Durable Goods Orders fell 0.7% in October from the month prior, but excluding the transportation component were up 0.7%. New claims for unemployment benefits came in at 393,000 last week still above the 350,000 recessionary threshold. Personal Income rose by 0.4% with Spending up just 0.1%. The Dow Industrial Average traded below 11,275 in afternoon trading. The NASDAQ traded down from 2503.38 to below 2465 into the final hour of trading.
Asian stocks declined on Wednesday with the Nikkei 225 closed at 8,315 and the Hang Seng down 2.12% to 17,864 as China’s factory sector shrinks by the largest amount in 32 months. European stocks were lower on Wednesday, as German manufacturing contracted for the second consecutive month in November. Germany also had to cover 39% of a 10-Year note auction. The FTSE 100 declined 0.93% to 5,158, the DAX tumbled 1.44% to 5,458 and the CAC 40 lost 1.68% to 2,822.
The yield on the US Treasury 10-Year note traded down to 1.879 percent then rose 1.964 staying below its 50-day simple moving average at 2.041. The afternoon low yield was 1.876. Gold traded down from $1710.8 the Troy ounce to $1677.1. Crude oil declined from $97.87 per barrel to $95.35 testing its 200-day simple moving average at $95.46. The euro versus the dollar traded down from 1.3530 to 1.3323 staying below its 50-day simple moving average at 1.3660.
Energy
OPEC officials from Saudi Arabia and Iraq are among those signaling that they want to maintain current oil production quotas, as prices remain high. JA Solar (JASO) was upgraded to Market Perform from Underperform at Wells Fargo and the shares rebounded about 3.0% Wednesday morning. Frontline (FRO) fell by 40.0% on Tuesday has been downgraded to Underperform from Market Perform at FBR Capital. Diana Containerships (DCIX) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Bank of America. Notable movers; Baker Hughes (BHI) declined by 3.0%. First Solar (FSLR) gained 4.25%. Schlumberger (SLB) lost 3.25%. Suncor Energy (SU) dropped 4.25%.
Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) was trading at $64.62 into the final half hour of trading on Wednesday, down 2.53% on the day – down 5.32% year-to-date.
Materials
Century Aluminum (CENX) was initiated as a Hold at Stifel Nicolaus, who see low aluminum prices as a headwind for earnings. Valspar (VAL) is now Neutral from Overweight at JPMorgan with shares down 2.75%. Notable movers; Alcoa (AA) declined by 3.5%. AK Steel (AKS) declined about 6.0%. Freeport McMoRan (FCX) lost 2.25%. Molycorp (MCP) declined by nearly 6.0%. Patriot Coal (PCX) declined by 6.25%. US Steel (X) lost slightly more than 6.0%.
The Materials Select Sector SPDR (XLB) was trading at $31.71 into the final half hour of trading on Wednesday, down 2.22% on the day – down 17.44% year-to-date.
Industrials
Deere (DE) beat EPS estimates by 19 cents and also beat revenue estimates and the stock popped by 3.75% in morning trading. Notable movers; American Woodmark (AMWD) declined by 8.25%. Avis Budget Group (CAR) lost 5.2%. DryShips (DRYS) slumped by 6.4%. Genco Shipping & Trading (GNK) fell by 10.0%. Kforce Inc (KFRC) declined by 5.8%. Manitowoc (MTW) lost 6.3%. Oshkosh Corp (OSK) fell by 5.25%.Trinity Industries (TRN) declined by nearly 6.0%.
The Industrial Select Sector SPDR (XLI) was trading at $31.34 into the final half hour of trading on Wednesday, down 1.91% on the day – down 10.12% year-to-date.
Consumer Discretionary
Wyndham Worldwide (WYN) is initiated with a Buy at Jefferies, but the stock slipped about a percent in Wednesday’s trade. Big Lots (BIG) has been downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Barclays and shares slumped move than 6.0% on Wednesday. Notable movers; Barnes & Noble (BKS) declined by 7.0%. Ethan Allen (ETH) slumped by 6.2%. Hot Topic (HOTT) lost nearly 5.0%. Lamar Advertising (LAMR) declined 3.5%. La-Z Boy (LZB) traded lower by 6.2%. McGraw-Hill (MHP) declined by 5.65%. Collective Brands (PSS) was a 5.0% winner.
The Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY) was trading at $36.63 into the final half hour of trading on Wednesday, down 1.72% on the day – down 2.09% year-to-date.
Consumer Staples
Notable movers; Chiquita Brands (CQB) saw their shares peeled by 4.6%. Diamond Foods (DMND) shares were crushed by 18.0%. Dole Foods (DOLE) share price leaked by 6.4%. Imperial Sugar (JPSU) shares soared by 4.0%. Pilgrim’s Pride (PPC) shares were gobbled by 3.5%.
The Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR (XLP) was trading at $30.36 into the final half hour of trading on Wednesday, down 0.75% on the day – up 3.58% year-to-date.
Healthcare
Medtronic (MDT) is upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Bank of America after reporting fiscal Q2 earnings were up 54%, but the stock slumped a percent on Wednesday. Gilead Sciences (GILD) has been downgraded to Hold from Buy at Argus after the announcement of a major acquisition that will likely depress earnings growth for the next three years. Notable movers; Dendreon (DNDN) declined by 7.0%. Complete Genomics (GNOM) lost 8.25%.
The Health Care Select Sector SPDR (XLV) was trading at $31.91 into the final half hour of trading on Wednesday, down 1.21% on the day – up 1.30% year-to-date.
Financials
The Federal Reserve has introduced new bank stress tests in which lenders will model a severe Eurozone recession including a 6.9% decline in real GDP, and a higher domestic unemployment rate. The six largest banks will be a major focus: Bank of America (BAC), Citigroup (C), Goldman Sachs (GS), JPMorgan Chase (JPM), Morgan Stanley (MS) and Wells Fargo (WFC). Goldman Sachs (GS): was initiated as a new Neutral at Macquarie. Notable movers; Bank of America (BAC) declined by 3.3%. Comerica (CMA) lost 3.7%. Jefferies Group (JEF) bucked the day’s trend with a gain of 5.75%. SunTrust Banks (STI) slumped by nearly 4.0%.
The Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF) was trading at $11.81 into the final half hour of trading on Wednesday, down 2.24% on the day – down 25.96% year-to-date.
Information Technology
TiVo (TIVO) reported an earnings beat, but its loss widened on a 66% rise in new subscription costs. The company also guided its current quarter to below street estimates. The stock rallied non-the-less by 2.8% in morning trading on Friday. Pandora Media (P) beat EPS estimates by three cents and also topped revenue estimates. The company claims a 4.3% share of the US radio listening. The stock slumped by 12.3% in morning trading. Nuance Communications (NUAN) beat the street by a penny with better than expected revenues, but the stock traded relatively flat. Notable movers; Advance Micro Devices (AMD) declined by 3.75%. Cree Inc (CREE) lost slightly more than 5.0%. Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) lost another 2.65%. Jabil Circuit (JBL) slumped by 6.25%. Skyworks Solutions (SWKS) declined by 7.8%.
The Technology Select Sector SPDR (XLK) was trading at $24.24 into the final half hour of trading on Wednesday, down 1.98% on the day – down 3.77% year-to-date.
Telecommunications Services
The planed purchase of T-Mobile by AT&T (T) hits another snag as FCC head Julius Genachowski will seek an administrative hearing on the $39 billion deal, which already faces opposition from the DOJ. The FCC has already concluded that the deal would harm consumers, kill jobs and result in an overly concentrated wireless phone industry. Notable movers; Leap Wireless (LEAP) declined by nearly 4.0%. Level 3 Communications (LVLT) lost 4.75%. SureWest Communications (SURW) declined by 6.4%.
The NASDAQ Telecommunications Index (IXTC) was trading at $189.31 into the final half hour of trading on Wednesday, down 2.91% on the day – down 16.00% year-to-date.
Utilities
Notable movers; Calpine Corp (CPN) declined by 3.4%. Consolidated Water (CWCO) lost 5.8%. Shares of Duke Energy (DUK) are down about 1.2%. Shares of AES Corp. (AES) are down about 1.7%. Shares of PPL Corp. (PPL) are down about 2.4%. Shares of Exelon (EXC) are down about 1.2%.
The Utilities Select Sector SPDR (XLU) was trading at $33.36 into the final half hour of trading on Wednesday, down 1.27% on the day – up 6.45% year-to-date.
STOCKS: JASO, FRO, DCIX, BHI, FSLR, SLB, SU, CENX, VAL, AA, AKS, FCX, MCP, PCX, X, DE, AMWD, CAR, DRYS, GNK, KFRC, MTW, OSK, TRN, WYN, BIG, BKS, ETH, HOTT, LAMR, LZB, MHP, CQB, DMND, DOLE, JPSU, PPC, MDT, GILD, DNDN, GNOM, BAC, C, GS, JPM, MS, WFC, CMA, JEF, STI, TIVO, P, NUAN, AMD, CREE, HPQ, JBL SWKS, T, LEAP, LVLT, SURW, CPN, CWCO, DUK, AES, PPL, EXC
