Daily Markets - Financial News And Opinions

---

• Thermo Fisher Expands Agreement
• Forex Trading: GBP/USD Potentially Forming Double-Bottom
• Forex Trading: EURUSD Rebounds For Now, But Eurozone Still Not Out Of The Woods
• Sinopec Shanghai Flips Losses
• Stock Market News Briefs: Boeing Company (The), Citigroup Inc., Ford Motor Credit Company, Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (The), Jefferies Group, Inc., Micron Technology, Inc., Morgan Stanley, Southwestern Energy Company, VeriSign, Inc.
• Australian Dollar: The Downside Prevails
• Canadian Dollar: The Downside Prevails
• Williams Keeps Neutral Rating
• Raytheon Eyes Shareholder Value
• Forex Trading: USDJPY Non-trending. At Equilibrium Level Intraday
• SunPower Acquires SunRay
• U.S. Bank Failures Zoom
• Forex Trading: GBPUSD Rebounds As Stocks Open
• Confident Investors Move Dollar Lower
• Swiss Franc: The Upside Prevails
• Japanese Yen: The Upside Prevails
• British Pound: The Upside Prevails
• Euro: The Upside Prevails
• U.S. Treasury Spread Model: No Chance Of Double-Dip Recession
• Forex Trading: EURUSD Breaks Below Intraday MA Support.
• Forex Trading: AUDUSD Pushing Above The 200 Hour MA At 0.9148
• U.S. Housing Market Not Bottomed Yet
• Stock Buy: La-Z-Boy, Inc.
• Stock Buy: Bio-Reference Labs
• Bull Of The Day: Cliffs Natural Resources (CLF)
• Stock Buy: Jones Apparel Group Inc.
• Bear Of The Day: Greatbatch, Inc. (GB)
• Stock Buy: Amphenol
• Mutual Funds: Top 5 Aggressive Growth Funds

Thermo Fisher Expands Agreement Posted: 29 Mar 2010 07:47 AM PDT Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO) recently expanded its clinical trial materials supply chain relationship agreement with Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY). Per the new five-year agreement, Thermo Fisher will take over the responsibility of Lilly's in-house clinical trial materials manufacturing, packaging and labeling operations at the Lilly Technology Center in Indianapolis.   The Fisher Clinical Services segment of Thermo Fisher will handle this transition and expects it to be … [visit site to read more]

Forex Trading: GBP/USD Potentially Forming Double-Bottom Posted: 29 Mar 2010 07:41 AM PDT Price action on GBP/USD (a daily chart of which is shown) as of Monday (3/29/2010) morning New York session has continued its rebound off key support just below the significant 1.4800 price region. This rebound hints at a possible double-bottom in the making. Any strong breakout and daily close significantly above 1.5000 would lend further strength to the potential for a double-bottom formation. In this event, the key upside level to watch would be the 1.5380 price region, which … [visit site to read more]

Forex Trading: EURUSD Rebounds For Now, But Eurozone Still Not Out Of The Woods Posted: 29 Mar 2010 07:33 AM PDT What a difference a day makes… If the performance of EURUSD is anything to go by, the swirling pessimism surrounding Greece and the integrity of the Eurozone as a whole seems to have been neutralized by France and Germany’s agreement to cooperate on a bailout should that become necessary. EU Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Rehn went so far as describing the accord on Greece as a turning point for the euro, and policy makers from both the ECB and across the Eurobloc have applied a … [visit site to read more]

Sinopec Shanghai Flips Losses Posted: 29 Mar 2010 07:30 AM PDT Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Company Limited (NYSE:SHI), one of China's largest petrochemical companies, recorded a net income of $206 million (RMB1.6 billion) or $2.85 (RMB 0.221) in 2009 as opposed to net losses of $804 million (RMB6.2 billion) or $11.15 (RMB0.866) in 2008. The earnings, however, missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by $1.95 per share. Sinopec Shanghai has benefited from the government’s decision to ease controls, which prevented the company from passing on high crude oil … [visit site to read more]

Stock Market News Briefs: Boeing Company (The), Citigroup Inc., Ford Motor Credit Company, Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (The), Jefferies Group, Inc., Micron Technology, Inc., Morgan Stanley, Southwestern Energy Company, VeriSign, Inc. Posted: 29 Mar 2010 07:24 AM PDT  Boeing (NYSE:BA) officials on Sunday said the Dreamliner’s load test showed initial results were positive  Apollo Group (NADAQ:APOL) posted better than expected fiscal second quarter earnings of 84 cents a share, ahead of Zacks projections of 81 cents, on inline revenues of $1.07 billion  Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) was selected to advise and manage sales of the government’s position in Citigroup (NYSE:C) common shares  Ford (NYSE:F) said it agreed to sell Volvo to China’s … [visit site to read more]

Australian Dollar: The Downside Prevails Posted: 29 Mar 2010 07:18 AM PDT Update on supports and resistances. … [visit site to read more]

Canadian Dollar: The Downside Prevails Posted: 29 Mar 2010 07:18 AM PDT Update on supports and resistances. … [visit site to read more]

Williams Keeps Neutral Rating Posted: 29 Mar 2010 07:15 AM PDT We are maintaining our Neutral recommendation on Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) with a target price of $23.   We like Williams' strong business mix, attractive growth opportunities in its low-risk upstream model and relatively stable fee-based midstream services. The company's high growth exploration and production (E&P) business is nicely complemented by its midstream assets, which are less sensitive to commodity prices and help Williams to maintain a steady stream of revenue and … [visit site to read more]

Raytheon Eyes Shareholder Value Posted: 29 Mar 2010 07:00 AM PDT Raytheon Company (NYSE:RTN) has kept its focus on shareholder value through incremental dividends and share repurchases. The company increased its annual dividend payout rate by 21% from $1.24 to $1.50 per share. Shareholders of record as of the close of business on Apr 6, 2010 will receive the incremental quarterly cash dividend of $0.375 per share on Apr 29, 2010.   Raytheon's strong balance sheet provides financial flexibility in matters of incremental dividend, ongoing share repurchase … [visit site to read more]

Forex Trading: USDJPY Non-trending. At Equilibrium Level Intraday Posted: 29 Mar 2010 06:58 AM PDT The USDJPY has been in a narrow trading range and is converged with the 100 and 200 bar MA on the 5 minute chart. This is the condition we call "Three's A Crowd" and it is indicative of a non-trending market. Typically, the price will trend away from the level either to the upside or the downside.  The level comes in at the 92.54 level.  The last move down bottomed at the 92.41 level.  The 92.38 to 41 level has been a floor over the last couple of trading days.  This … [visit site to read more]

SunPower Acquires SunRay Posted: 29 Mar 2010 06:45 AM PDT SunPower Corporation (SPWRA) is focused on gaining a firmer foothold in the rapidly expanding European and the Middle Eastern solar market. With this intent the company acquired leading European solar power plant developer – SunRay Renewable Energy. The total consideration for the acquisition is approximately $277 million consisting of approximately $263 million in cash and $14 million in promissory notes.   SunRay with offices spread across Europe and the Middle East will expand … [visit site to read more]

U.S. Bank Failures Zoom Posted: 29 Mar 2010 06:37 AM PDT Although the economy is showing signs of a gradual recovery with large financial institutions stabilizing, tumbling home prices, soaring loan defaults and rising unemployment continue to take their toll on small banks. As a result, U.S. regulators on Friday shuttered four more banks in Georgia, Florida and Arizona. This brings the total number of failed banks to 41 so far in 2010, compared to 140 in 2009, 25 in 2008 and 3 in 2007. While we expect economic recovery to gain momentum soon, there … [visit site to read more]

Forex Trading: GBPUSD Rebounds As Stocks Open Posted: 29 Mar 2010 06:35 AM PDT The GBPUSD has moved higher as the US stock market is opening.  The price, which dipped below the 100 hour MA at the 1.4970 earlier in the NY session, has now rebounded back above the intraday MA level (blue line in the chart above - currrently at 1.4974). The 1.5001 level is the next upside target. On the hourly chart the price is firmly in between the 100 and 200 bar MA at the 1.4926 and the 1.5046 level. These levels will be the extremes the market will likely buy against or … [visit site to read more]

Confident Investors Move Dollar Lower Posted: 29 Mar 2010 06:27 AM PDT Investors headed back into the currency markets Friday feeling more confident in the global recovery, after US GDP for the fourth quarter of 2009 held at 5.6%. The combination of good US growth, a possible solution to the Greek debt crisis, and the passage of Obama's healthcare overhaul had investors almost giddy as they put money back to work in the markets. As was the pattern most of last year, confidence in the global recovery is bad news for the US dollar and Japanese yen (JPY). Investors … [visit site to read more]

Swiss Franc: The Upside Prevails Posted: 29 Mar 2010 06:17 AM PDT Update on supports and resistances. … [visit site to read more]

Japanese Yen: The Upside Prevails Posted: 29 Mar 2010 06:17 AM PDT Update on supports and resistances. … [visit site to read more]

British Pound: The Upside Prevails Posted: 29 Mar 2010 06:17 AM PDT Update on supports and resistances. … [visit site to read more]

Euro: The Upside Prevails Posted: 29 Mar 2010 06:17 AM PDT Update on supports and resistances. … [visit site to read more]

U.S. Treasury Spread Model: No Chance Of Double-Dip Recession Posted: 29 Mar 2010 06:01 AM PDT A few weeks ago, the New York Federal Reserve updated its “Probability of U.S. Recession Predicted by Treasury Spread” with data through February 2010, and the Fed’s recession probability forecast through February 2011 (see top chart above). The NY Fed’s model uses the spread between 10-year (3.69% in February) and 3-month Treasury rates (0.11% in February) to calculate the probability of a recession in the U.S. twelve months ahead (see details here). The Fed’s model (data here) … [visit site to read more]

Forex Trading: EURUSD Breaks Below Intraday MA Support. Posted: 29 Mar 2010 05:53 AM PDT The 100 bar MA on the 5 minute chart has been breached at the 1.3467 level, but so far the 200 bar MA is trying to hold support but the downside seems vulnerable.  The price has been able to stay above the 200 bar MA since movong above at 1.3319 on Friday.The current level comes in at 1.3454.  A move below would next target the 1.3437 level which is the old low from March 2nd.  Below that the 1.3415 level will be eyed by buyers. The market will expect the 100 bar MA to hold … [visit site to read more]

Forex Trading: AUDUSD Pushing Above The 200 Hour MA At 0.9148 Posted: 29 Mar 2010 05:29 AM PDT The AUDUSD has been supported by comments from RBA Stevens and in early NY trade, the price has moved above the 200 hour MA at the 0.9148 level. The move today has also pushed the price back above the 100 day MA at the 0.9068 level much earlier in the day (see horizontal line in the hourly chart above).  The longer term target will NOW look toward the trendline on the daily chart at the 0.9231 level (CAHRT BELOW).  Before that level, however, look for profit taking selling against … [visit site to read more]

U.S. Housing Market Not Bottomed Yet Posted: 29 Mar 2010 05:01 AM PDT For some perspective of the all-important US real estate market, Chart of the Day provided the graph below, illustrating the US median price of a single-family home over the past 40 years. Following the parabolic increase from 1991 to 2005, prices dropped by 35% from the peak. “In fact, a home buyer who bought the median priced single-family home at the 1979 peak has actually seen that home lose 4.3% of its value. Not an impressive performance considering that over three decades have … [visit site to read more]

Stock Buy: La-Z-Boy, Inc. Posted: 28 Mar 2010 10:00 PM PDT La-Z-Boy, Inc. (NYSE:LZB) recently hit a new 52-week high above $15 on the company’s better than expected Q4 results from mid February. Fourth-Quarter Surprise of 89% Sales for the period were up 5.7% from last year to $305 million, producing earnings of 17 cents, 89% ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate. La-Z-Boy has been on a roll over the last four quarters, with an average earnings surprise of 113%. La-Z-Boy noted that its upholstery segment saw its operating margin expand to 11% from a … [visit site to read more]

Stock Buy: Bio-Reference Labs Posted: 28 Mar 2010 10:00 PM PDT Bio-Reference Labs (NASDAQ:BRLI) recently beat earnings estimates once again. Shares are up roughly 10% since being featured as a Zacks Rank Buy in December. Company Description Bio-Reference Laboratories, Inc provides clinical laboratory testing services such as blood and urine analysis in the New York metropolitan area. The company was founded in 1981 and has a market cap of $536 million. Another Surprise On Mar 4 Bio-Reference reported first-quarter results that included a 31% jump in revenue. … [visit site to read more]

Bull Of The Day: Cliffs Natural Resources (CLF) Posted: 28 Mar 2010 10:00 PM PDT Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE:CLF) is the largest producer of iron ore pellets in the U.S. Cliffs increasing its international iron ore exposure, recovery in its coal business and longer-term diversification into the chromium business are huge positives for the stock. The company focuses on growing its international exposure in the face of a consistent decline in North American production. The Wabush acquisition is consistent with this approach, as production from this mine will be sold … [visit site to read more]

Stock Buy: Jones Apparel Group Inc. Posted: 28 Mar 2010 10:00 PM PDT Jones Apparel Group Inc. (NYSE:JNY) is cheaper than when I last reviewed it on Dec 4, 2009. It now trades with a forward P/E of 13.7 compared to 14.9 three months ago. Jones Apparel, which designs and manufactures apparel, footwear and accessories under the brands Nine West, Anne Klein, Easy Spirit, Jones New York, reported fourth quarter results on Feb 10 which met the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 11 cents. That was better than the year ago period, wherein the company saw a loss of 4 cents. While … [visit site to read more]

Bear Of The Day: Greatbatch, Inc. (GB) Posted: 28 Mar 2010 10:00 PM PDT Greatbatch (NYSE:GB) is a leading producer and supplier of batteries, capacitors and components used in implantable medical devices. The company has been acquiring several businesses over the last few years to revive top-line growth, which has been declining over the past few quarters. Total revenues in the fourth quarter declined 14% year over year. The decline was broad-based across all sub-segments. We continue to rate the stock an Underperform with a target price of $18. This is based on a P/E … [visit site to read more]

Stock Buy: Amphenol Posted: 28 Mar 2010 10:00 PM PDT Amphenol’s (NYSE:APH) EPS estimates have been edging higher in the last week. Analysts estimate that APH will grow its 2010 EPS by 20.2% to $2.22 and 2011 EPS by 15.0% to $2.56. Company Description Amphenol is one of the largest manufacturers of interconnect products in the world. The company designs, manufactures and markets electrical, electronic and fiber optic connectors, coaxial and flat-ribbon cable, and interconnect systems. The primary end markets for the company’s products are … [visit site to read more]

Mutual Funds: Top 5 Aggressive Growth Funds Posted: 27 Mar 2010 08:47 AM PDT Investors with the willingness to let capital growth take precedence over dividends would do well to consider aggressive growth funds. This category of funds is the best possible choice for investment purposes when the markets are on an upswing. These funds look at picking up volatile securities, low priced stocks and IPOs, seeking to maximize gains during such positive phases. They select companies which have shown impressive growth and have the ability to deliver impressive profits in the … [visit site to read more]

You are subscribed to email updates from Daily Markets To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610