Daily Markets - Financial News And Opinions

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• Forex: No Proposal From Brussels & Waiting On The FOMC
• Microchip Increases Guidance
• Cadence Loss Wider Than Expected
• Market Quiet Ahead Of FOMC, OPEC
• CONSOL Buys Dominion’s E&P
• Forex Trading: USDJPY Moves Toward The 90.11 Support Area
• Stock Market News Briefs: Boston Scientific Corporation, Citigroup Inc., Coventry Health Care, Inc., Discover Financial Services, Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (The), Limited Brands, Inc., Piper Jaffray Companies, UBS AG, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., ONYX Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Sonic Corp., Starbucks Corporation
• Limited Brands Enhances Return
• Morning News Notes: 3/16/2010
• Stock To Watch On Tuesday 16 March
• Fed Plan To End Mortgage-Backed Securities Purchase Program Brings Market Anxiety
• Oil Prices And The Economy
• Ann Taylor Swings To Profit
• Forex Trading: EURUSD Keeps 1.3735 As The Lid For Now At Least
• New Loans Fall At TARP Banks
• Forex Trading: US Dollar Trades Lower Ahead Of FOMC Meeting
• The Future For Commercial Real Estate
• Swiss Franc: The Upside Prevails
• Japanese Yen: Rebound
• British Pound: The Upside Prevails
• Euro: Rebound Expected
• Forex Trading: USDCAD Falls On Better Economic Data
• Forex Trading: EURUSD Watching 1.3691 Support
• Forex Trading: GBPUSD Surges Higher In Early NY Trade. Holds Resistance Level From Yesterday.
• Bear Of The Day: Bayer AG
• Bull Of The Day: Cisco Systems, Inc. (CSCO)
• Stock Buy: Unitrin
• Stock Buy: Warner Chilcott
• Stock Buy: The Children’s Place Retail Stores, Inc.
• Stock Buy: Sotheby’s

Forex: No Proposal From Brussels & Waiting On The FOMC Posted: 16 Mar 2010 08:00 AM PDT Yesterday’s Eurogroup meeting in Brussels provided nothing of note and we don’t expect anything of real substance from today’s wider Ecofin group of 27. The markets should be hit with comments from EMU nations on their pledge of support for Greece, but will lack an official bailout plan. We still believe that the EC strategy will be to drag their feet as long as possible in the hopes that markets “normalize” and any shift in the original tone of the Maastricht Treaty can be completely … [visit site to read more]

Microchip Increases Guidance Posted: 16 Mar 2010 07:47 AM PDT Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP) has revised its guidance for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2010.   The company now expects sales to be up 8% sequentially compared to the previous guidance of 3% – 7%. The revised guidance implies a revenue guidance of $270.1 million.   The company demonstrated solid growth in the third quarter, driven by strength across all three product lines − Microcontrollers, Analogs and Serial EEPROMs.   Gross margin is now projected at the … [visit site to read more]

Cadence Loss Wider Than Expected Posted: 16 Mar 2010 07:30 AM PDT Cadence Pharmaceuticals, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:CADX) fourth quarter fiscal 2009 net loss per share came in at 30 cents, wider than the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a penny. The year-ago loss was 37 cents.   Quarterly Results  The company reported no revenues for the quarter. Operating expenses for the reported quarter climbed to $15.1 million from $13.5 million in the year-ago quarter due to the rise in sales and marketing expenses. This can be attributed to the establishment of infrastructure … [visit site to read more]

Market Quiet Ahead Of FOMC, OPEC Posted: 16 Mar 2010 07:17 AM PDT Fundamentals Crude Oil futures are weaker ahead of tomorrow’s OPEC meeting, which is widely expected to be a non-event. The Oil cartel is not expected to change its production quotas, as they have to be pleased with where prices are in light of current global economic conditions and the resilience of the US Dollar. The Crude Oil market has already priced-in an economic recovery for the most part, and prices are relatively high for the current market fundamentals. Supplies are ample at the … [visit site to read more]

CONSOL Buys Dominion’s E&P Posted: 16 Mar 2010 07:15 AM PDT Coal producer CONSOL Energy Inc. (NYSE:CNX) agreed to buy the Appalachian exploration and production business of Dominion Resources Inc. (NYSE:D) for $3.475 billion in cash. This acquisition will substantially increase CONSOL's natural gas reserves and production capacity – further enhancing its position as a leading diversified energy company with a balanced portfolio of coal and natural gas. The acquisition makes CONSOL Energy the largest and among the fastest growing and lowest cost producers … [visit site to read more]

Forex Trading: USDJPY Moves Toward The 90.11 Support Area Posted: 16 Mar 2010 07:07 AM PDT The 100 day MA is at 90.11 today. THe midpoint of the move down from the Feb 19th high to the low comes in at the 90.13.  The 200 hour MA come in at 90.14. The area should find support.  A break below, however, may lead to some liquidation as the market has tested the 100 day MA on a number of occassions now and eventually, it tires and gives … [visit site to read more]

Stock Market News Briefs: Boston Scientific Corporation, Citigroup Inc., Coventry Health Care, Inc., Discover Financial Services, Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (The), Limited Brands, Inc., Piper Jaffray Companies, UBS AG, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., ONYX Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Sonic Corp., Starbucks Corporation Posted: 16 Mar 2010 07:00 AM PDT  UBS (NYSE:UBS) upgraded Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) to “buy” from “neutral” with a $29 price target  Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) upgraded Coventry Health Care (NYSE:CVH) to “neutral” and removed the shares from its Conviction Sell List, noting in-line valuation levels  Piper Jaffray (NYSE:PJC) upgraded Sonic (NASDAQ:SONC) to “overweight” from “underweight,” raising the price target to $12 from $8  Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) upgraded Onyx Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ONXX) to “buy” from “neutral,” taking the … [visit site to read more]

Limited Brands Enhances Return Posted: 16 Mar 2010 07:00 AM PDT Limited Brands Inc. (NYSE:LTD), a specialty retailer of women's intimate and other apparel, beauty and personal care products, is actively managing its capital and returning much of its free cash to shareholders via share repurchases and dividends.   The company's Board recently authorized a share repurchase program of $200 million, which includes $31 million remaining under the previous $250 million buyback program. The company also declared a special dividend of $1 per share, which … [visit site to read more]

Morning News Notes: 3/16/2010 Posted: 16 Mar 2010 06:56 AM PDT The “Morning News Notes” as prepared by TL… China and the Yuan, crude oil, student loans, jobs bill, and Dodd and Volcker rules. Just click on the link or the coffee mug below. “Morning News Notes”: March 16, … [visit site to read more]

Stock To Watch On Tuesday 16 March Posted: 16 Mar 2010 06:55 AM PDT The daily chart created a bullish engulfing candlestick formation on Monday PFE - PFIZER INC. CSCO - Cisco Systems, Inc. WFC - WELLS FARGO & CO ORCL - Oracle Corporation MOT - MOTOROLA INC XRX - XEROX CORP EK - EASTMAN KODAK CO ATVI - Activision, Inc. PM - Philip Morris Inter USB - US Bancorp PG - PROCTER & GAMBLE CO JNJ - JOHNSON & JOHNSON LLY - LILLY ELI & CO BK - Bank Ny Mellon LNC - LINCOLN NATIONAL CORP UTX - UNITED TECHNOLOGIES UPS - UPS WAG - … [visit site to read more]

Fed Plan To End Mortgage-Backed Securities Purchase Program Brings Market Anxiety Posted: 16 Mar 2010 06:50 AM PDT Anxiety surrounds Tuesday’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting as the central bank’s year-long mortgage-backed securities (MBS) purchase program nears its scheduled March 31 close, opening the door for mortgage rate increases and surprising market fluctuations. The Fed spent billions of dollars on MBS guaranteed by Fannie Mae (NYSE:FNM), Freddie Mac (NYSE:FRE) and Ginnie Mae weekly for the past year, topping out its portfolio at $1.25 trillion. As the program ends, investors and … [visit site to read more]

Oil Prices And The Economy Posted: 16 Mar 2010 06:47 AM PDT I’ve signed on as a writer for DailyFinance and just published my first column, “Do Oil Price Moves Signal Trouble Ahead for the U.S. Economy?” which details an interesting relationship between oil prices and the economy. As the following graph illustrates, moves in the one appear to set the stage for changes in the other: Click here to read the … [visit site to read more]

Ann Taylor Swings To Profit Posted: 16 Mar 2010 06:45 AM PDT Ann Taylor Stores Corp. (NYSE:ANN) recently posted fiscal 2009 fourth quarter results. The company swung to an adjusted earnings of 5 cents per share from an adjusted loss of $1.03 in the year-ago period. The result also came in ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate for a penny loss. The better-than-expected performance was primarily driven by improved merchandise mix, lower markdowns and prudent inventory management.   Ann Taylor's net sales during the quarter decreased 2.9% to $469.1 … [visit site to read more]

Forex Trading: EURUSD Keeps 1.3735 As The Lid For Now At Least Posted: 16 Mar 2010 06:38 AM PDT The 1.3735 level was the high from March 3rd.  Yesterday, the market stalled at this level before giving way and moving lower. Today, the price is back up testing this level.   The high reached in the last few minutes found sellers against the level and we have seen the price rotate back down.  The 1.3691 level will continue to be watched below where the 100 hour MA and the old highs and lows through March have increased the importance of the level.   1.3704, the … [visit site to read more]

New Loans Fall At TARP Banks Posted: 16 Mar 2010 06:30 AM PDT The U.S. Treasury said on Monday that new loans at nine major banks, which received significant government aid through the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) during the height of the financial crisis and have not repaid yet, tumbled in Jan 2010.   In its monthly survey of lending on the TARP banks, the Treasury found that new loan originations at these nine banks fell about 35% from Dec 2009 to $35.9 billion in Jan 2010. The amount was even lower than $41.6 billion of loan originations … [visit site to read more]

Forex Trading: US Dollar Trades Lower Ahead Of FOMC Meeting Posted: 16 Mar 2010 06:28 AM PDT The U.S. Dollar is trading lower ahead of this afternoon’s FOMC policy meeting. This weakness is helping to boost April Gold prices overnight. The recent break in gold stopped short of the late February bottom at $1088.50 to maintain the uptrend. Buyers came in on Monday to support prices after the hard sell-off in the British Pound triggered concerns that the currency would collapse over concerns about its ability to service its debt and a possible cut in its credit rating. As long as … [visit site to read more]

The Future For Commercial Real Estate Posted: 16 Mar 2010 06:17 AM PDT This video is a little old but I found the content interesting. Especially the last minute. If these REIT companies can get their hands on distressed bank held commercial properties, they appear to be able to make some nice returns. One would assume that the banks see the same potential if they can hold on to the property and maybe squeeze some more cash out of the borrower before they go belly … [visit site to read more]

Swiss Franc: The Upside Prevails Posted: 16 Mar 2010 06:17 AM PDT Update on supports and resistances. … [visit site to read more]

Japanese Yen: Rebound Posted: 16 Mar 2010 06:17 AM PDT Update on supports and resistances. … [visit site to read more]

British Pound: The Upside Prevails Posted: 16 Mar 2010 06:17 AM PDT Update on supports and resistances. … [visit site to read more]

Euro: Rebound Expected Posted: 16 Mar 2010 06:17 AM PDT Update on supports and resistances. … [visit site to read more]

Forex Trading: USDCAD Falls On Better Economic Data Posted: 16 Mar 2010 05:44 AM PDT The Manufacturing Sales rose by a stronger than expected 2.4% for the month of January. The gains were led by primary metals, plastics and petroleum sales. The USDCAD has come under pressure off the report as the price moves toward the low from Friday at the 1.0155 level.  A break of the lows will bring back into focus the parity level 1.0000 for the USDCAD.  The last time the USDCAD was at parity was in July 2008. On the topside the resistance now come in at the 1.0183 level and … [visit site to read more]

Forex Trading: EURUSD Watching 1.3691 Support Posted: 16 Mar 2010 05:30 AM PDT The 100 hour MA is at 1.3690. The 1.3691 level has been a support/resistance level to eye. Other support comes in at 1.3704.  Topside resistance at 1.3735.  Earlier today the 200 hour MA held support … [visit site to read more]

Forex Trading: GBPUSD Surges Higher In Early NY Trade. Holds Resistance Level From Yesterday. Posted: 16 Mar 2010 05:04 AM PDT The GBPUSD has moved up sharply over the last few hours after falling earlier on concerns about the debt situation in the UK.  The price is up testing the lows prior to the fall yesterday That level comes in at the 1.5151 level. The price has stalled at the level it seems. Support comes in at the 1.5110 level which was the initial highs on the spike higher today. The 1.5085 is addtional support.  A move above the 1.5151 level would look toward the close from Friday at 1.5183.  … [visit site to read more]

Bear Of The Day: Bayer AG Posted: 15 Mar 2010 10:00 PM PDT Bayer AG (BAYRY) reported fourth quarter core earnings per share of 0.90 surpassing 0.71 reported in the year-ago period. Bayer has been shifting its focus towards its HealthCare segment over the past few years in order to maintain solid growth in the long run. While we are pleased with the growth recorded by the HealthCare segment, we remain concerned with the disappointing performance of the Material Science segment. Moreover, we are disappointed with the delay in approval of Xarelto, one … [visit site to read more]

Bull Of The Day: Cisco Systems, Inc. (CSCO) Posted: 15 Mar 2010 10:00 PM PDT Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) is a leading provider of IP-based networking and other products. The company’s second-quarter results beat the Zacks Consensus on both the top and bottom lines. Orders continued to strengthen in the last quarter, indicating continued business momentum. New products, growth initiatives, improving operating performance, solid financials and a sound restructuring policy are positives. Of course, competition remains something to look out for, since the company has been losing … [visit site to read more]

Stock Buy: Unitrin Posted: 15 Mar 2010 10:00 PM PDT Unitrin, Inc. (NYSE:UTR) is expected to generate long-term EPS growth of 20%, while offering a dividend yield of 3.7%. Company Description Unitrin provides property and casualty insurance, life and health insurance, and consumer finance services for individuals, families, and small businesses. Its principal business are Kemper, Unitrin Direct, Unitrin Specialty, and Career Agency Companies. Fourth-Quarter Results On Feb 1, Unitrin had revenue of $730.9 million, up 17% from 4Q08. It also earned … [visit site to read more]

Stock Buy: Warner Chilcott Posted: 15 Mar 2010 10:00 PM PDT Warner Chilcott plc (NASDAQ:WCRX) profits are up sharply after a recent acquisition. Analysts are projecting nice growth and the stock is still trading at a nice value. Company Description Warner Chilcott makes pharmaceuticals for gastroenterology, women’s healthcare, dermatology and urology. The company distributes is products Western Europe and North America. Revenues Nearly Triple Warner Chilcott reported earnings results on Mar 1 that showed revenues of $686 million, up 183% from one year ago. … [visit site to read more]

Stock Buy: The Children’s Place Retail Stores, Inc. Posted: 15 Mar 2010 10:00 PM PDT The Children’s Place Retail Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLCE) is opening stores at the same time it is controlling its inventories. PLCE is trading at 13.9x forward earnings. Company Description The Children’s Place is a children’s specialty retailer which operates 947 stores and an online store under The Children’s Place brand. Sales Rise 5% in the Fourth Quarter On March 10, The Children’s Place reported fiscal 2009 fourth quarter results which met the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.03 per share. This … [visit site to read more]

Stock Buy: Sotheby’s Posted: 15 Mar 2010 10:00 PM PDT Sotheby’s (NYSE:BID) just hit a new 52-week high on the company’s better than expected Q from early March that were driven by a rebound in the global economy. Company Description Sotheby’s, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an auctioneer of fine and decorative art, jewelry and collectibles in the United States, China, the U.K. and France. The company was founded in 1744 and has a market cap of $1.95 billion. Sotheby’s business took a hit in the weak economy of 2008 and early 2009 as … [visit site to read more]

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