.5%. Shares of Xoma (XOMA) are up about 13.75%.
The Health Care Select Sector SPDR (XLV) was trading at $31.55 at 4:00 PM on Wednesday, up 1.61% on the day – up 0.16% year-to-date.
Financials
News that FMs are pondering a backstop for shaky eurozone banks sparked a late-day 400 point rally in the Dow. Much-maligned bank stocks rallied in Europe this morning, with BNP Paribas (BNPQY), SocGen (SCGLY) and Credit Agricole (CRARY) all up more than 5%. The U.S. AG in Manhattan and the New York AG filed lawsuits against Bank of New York Mellon (BK) Tuesday, saying it routinely charged customers inflated exchange rates on currency transactions, profiting to the tune of more than $2B. Sources say flailing Dexia (DXBGY) will set up a bad bank to park €180B in toxic assets, part of a larger plan that will look to dismantle the huge lender. 4.5M current and former homeowners will have a chance to get their foreclosure cases examined to see if they should be compensated for banks’ mistakes. Bank of America (BAC) will shutter its correspondent lending business after failing to reach a deal to sell the unit to Fortress Investment (FIG). Banco Santander Central (STD) is downgraded to Reduce from Hold at WestLB. Societe Generale SA (SCGLY) is reduced to Neutral from Buy at Goldman. In afternoon trading: Shares of Ambac Financial Group (ABKFQ) are up about 17.25%. Shares of MBIA (MBI) are up about 10.25%.
The Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF) was trading at $11.90 at 4:00 PM on Wednesday, up 1.45% on the day – down 25.39% year-to-date.
Information Technology
Apple (AAPL) watchers were underwhelmed by yesterday’s Let’s Talk iPhone event, at which new CEO Tim Cook introduced a new iPhone 4S boasting an A5 chip, faster graphics, a better camera, and some neat voice features – but no gee-whiz chassis. The rare failure to wow fans could open a crack for Android providers; shares of Nokia (NOK), Ericsson (ERIC), HTC (HTCXF), LG Electronics (LGEGF), and Samsung (SSNLF) all posted gains. Yahoo (YHOO) gained another 6.9% yesterday on reports of a joint bid featuring Alibaba (ALBCF), and rumors the company is preparing to send financial information to potential buyers – a signal Yahoo is seriously thinking about a possible sale. Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) is resumed with an Underweight at JP Morgan. LinkedIn (LNKD) is launched as a Hold and $81 price objective at Jefferies. Jefferies begins VMware (VMW) with a Buy and $100 target price, and assigns a Hold and $62 target on Citrix Systems (CTXS). Salesforce.com (CRM) is a new Neutral at Ticonderoga. Infineon Technologies AG (IFX) is lifted to Buy from Hold at ING Group. Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) is cut to Market Perform from Outperform at Sanford C. Bernstein. In afternoon trading: Shares of Omnivision (OVTI) are up about 13%. Shares of JinkoSolar (JKS) are up about 13%. Shares of Research In Motion (RIMM) are up about 11.75%. Shares of Alcatel-Lucent (ALU) are up about 11.5%. Shares of JA Solar (JASO) are up about 11.2%. Shares of Sanmina (SANM) are up about 10.75%. Shares of Limelight Networks (LLNW) are up about 10.75%.
The Technology Select Sector SPDR (XLK) was trading at $24.03 at 4:00 PM on Wednesday, up 2.08% on the day – down 4.61% year-to-date.
Telecommunications Services
Verizon (VZ) is rated a new Equal-Weight with Evercore Partners. In afternoon trading: Shares of TerreStar (TSTRQ) are up about 28.5%. Shares of Mobile Telesystems (MBT) are up about 8.5%. Shares of Leap Wireless (LEAP) are up about 5.5%. Shares of SK Telecom (SKM) are up about 5.5%. Shares of Level 3 Communications (LVLT) are up about 5.5%. Actives: Shares of Sprint Nextel (S) are down about 1.9%, while shares of AT&T (T) are relatively unchanged and shares of Verizon (VZ) are down about 1.5%.
The NASDAQ Telecommunications Index (IXTC) was trading at $184.98 at 4:00 PM on Wednesday, up 3.26% on the day – down 17.92% year-to-date.
Utilities
E.ON AG (EONGY) is upgraded to Buy from Add at WestLB. In afternoon trading: Actives: Shares of Duke Energy (DUK) are down about 0.7%. Shares of Exelon (EXC) are down about a half of a percent. Shares of Genon Energy (GEN) are down about 2.5%. Shares of AES Corp (AES) are up about 3.2%. Shares of Southern (SO) are down about 1.2%. Shares of PPL Corp (PPL) are down about 1%. Shares of Northeast Utilities (NU) are down about a half of a percent. Shares of NRG Energy (NRG) are up about 4.7%.
The Utilities Select Sector SPDR (XLU) was trading at $32.68 at 4:00 PM on Wednesday, up slightly on the day – up 4.28% year-to-date.
STOCKS: YGE, STP, MHR, JRCC, TSL, HERO, PCX, LDK, ATPG, GMR, ROC, TROX, KRO, TCK, RPM, HEAD, SCCO, CLH, NLSN, HEAT, FSIN, MTOR, YRCW, KFRC, HIL, COST, GPS, NFLX, DIS, CBS, APOL, RGC, HD, PETM, COCO, XNY, IMAX, EK, AOB, CIGX, WMT, KFT, CVS, MO, AGN, TMO, GHDX, STEM, NABI, PACB, OREX, XOMA, BNPQY, SCHLY, CRARY, BK, DXBGY, BAC, FIG, STD, SCGLY, ABKFQ, MBI, AAPL, NOK, ERIC, HTCXF, LGEGF, SSNLF, YHOO, ALBCF, HPQ, LNKD, VMW, CTXS, CRM, IFX, AMD, OVTI, JKS, RIMM, ALU, JASO, SANM, LLNW, VZ, TSTRQ, MBT, LEAP, SKM, LVLT, S, T, EONGY, DUK, EXC, GEN, AES, SO, PPL, NU, NRG
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