Premarket Buzz 11-04-10

Stock Market Preview
Greek Factor: +1

The day's premarket buzz highlights data on jobless claims, labor productivity, online job demand, monetary policy from the BOE and ECB and several pending reports and corporate earnings headliners. The "Greek Factor" ranges from +3 to -3, and is a subjective measure of The Greek's view of the market impact of individual and aggregate news and the day's scheduled events.

Our founder earned clients a 23% average annual return over five years as a stock analyst on Wall Street. "The Greek" has written for institutional newsletters, Businessweek, Real Money, Seeking Alpha and others, while also appearing across TV and radio. While writing for Wall Street Greek, Mr. Kaminis presciently warned of the financial crisis.

(Tickers: NYSE: MWW, NYSE: DIA, NYSE: SPY, Nasdaq: QQQQ, NYSE: DOG, NYSE: SDS, NYSE: QLD, NYSE: NYX, NYSE: ICE, Nasdaq: NDAQ, Nasdaq: SBUX, NYSE: KFT, NYSE: AES, NYSE: WPI, NYSE: PCG, NYSE: PKI, NYSE: APA, NYSE: CVC, NYSE: CF, NYSE: DVA, NYSE: DTV, NYSE: FLR, NYSE: PCS, NYSE: PSA, NYSE: RSG, NYSE: SNI, NYSE: TSO, NYSE: TWC, Nasdaq: USPH, Nasdaq: XOMA, NYSE: UFI, Nasdaq: DYNV)

Premarket Buzz

The day's premarket buzz is born of yesterday's driver, QE2, and inaction this morning by the BOE and ECB. As the European banks often take their time in acting, this allows the Fed to get the desired result, or one of them, in a weakening dollar this month. The dollar has already weakened ahead of the QE2 policy statement, but it might have gained today if the ECB or BOE countered US Fed action. Thus, the increase in jobless claims is somewhat muted this morning, since we would look ahead to job gains and not expect them yet (or the Fed would). I'll have more to say about the impact of QE2 in the near future.

Jobless Claims

Weekly Jobless Claims were reported today, just one week removed from exciting the marketplace on a deep dip toward 400K. HOWEVER, this week’s data covering the period ended October 30 showed claims spiked back upward to 457K, versus economists' forecasts for 443K. Adding insult to injury, last week's sweet result was revised higher to 437K, up from 434K.

Monster Employment Index

Monster Worldwide (NYSE: MWW) reported its Monster Employment Index, a measure of online job demand, this morning. The MEI slipped two points in October, to 136, but was still better than last year's 120 mark. That was the basic message, better year-over-year data, but slippage against September, which is more important. During October, online job availability rose in 10 of the Index's 20 industry sectors and in eight of the 23 occupational categories monitored.

Productivity & Costs Report

The government reported on Productivity & Costs for the third quarter this morning. Nonfarm business sector labor productivity gained by a 1.9% annual rate in the quarter. Output increased by 3%, while hours worked rose by only 1.1%. Productivity increased 2.5% over the last four quarters, which is not a stellar drive out of the depths of this recession. As is usually the case, Unit Labor Costs moved in the opposite direction to productivity, which is of course a good thing for corporations and is expected. Unit labor costs in nonfarm businesses decreased 0.1 percent in the third quarter of 2010, because productivity grew 1.9 percent while hourly compensation increased 1.8 percent.

ECB & BOE Hold Steady

Both the Bank of England and the European Central Banks kept their rates steady and quantitative easing efforts unchanged, which should allow the dollar more room to depreciate. This also allows stocks more room to rise in the short-term.

Chain Store Sales

Individual retailers will report their sales from stores in place for a year or more today. This October figure precedes the start of the holiday season and follows the back-to-school driver, so it lacks perhaps in importance. That said, it still matters to traders today.

Natural Gas Report

The EIA reports on the state of natural gas inventory later this morning at 10:30 PM.

Corporate Wire

Reporting earnings today, look for data from Starbucks (Nasdaq: SBUX), Kraft (NYSE: KFT), The AES Corp. (NYSE: AES), Watson Pharmaceuticals (NYSE: WPI), PG&E (NYSE: PCG), PerkinElmer (NYSE: PKI), Apache (NYSE: APA), Cablevision (NYSE: CVC), CF Industries (NYSE: CF), DaVita (NYSE: DVA), DirecTV (NYSE: DTV), Fluor (NYSE: FLR), MetroPCS (NYSE: PCS), Public Storage (NYSE: PSA), Republic Services (NYSE: RSG), Scripps Networks (NYSE: SNI), Tesoro (NYSE: TSO), Time Warner Cable (NYSE: TWC), US Physical Therapy (Nasdaq: USPH) and XOMA (Nasdaq: XOMA). Look for splits from Unifi (NYSE: UFI) and Dynamic Ventures (Nasdaq: DYNV).



Please see our disclosures at the Wall Street Greek website and author bio pages found there. This article and website in no way offers or represents financial or investment advice. Information is provided for entertainment purposes only.

Premarket Stock News 10-25-10

Stocks were up across most of Europe and Asia heading into the US open Monday morning. That's thanks to a favorable G-20 determination regarding currency trading, and signs that China might respect the world's wishes somewhat for a fair playing field. That said, emerging nations would like to see less capital creation from the West. The Treasury Secretary is making an unscheduled visit to China and so the market will continue to pivot on this trade issue in the near-term. The day's premarket stock news also highlights Existing Home Sales data, which is on tap for Monday morning release, and a slew of earnings reports as well.

Our founder earned clients a 23% average annual return over five years as a stock analyst on Wall Street. "The Greek" has written for institutional newsletters, Businessweek, Real Money, Seeking Alpha and others, while also appearing across TV and radio. While writing for Wall Street Greek, Mr. Kaminis presciently warned of the financial crisis.

Relative Tickers: Nasdaq: AMGN, NYSE: TXN, NYSE: ROP, NYSE: PCL, NYSE: LO, NYSE: RSH, Nasdaq: SHLM, NYSE: AAN, NYSE: ACH, Nasdaq: ACGL, NYSE: AI, NYSE: AEC, Nasdaq: ATHR, NYSE: BXS, NYSE: BOH, NYSE: BAS, Nasdaq: BEAV, NYSE: BWP, NYSE: BYD, NYSE: COG, Nasdaq: CRNT, Nasdaq: CYOU, NYSE: CHE, Nasdaq: CHFC, Nasdaq: CKSW, Nasdaq: CVTI, NYSE: CR, NYSE: HXM, NYSE: DDR, Nasdaq: DRIV, Nasdaq: DCOM, Nasdaq: DSPG, Nasdaq: EWBC, NYSE: EW, Nasdaq: ENBD, NYSE: FNB, Nasdaq: FDEF, Nasdaq: FIBK, NYSE: HRS, Nasdaq: HSTM, Nasdaq: HTLF, NYSE: HXL, Nasdaq: HFFC, Nasdaq: HTCO, Nasdaq: INSU, Nasdaq: IDTI, NYSE: IVZ, Nasdaq: ISBC, Nasdaq: KALU, Nasdaq: KVHI, Nasdaq: LKFN, NYSE: LTC, NYSE: LUX, NYSE: MHO, NYSE: MAS, Nasdaq: MTXX, Nasdaq: MBVT, Nasdaq: MIPS, Nasdaq: NARA, Nasdaq: NATI, Nasdaq: NBTB, NYSE: NS, NYSE: NVE, NYSE: OLN, NYSE: OMI, Nasdaq: PLXT, NYSE: PPD, Nasdaq: PRGX, Nasdaq: RDCM, NYSE: RGA, Nasdaq: RCII, Nasdaq: STBA, Nasdaq: SILC, NYSE: SLG, Nasdaq: SOHU, Nasdaq: SUPG, NYSE: SNV, NYSE: TMX, Nasdaq: TUES, Nasdaq: UCTT, NYSE: UTL, Nasdaq: VECO, Nasdaq: VRTX, Nasdaq: VLTR, NYSE: WRB, Nasdaq: WSBC, NYSE: YZC, Nasdaq: ZIXI, Nasdaq: ZRAN.

Premarket Stock News

The G-20 pledged its intentions to allow market determinants to drive currency values, and Asian currencies are on the rise as a result. The Chinese Renminbi appreciated along with other emerging market currencies into Monday, as signs and hopes are placed on China accommodating the G-20 communiqué to some degree. However, all eyes will be on Tim Geithner has he makes an unscheduled trip to China now to visit with Vice Premier Wang Qishan to discuss financial relations between the US and China. What weighs on this meeting may be more than most of us can even fathom. This is Geithner's greatest responsibility, and could determine the tone of his legacy.

Existing Home Sales

There is one economic report on tap for the day. Look for the 10:00 AM release of September's Existing Home Sales data. Economists are looking for the annual pace of sales to have increased to 4.3 million, up from 4.13 million in August. August also showed modest increase over July, but the aggregate level of sales remains depressed. The last reading of housing inventory stood at 11.6 months in August, based on the same month's sales pace.

There's a glimmer of hope on housing, given last week offered improved data, with Housing Starts gaining 0.3% in September, to an annual pace of 610,000 units. Economists had been looking for Starts of just 580,000. Also, the Housing Market Index showed homebuilder confidence gained slightly, to 16, from 13. Mortgage rates also seemed to find a point of late (record lows) where they might actually inspire activity.

DC Doings

Several speakers are set to produce sound-bites Monday. First and foremost, the Federal Reserve Chairman is scheduled to make an address at a joint Fed/FDIC gathering on "Mortgages and the Future of Housing Finance." Look for the FDIC Chairwoman, Shelia Bair to keep herself busy Monday, since she'll also be joining Congressman Barney Frank and Paul Volcker in assessing the impact of the Dodd-Frank financial regulation legislation.

New York Fed President William Dudley and Kansas City Fed Chief Thomas Hoenig will address the economy. Finally, Robert Khuzami, SEC Director of Enforcement, will talk on the topic of financial revision at Georgetown University.

The insider-trading trial of Galleon Hedge Fund founder Raj Rajaratnam starts in New York.

Stock News Drivers

Look for EPS results from the likes of Amgen (Nasdaq: AMGN), Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN), Roper Industries (NYSE: ROP), Plum Creek Timber (NYSE: PCL), Lorillard (NYSE: LO), Radio Shack (NYSE: RSH), A. Schulman (Nasdaq: SHLM), Aaron's (NYSE: AAN), Aluminum Corp. of China (NYSE: ACH), Arch Capital (Nasdaq: ACGL), Arlington Asset Investment (NYSE: AI), Associated Estates Realty (NYSE: AEC), Atheros Communications (Nasdaq: ATHR), BancorpSouth (NYSE: BXS), Bank of Hawaii (NYSE: BOH), Basic Energy Services (NYSE: BAS), BE Aerospace (Nasdaq: BEAV), Boardwalk Pipeline Partners (NYSE: BWP), Boyd Gaming (NYSE: BYD), Cabot Oil & Gas (NYSE: COG), Ceragon Networks (Nasdaq: CRNT), Changyou.com (Nasdaq: CYOU), Chemed (NYSE: CHE), Chemical Financial (Nasdaq: CHFC), ClickSoftware Technologies (Nasdaq: CKSW), Covenant Transport (Nasdaq: CVTI), Crane (NYSE: CR), Homex Development (NYSE: HXM), Developers Diversified Realty (NYSE: DDR), Digital River (Nasdaq: DRIV), Dime Community Bancshares (Nasdaq: DCOM), DSP Group (Nasdaq: DSPG), East West Bancorp (Nasdaq: EWBC), Edwards Lifesciences (NYSE: EW), Emirates NBD (Nasdaq: ENBD), FNB Corp. (NYSE: FNB), First Defiance Financial (Nasdaq: FDEF), First Interstate Bancsystem (Nasdaq: FIBK), Harris (NYSE: HRS), HealthStream (Nasdaq: HSTM), Heartland Financial USA (Nasdaq: HTLF), Hexcel (NYSE: HXL), HF Financial (Nasdaq: HFFC), HickoryTech (Nasdaq: HTCO), Insituform Technologies (Nasdaq: INSU), Integrated Device Technology (Nasdaq: IDTI), Invesco (NYSE: IVZ), Investors Bancorp (Nasdaq: ISBC), Kaiser Aluminum (Nasdaq: KALU), KVH Industries (Nasdaq: KVHI), Lakeland Financial (Nasdaq: LKFN), LTC Properties (NYSE: LTC), Luxottica Group (NYSE: LUX), M/I Homes (NYSE: MHO), Masco (NYSE: MAS), Matrixx Initiatives (Nasdaq: MTXX), Merchants Bancshares (Nasdaq: MBVT), MIPS Technologies (Nasdaq: MIPS), Nara Bancorp (Nasdaq: NARA), National Instruments (Nasdaq: NATI), NBT Bancorp (Nasdaq: NBTB), NuStar Energy (NYSE: NS), NV Energy (NYSE: NVE), Olin Corp. (NYSE: OLN), Owens & Minor (NYSE: OMI), PLX Technology (Nasdaq: PLXT), PrePaid Legal (NYSE: PPD), PRGX Global (Nasdaq: PRGX), Radcom (Nasdaq: RDCM), Reinsurance Group of America (NYSE: RGA), Rent-A-Center (Nasdaq: RCII), S&T Bancorp (Nasdaq: STBA), Silicom (Nasdaq: SILC), SL Green Realty (NYSE: SLG), SOHU.com (Nasdaq: SOHU), SuperGen (Nasdaq: SUPG), Synovus Financial (NYSE: SNV), Telefonos de Mexico (NYSE: TMX), Tuesday Morning Corp. (Nasdaq: TUES), Ultra Clean Holdings (Nasdaq: UCTT), Unitil (NYSE: UTL), Veeco Instruments (Nasdaq: VECO), Vertex Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: VRTX), Volterra Semiconductor (Nasdaq: VLTR), W.R. Berkley (NYSE: WRB), Wesbanco (Nasdaq: WSBC), Yanzou Coal Mining (NYSE: YZC), Zix Corp. (Nasdaq: ZIXI) and Zoran (Nasdaq: ZRAN).



Please see our disclosures at the Wall Street Greek website and author bio pages found there. This article and website in no way offers or represents financial or investment advice. Information is provided for entertainment purposes only.

Sensing a Stock Market Rally 09-09-10

Morning Greek
Greek Factor: +1

I'm sensing the start of something here folks. Mark down the date. It's just a sense at this point, without much to explain it, but the data this morning is also supportive. It's the first supportive data though, mind you. Weekly Jobless Claims again moderated, but remain at a troubled state, and are at risk of significant revision. The International Trade Deficit narrowed sharply, and that bodes well for Q3 GDP, or at least the trade impact to it. The "Greek Factor" ranges from +3 to -3, and is a subjective measure of The Greek's view of the market impact of individual and aggregate news and the day's scheduled events.

Our founder earned clients a 23% average annual return over five years as a stock analyst on Wall Street. "The Greek" has written for institutional newsletters, Businessweek, Real Money, Seeking Alpha and others, while also appearing across TV and radio. While writing for Wall Street Greek, Mr. Kaminis presciently warned of the financial crisis.

(Tickers: NYSE: DIA, NYSE: SPY, Nasdaq: QQQQ, NYSE: DOG, NYSE: SDS, NYSE: QLD, NYSE: NYX, NYSE: ICE, Nasdaq: NDAQ, NYSE: MCD, NYSE: TXN, NYSE: UBS, NYSE: YUM, NYSE: EMR, NYSE: NSM, NYSE: CHP, NYSE: KFY, Nasdaq: OPTT, Nasdaq: OXBT, Nasdaq: SWHC, Nasdaq: HOFT, Nasdaq: IRET, Nasdaq: MYRX, Nasdaq: PPHM, NYSE: PNY, Nasdaq: GAME, Nasdaq: SNDA, NYSE: SPA, Nasdaq: STEI, Nasdaq: DSGX, Nasdaq: ULCM)

Investing prowess requires both science and art, and my artistic side is nudging at me this morning. Expectations have been tamed, and so there is little friction to keep stocks from rising on any catalyst of solid good news. Capitulation seems to have occurred at this point, in my view, despite the lack of a dramatic single day drop. I'm feeling a positive tone emerging on the streets, and believe better data might help stocks easily rise higher in this environment.

That said, we are in a period hot with the possibility of terrorist attack. So, you might want to keep your finger on the trigger, and hope nothing happens, but buy if it does. I would be buying a bit here anyhow, though, while saving cash for the possibility of a deeper discount too.

Weekly Jobless Claims
Greek Factor: +1

The latest Weekly Jobless Claims figures showed another decrease to 451K in the week ended September 4, down 27K from the prior week's revised figure of 478K (478K the week before that too). The four-week moving average also gave way, dropping 9,250, to 477,750. Insured unemployment was unchanged at 3.5% for the August 28 period. Today's labor data is clearly good news, and that should be reflected in trading. However, a weekly shed of 450K+ is nothing to celebrate; it's just that it is better than last week. Also, 9 states had to estimate data this week, due to the Labor Day holiday, and they included California. Thus, there is risk for a major revision next week. However, I believe the states' estimates are probably close enough to reality, which would make this a solid positive factor this morning. If we can break lower, in terms of claims, we might have something finally developing in the job market. Keep your eye out for this, as it should spark a swift rally eventually.

International Trade
Greek Factor: +2

International Trade data for July was released this morning. Trade corrected in July, after a weird divergence occurred in June. July's deficit narrowed dramatically to $42.8 billion, down from $49.9 billion. The move was so surprising, it left the economists' consensus hanging high and dry at -$46.8 billion. This is good news folks, and offers reason for hope for Q3 GDP, at least as far as the trade component is concerned.

Bank of England Decision
Greek Factor: +1

The Bank of England (BOE) made its latest monetary policy decision today and acted as expected. The BOE kept its key lending rate at record low 0.5%, while maintaining its bond buying program at 200 billion pounds ($309 billion equivalent).

Russia's Global Political Forum

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev holds his global political forum; this should be interesting. We wonder if there might be some more new world order type speak coming from here as well.

Oil & Gas Data

The EIA will report on Petroleum and Natural Gas on the same day this week, due to the holiday. Look for the Natural Gas report first at 10:30. Last week's data covering the period ended August 27 showed natural gas inventory increased by 54 Bcf, to 3,106 Bcf. The level stood 208 Bcf less than last year at this time and 169 Bcf above the 5-year average of 2,937 Bcf. The August 27 period Petroleum Status Report is due for 11:00 AM release. U.S. commercial crude oil inventories (excluding those in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve) increased by 3.4 million barrels from the previous week. At 361.7 million barrels, U.S. crude oil inventories are above the upper limit of the average range for this time of year. Total motor gasoline inventories decreased by 0.2 million barrels last week, and are above the upper limit of the average range.

Corporate Wire

The corporate wire highlights McDonald's (NYSE: MCD) August sales results release and an update from Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN). Australian regulators will decide on National Australia Bank's $12 billion bid for Axa Asia Pacific. The UBS – Best of Americas Conference highlights a report from Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM). Emerson Electric (NYSE: EMR) holds a conference call to discuss its Chloride Group Acquisition.

Reporting EPS, look for National Semiconductor (NYSE: NSM), C&D Technologies (NYSE: CHP), Korn Ferry International (NYSE: KFY), Ocean Power Technologies (Nasdaq: OPTT), Oxygen Biotherapeutics (Nasdaq: OXBT), Smith & Wesson (Nasdaq: SWHC), Hooker Furniture (Nasdaq: HOFT), Investors Real Estate (Nasdaq: IRET), Myrexis (Nasdaq: MYRX), Peregrine Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: PPHM), Piedmont Natural Gas (NYSE: PNY), Shanda Games (Nasdaq: GAME), Shanda Interactive Entertainment (Nasdaq: SNDA), Sparton (NYSE: SPA), Stewart Enterprises (Nasdaq: STEI), The Descartes Systems Group (Nasdaq: DSGX) and Ulticom (Nasdaq: ULCM).



Please see our disclosures at the Wall Street Greek website and author bio pages found there. This article and website in no way offers or represents financial or investment advice. Information is provided for entertainment purposes only.

Stock Market Analysis 09-01-10

Stock Market Analysis
Greek Factor: +2

The market got all giddy this morning, thanks to solid economic data out of China that we've well covered in the paragraphs below. However, take note that the ADP labor market data received this morning gives good reason for caution as we near Friday's all important Labor Department release. The "Greek Factor" ranges from +3 to -3, and is a subjective measure of The Greek's view of the market impact of individual and aggregate news and the day's scheduled events.

Our founder earned clients a 23% average annual return over five years as a stock analyst on Wall Street. "The Greek" has written for institutional newsletters, Businessweek, Real Money, Seeking Alpha and others, while also appearing across TV and radio. While writing for Wall Street Greek, Mr. Kaminis presciently warned of the financial crisis.

(Tickers: Nasdaq: AAPL, NYSE: LMT, NYSE: F, NYSE: RHI, NYSE: KFY, NYSE: MAN, NYSE: MWW, Nasdaq: JOBS, NYSE: JOB, NYSE: GD, NYSE: RTN, NYSE: COL, NYSE: ROP, NYSE: HNZ, NYSE: SAI, NYSE: BF-A, NYSE: BF-B, NYSE: BGP, NYSE: PSS, Nasdaq: EXPR, Nasdaq: AMSWA, Nasdaq: CWST, Nasdaq: CHRS, NYSE: CGA, Nasdaq: FCEL, NYSE: GCO, Nasdaq: GIII, Nasdaq: GLBC, NYSE: GEF, NYSE: HOV, NYSE: IL, Nasdaq: JOYG, Nasdaq: LTXC, Nasdaq: MAGS, Nasdaq: MATK, NYSE: OXM, Nasdaq: TTPA, NYSE: DIA, NYSE: SPY, Nasdaq: QQQQ, NYSE: DOG, NYSE: SDS, NYSE: QLD, NYSE: NYX, NYSE: ICE, Nasdaq: NDAQ)

Stock Market Analysis

Today's stock market analysis highlights the importance of emerging markets on US trade. China released some reassuring data, and it's carrying trade today. That said, the omen offered by ADP, should not be ignored as we near Friday's DOL release. Meanwhile, a mysterious bit of good news from the manufacturing sector seems curious, but is not important due to the insignificance of the current sector. We'll do our best to cover as many of the reports as we can in detail today, within follow up articles.

China Economic Data
Greek Factor: +2

Here's your market moving factor within today's stock market analysis. Chinese manufacturing rebounded while auto sales gained sharply in August. A world of hope is banking on this news today, as it's why people go gaga over China. A measure of manufacturing showed production and new order activity both gained in August.

The HSBC Purchasing Managers Index, a seasonally adjusted index designed to measure the performance of the manufacturing economy in China, improved to its highest level in three months, at 51.9. Meanwhile, the state-sponsored China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing said its PMI rose to 51.7 in August from 51.2 in July. The gain is not much, and it's only slightly above the economic expansion water-line of 50, but even minor improvements in the world's second largest economy bear watching, especially within its manufacturing sector. They translate into big numbers in this manufacturing behemoth. And HSBC's (NYSE: HBC) data-point adds validity to an otherwise suspect producer of information, the government sponsored form.

Meanwhile, Chinese auto sales only solidified reason for positive feeling this morning. Investors worried a bit when China's Q2 GDP pace eased to 10.3%, from 11.9% in Q1. However, the report this morning from the Cabinet's China Automotive Technology and Research Center, showing August auto sales jumped 56% versus the year ago period, to 1.21 million; that helped restore confidence. If China's double-dip basically amounts to a hiccup, then investors have good reason to cheer. There is hope the US might find demand for its exports in China's domestic marketplace, and US manufacturers like Ford (NYSE: F) have growth markets to get giddy about. This is a worthy positive driver this morning, and could carry the day over the employment data. However, the problem is, we have a scary employment data-point scheduled for the close of the week.

Challenger Job-Cuts Report
Greek Factor: +1

Challenger's Job-Cuts Report came first today in the early AM hours. There was no forecast available, and so we simply compare the rate of job-cuts versus recent history for measurement of its market impact. Challenger, Gray & Christmas reports that announced corporate layoffs amounted to 34,768 in August. Now, the popular press has jumped all over Challenger's press release, hyping the fact that the layoff count was the lowest in over a decade. Last month's report for July showed announced corporate layoffs totaled 41,676, and compared against June's 39,358. Is 35K really that much less than recent months? Obviously, that's rhetorical, and I want to also remind readers that we're talking about August, the slowest month for economic activity in America perhaps, if not July. Just as you likely vacationed this month, so did corporate executives, middle managers and human resource representatives. Let's see how September and October shape up before we get too excited here. And one more thing, less layoffs do not necessarily translate into more hiring, though there certainly should be a relationship between the two. I'll give this a small positive factor this morning, simply because the few people trading this week have clearly jumped on the news in the pre-market. Expect the impact to play no role past the morning trading today. This is not a strong positive economic factor for the long-term.

ADP Private Employment Report
Greek Factor: -2

The market is always more interested in ADP's Private Employment Report. Once again, there is no economists' consensus forecast for the data-point. This data-point is instead compared against forecasts of the Labor Department's data, which will be released Friday. The news from ADP was bad for August, as it showed the private sector is estimated to have shed a net of 10K jobs. That offers a bad omen for Friday's data, where economists expect census worker layoffs to take overall change in employment lower by 80K. July's data was revised lower, now showing an increase of 37K jobs, down from +42,000 at initial report. This is a negative factor, as economists are reportedly looking for a positive figure for private nonfarm payrolls. The impact here seems minimized in early trading, but pay attention to the message this report offers the insightful for Friday.

Mortgage Application Activity
Greek Factor: +1

The Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Applications Survey was released in the premarket. This week's report covering the period ended August 27 showed the Market Composite Index of mortgage applications increased 2.7%, versus 4.9% the week before. The latest gains came on the 2.8% increase of the Refinance Index, which benefited from even lower contracted mortgage rates. On average, fixed rate mortgage rates for 30-year and 15-year mortgages fell to 4.43% (from 4.55%) and 3.88% (from 3.91%), the lowest in recorded history (1990). Purchase Applications also showed life this week, rising 1.8%. Be careful of seasonals here, as the unadjusted Purchase Index fell 0.4%. Thus, it would be premature to say we've found a rate level that might inspire some home purchase demand. That said, we have to give this data a positive rating this week, as it's clearly positive.

ISM Manufacturing Index
Greek Factor: +1

ISM's latest manufacturing index for August proved counter to economists' expectations. The pros, and we must admit The Greek, saw this index easing further. Economists were forecasting the index to drop to 53.0, from 55.5 in July. However, ISM reported it improved to 56.3. The only reason I have not offered a more positive rating for the data-point is because of the relative insignificance of today's US manufacturing sector. Sorry Ford friends (NYSE: F).

Construction Spending
Greek Factor: -1

Construction Spending fell 1.0% in July, against consensus expectations for a fall of 0.6%. The only reason this factor is not worse, is because nothing new has been reported. The construction market is full of despair. Activity continues to suffer in the absence of the housing tax incentive, but really due to the sorry state of our economy.

Motor Vehicle Sales
Greek Factor: Important

Motor Vehicle Sales will be reported throughout the day. Economists expect the aggregate level of domestic vehicle sales to run at an annual rate of 8.7 million. That would match July's sales rate, which had increased from June's 8.4 million. Combined light truck and auto sales of domestic and imports gained to 11.5 million in July.

Oil Inventory
Greek Factor: Not Important

At 10:30, look for the EIA's Petroleum Status Report. The latest data covering the period ended August 20 showed crude oil inventories increased by 4.1 million barrels. Total motor gasoline inventories increased by 2.3 million barrels. Both crude and gasoline continued to mark above the average range for this time of year.

Fed Speak
Greek Factor: Important

The Fed speaker of the day will be Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Richard Fisher, with an address scheduled for 12:30. The Fed's Neighborhood Stabilization Summit kicks off in Washington, as the power mongering independent organization takes on home foreclosures this day.

Corporate Wire
Greek Factor: Important

In corporate news, Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) will introduce a few more blockbuster new products and services Wednesday in its usual grandiose fashion. Presenting at the Morgan Stanley Global Industrials Conference, Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT), General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), Raytheon (NYSE: RTN), Rockwell Collins (NYSE: COL) and Roper Industries (NYSE: ROP). Heinz (NYSE: HNZ) has its EPS conference call.

The EPS schedule includes H.J. Heinz (NYSE: HNZ), SAIC Inc. (NYSE: SAI), Brown-Forman (NYSE: BF-A, NYSE: BF-B), Borders Group (NYSE: BGP), Collective Brands (NYSE: PSS), Express (Nasdaq: EXPR), American Software (Nasdaq: AMSWA), Casella Waste Systems (Nasdaq: CWST), Charming Shoppes (Nasdaq: CHRS), China Green Agriculture (NYSE: CGA), FuelCell Energy (Nasdaq: FCEL), Genesco (NYSE: GCO), G-III Apparel (Nasdaq: GIII), Global Crossing (Nasdaq: GLBC), Greif (NYSE: GEF), Hovnanian (NYSE: HOV), IntraLinks (NYSE: IL), Joy Global (Nasdaq: JOYG), LTX-Credence (Nasdaq: LTXC), Magal Security Systems (Nasdaq: MAGS), Martek Biosciences (Nasdaq: MATK), Oxford Industries (NYSE: OXM) and Trintech (Nasdaq: TTPA). Article matters also to NYSE: RHI, NYSE: KFY, NYSE: MAN, NYSE: MWW, NYSE: JOB, Nasdaq: JOBS, NYSE: F.



Please see our disclosures at the Wall Street Greek website and author bio pages found there. This article and website in no way offers or represents financial or investment advice. Information is provided for entertainment purposes only.

Morning Market Review 08-31-10

Morning Market Review
Greek Factor: -1

You'll want to pay close attention to the Chicago PMI data today, as it will be the report that carries past morning trading. The slight uptick in consumer confidence was nice, but is negligible and not important when placed into context. Simply put, the reading still sucks, however better it may be than the last. The "Greek Factor" ranges from +3 to -3, and is a subjective measure of The Greek's view of the market impact of individual and aggregate news and the day's scheduled events.

Our founder earned clients a 23% average annual return over five years as a stock analyst on Wall Street. "The Greek" has written for institutional newsletters, Businessweek, Real Money, Seeking Alpha and others, while also appearing across TV and radio. While writing for Wall Street Greek, Mr. Kaminis presciently warned of the financial crisis.

Tickers: NYSE: MS, NYSE: BA, NYSE: HON, NYSE: NOC, NYSE: DHR, NYSE: GR, NYSE: HNZ, NYSE: ABM, Nasdaq: ARAY, Nasdaq: APSG, AMEX: BLD, NYSE: BNS, Nasdaq: CHOP, Nasdaq: CCUR, NYSE: CPY, NYSE: CFI, NYSE: DAC, NYSE: DG, NYSE: DSW, Nasdaq: ENER, NYSE: ENV, Nasdaq: FTLK, Nasdaq: ISLE, NYSE: KSP, Nasdaq: LLEN, OTC: LUKOY.PK, OTC: PSKNY.PK, Nasdaq: SGI, NYSE: SQM, Nasdaq: UNFY, NYSE: BEM, NYSE: SKS, NYSE: SKH, NYSE: LGF, NYSE: GG, NYSE: ETM, NYSE: CT, NYSE: MCP, NYSE: HL, NYSE: WLT, NYSE: CPY, NYSE: PRM, NYSE: RBS, NYSE: ANR, NYSE: CMA, NYSE: QTM, NYSE: PCX, NYSE: ABV, NYSE: IAG, NYSE: JCP, NYSE: CBC, NYSE: IOC, NYSE: SWC, Nasdaq: FCFL, Nasdaq: BNVID, Nasdaq: FSGI, Nasdaq: ZNWAW, Nasdaq: ARSD, Nasdaq: KONA, Nasdaq: AFOPD, Nasdaq: ENER, Nasdaq: EDAP, Nasdaq: SPSC, Nasdaq: RBNF, Nasdaq: KFED, Nasdaq: NSEC, Nasdaq: MPAC, Nasdaq: BLDR, Nasdaq: EFOI, Nasdaq: CASEYV, Nasdaq: KGJI, Nasdaq: TATT, Nasdaq: ICAD, Nasdaq: ALIM, Nasdaq: SCSS, Nasdaq: ARMH, Nasdaq: MEOH, Nasdaq: LGND, NYSE: DIA, NYSE: SPY, Nasdaq: QQQQ, NYSE: DOG, NYSE: SDS, NYSE: QLD, NYSE: NYX, NYSE: ICE, Nasdaq: NDAQ

Morning Market Review

Tuesday is a busy day my dear traders, with six total reports scheduled, so your morning market review should come in handy in helping you make heads or tails of it all. Premarket releases came in the S&P Case Shiller Home Price Index, ICSC Weekly Sales data, and Canadian GDP. By 10:00 AM, we had another 4 reports, including Chicago PMI and Consumer Confidence.

S&P Case Shiller Home Price Index
Greek Factor: OUTDATED DATA

That's right, this is the best the producers of this data can do, June. By now we've seen pricing trends from the Existing Home Sales and New Home Sales report, and so the data is relatively worthless, except maybe for popular financial press on a slow day.

In any event, today's Home Price Index for June showed the HPI increased 4.4% in Q2. By now, you're all well aware of the fact that the tax incentive unnaturally boosted the second quarter data, and so you have nothing to look forward to based on Q2's rise. I would go so far as to say it's misleading to even publish this information so late, without qualification in that regard.

By the way, Q2's increase came after Q1's decline in prices of 2.8%. The report promotes the fact that quarterly prices are 3.6% higher than last year, but fails to note that last year marked generational low economic activity and that this year benefited from special stimulus.

17 out of 20 MSAs showed price increase in June. Also, the 10-City Composite rose 5%, while the 20-City measure increased 4.2%. Be careful folks, because you're learning about the past here, while studying irrelevant comparisons versus year ago; and every data point since has been miserable for housing. So before go believing popular press this morning, put this into perspective. The Chairman of the Index Committee even says so in the report, and I quote: "The monthly Composites cover June and the national index covers the second quarter, when the government's program for first time home-buyers was winding down. While the numbers are upbeat, other more recent data on home sales and mortgages point to fewer gains ahead."

I'm not wasting any more time on this data point, until it is relevant and timely, and neither should you. At least keep it in perspective and pay more attention to the Home Sales data, and pricing info therein.

ICSC Same-Store Sales
Greek Factor: 0

The International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) reported today on weekly same-store sales for the week ending August 28. After falling 0.4% last week, same-store sales increased 0.1% week-to-week. Warning sirens keep sounding on the news, and the year-over-year comparison gained 2.8% this week (low), versus last week's 2.3% rise. Back-to-school activity may be skewing things now, so be careful in reading too much into the activity of the next several weeks (on a weekly basis). Rather, look at the monthly data combined for August and September for a solid read. Redbook showed a 3.0% sales increase year-to-year, versus last week's +2.6% rate.

Chicago PMI
Greek Factor: -2

The Chicago Purchasing Managers Index was reported at 9:45 AM. Chicago offered bad news folks, and a few of the data points were down right dire within the report. Quoting ISM: "The Chicago Purchasing Managers reported the CHICAGO BUSINESS BAROMETER stumbled, marking an eleventh month of growth but indicating a decreasing breadth of expansion. Six of seven Business Activity indicators echoed the slowed expansion."

The seasonally adjusted index fell to 56.7, from 62.3 in July. This still reflects economic expansion (above 50). Economists were looking for the Chicago PMI's Business Barometer Index to mark 56.0 in August. Six of seven indicators reflected the headline index decline in pace. Production marked its biggest drop since October of 2008. New Orders fell to 55.0, from 64.6, which is highly concerning to me. Employment eased as well as inventories. Prices paid fell, so you deflation demons have fuel to fire. Capital equipment investment dropped sharply too. This is a negative report folks, and the market will likely grab a hold of it once economists get through with the release.

Consumer Confidence
Greek Factor: +1

Put this into perspective fellas. So what, the Conference Board's measure rose a bit to 53.5 in August. 53.5 sucks! I can't say it more clearly. This is a subjective survey, and so we cannot read too much into small changes. Economists were looking for 51.0, so stock traders took the report positively in the early go. I give it a positive mark because it beat expectations and traders have to trade on it a certain way in the short-short term. It should have no positive impact past today.

Canada's Q2 GDP

Canada reported its Q2 GDP figures Tuesday. Our northern neighbor's gross domestic product increased only 2%, versus economist expectations for a 2.5% increase. The Canadian dollar weakened against the USD on the news, down about a half a percentage point.

Investor Confidence

State Street (NYSE: STT) reports on Investor Confidence today. Last month's read saw global confidence increase 4.8 points to 96. Investor confidence improved in North America as well, rising 5.4 points to 99.9. This month's data is still not available.

FOMC Meeting Minutes
Greek Factor: This Release Matters Greatly

At 2:00 PM, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) posts its meeting minutes for its latest gathering. The August 10 meeting purportedly featured some heated debate over starting up Bernanke's helicopter. This should make for an interesting read, as investors mull over the need for more help from the Fed.

Farm Prices

Agricultural goods prices for August are due at 3 PM.

Corporate News Drivers

Morgan Stanley's (NYSE: MS) Global Industrials Conference kicks off Tuesday. Look for presentations from Boeing (NYSE: BA), Honeywell (NYSE: HON), Northrop Grumman (NYSE: NOC), Danaher (NYSE: DHR) and Goodrich (NYSE: GR). H.J. Heinz (NYSE: HNZ) has a shareholders meeting scheduled.

Look for EPS from ABM Industries (NYSE: ABM), Accuray (Nasdaq: ARAY), Applied Signal Technology (Nasdaq: APSG), Baldwin Technology (AMEX: BLD), Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE: BNS), China Gerui Advanced Materials (Nasdaq: CHOP), Concurrent Computer (Nasdaq: CCUR), CPI Corp. (NYSE: CPY), Culp (NYSE: CFI), Danaos (NYSE: DAC), Dollar General (NYSE: DG), DSW (NYSE: DSW), Energy Conversion Devices (Nasdaq: ENER), Envestnet (NYSE: ENV), Funtalk China (Nasdaq: FTLK), Isle of Capri Casinos (Nasdaq: ISLE), K-SEA Transportation (NYSE: KSP), L&L Energy (Nasdaq: LLEN), Lukoil (OTC: LUKOY.PK), Polski Koncern ADR (OTC: PSKNY.PK), Silicon Graphics (Nasdaq: SGI), Chemical & Mining Co. of Chile (NYSE: SQM) and Unify (Nasdaq: UNFY).

Today's biggest gainers so far: NYSE Gainers: Structured Product Capital (NYSE: BEM), Saks (NYSE: SKS), Skilled Healthcare (NYSE: SKH), Lions Gate Entertainment (NYSE: LGF), Goldcorp (NYSE: GG), Entercom Communications (NYSE: ETM), Capital Trust (NYSE: CT), Molycorp (NYSE: MCP), Hecla Mining (NYSE: HL), Walter Energy (NYSE: WLT), CPI Corp. (NYSE: CPY), Primedia (NYSE: PRM), Royal Bank of Scotland (NYSE: RBS), Alpha Natural Resources (NYSE: ANR), Comerica (NYSE: CMA), Quantum (NYSE: QTM), Patriot Coal (NYSE: PCX), Companhia de Bebidas das America (NYSE: ABV), IamGold (NYSE: IAG), J.C. Penney (NYSE: JCP), Capitol Bancorp (NYSE: CBC), Interoil (NYSE: IOC), Stillwater Mining (NYSE: SWC); Nasdaq Gainers: First Community Bank (Nasdaq: FCFL), Bionovo (Nasdaq: BNVID), First Security Group (Nasdaq: FSGI), Zion Oil & Gas (Nasdaq: ZNWAW), Arabian American Development (Nasdaq: ARSD), Kona Grill (Nasdaq: KONA), Alliance Fiber Optic (Nasdaq: AFOPD), Energy Conversion (Nasdaq: ENER), EDAP TMS (Nasdaq: EDAP), SPS Commerce (Nasdaq: SPSC), Rurban Financial (Nasdaq: RBNF), K-FED Bancorpo (Nasdaq: KFED), National Security Group (Nasdaq: NSEC), MOD-PAC (Nasdaq: MPAC), Builders FirstSource (Nasdaq: BLDR), Energy Focus (Nasdaq: EFOI), Casey's General STore (Nasdaq: CASEYV), Kingold Jewelry (Nasdaq: KGJI), TAT Tech (Nasdaq: TATT), icad (Nasdaq: ICAD), Alimera Sciences (Nasdaq: ALIM), Select Comfort (Nasdaq: SCSS), ARM Holdings (Nasdaq: ARMH), Methanex (Nasdaq: MEOH), Ligand Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: LGND).



Please see our disclosures at the Wall Street Greek website and author bio pages found there. This article and website in no way offers or represents financial or investment advice. Information is provided for entertainment purposes only.

Morning Market Activity 08-27-10

Morning Greek
Greek Factor: -1

Today's morning market activity is going to be greatly influenced by the revision of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and also by the Jackson Hole address of Federal Reserve Chairman Benjamin Bernanke. A slew of important speakers are on tap at the Kansas City Fed's confab, including the ECB's Jean-Claude Trichet. Thus, a wild card market factor might surface through the day. Finally, also look for Consumer Confidence data from the University of Michigan/Reuters later this morning. The "Greek Factor" ranges from +3 to -3, and is a subjective measure of The Greek's view of the market impact of individual and aggregate premarket news and the day's scheduled events.

Our founder earned clients a 23% average annual return over five years as a stock analyst on Wall Street. "The Greek" has written for institutional newsletters, Businessweek, Real Money, Seeking Alpha and others, while also appearing across TV and radio. While writing for Wall Street Greek, Mr. Kaminis presciently warned of the financial crisis.

(Tickers: NYSE: HPQ, NYSE: PAR, Nasdaq: DELL, NYSE: TIF, NYSE: DNA, Nasdaq: IMGN, NYSE: BA, Nasdaq: GLNG, NYSE: HS, NYSE: FRO, NYSE: CEA, LSE: CCC.L, NYSE: SHI, Nasdaq: APWR, Nasdaq: ARUN, Nasdaq: BEBE, Nasdaq: BRLI, NYSE: CEL, NYSE: CHT, Nasdaq: CONN, NYSE: DHT, Nasdaq: DLLR, Nasdaq: DROOY, Nasdaq: FRED, NYSE: GRB, Nasdaq: GIGM, Nasdaq: IMMU, NYSE: IRF, NYSE: JCG, Nasdaq: LAVA, NYSE: MPR, NYSE: MBT, Nasdaq: UEPS, NYSE: NZ, Nasdaq: IPVO, Nasdaq: NOVL, Nasdaq: OVTI, Nasdaq: OVRL, Nasdaq: PDCO, Nasdaq: QADI, NYSE: NX, NYSE: RGS, NYSE: RY, NYSE: SFL, NYSE: SIG, NYSE: SLH, NYSE: SXI, AMEX: TIK, Nasdaq: XETA, NYSE: DIA, NYSE: SPY, Nasdaq: QQQQ, NYSE: DOG, NYSE: SDS, NYSE: QLD, NYSE: NYX, NYSE: ICE, Nasdaq: NDAQ)

Morning Market Activity

GDP was revised lower, but the result was ahead of consensus forecasts and the market was well-prepared for the reduction. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke will attempt to appease market concerns at 10:00 AM in Jackson Hole. So, you would think we might find a Friday rally, and we may. However, I expect that throughout the day, the market will remember that the economic recovery is deteriorating, and will focus on this. Also, I expect confidence in the ability of the Fed to affect the economy is dwindling, and so the potency of Bernanke's sometimes shaky voice will have been diluted. I would look for the market to lose ground into the close today, whichever direction intraday trading may take it.

GDP Revision
Greek Factor: -1

Second quarter gross domestic product (GDP) was revised lower this morning to +1.6%, from its initial reporting of +2.4%. To the reader who is first becoming aware of this news, it may sound cataclysmic for stocks. While it is highly critical to the short to medium-term movement of stocks, this report considers the short short-term impact of the data release. Therefore, and considering that economists had enough advanced warning through the release of other data points, the broader market was geared to receive a revision even lower, to +1.3%. So, if you can believe it, the news today is relatively positive for the open of stocks.

We've assigned a Greek Factor rating of negative one to the data point, simply because of the only nascent digestion of market participants of a lower level of economic activity and even the risk for a second dive into recession. As investors continue to digest this new paradigm, we expect many investors are still liquidating positions. We will cover the GDP report in detail in a later release this morning.

Bernanke's Jackson Hole Address
Greek Factor: +1

Normally, we would anticipate Chairman Bernanke's address, and its design to appease concerns, would offset concerns about the earlier report of GDP, especially given its better than expected result. However, general market sentiment is swaying, and confidence in Bernanke's ability to fix things is dwindling. There is a growing opinion that perhaps the Federal Reserve is about out of bullets, has done all it can, and has been rendered impotent by the greatest recession in generations. For this reason, we have only assigned a positive one factor to Bernanke's address, which comes at 10:00 AM. We will try to cover the speech as well this morning, as it is highly important to investors.

Attending the Jackson Hole summit will be a slew of important global financial market figures. The head of the IMF appeared today in a morning interview on CNBC, as did St. Louis Fed President James Bullard. Bullard was not very reassuring, at least not to my metric of his demeanor. As an analyst, I was pretty good at measuring the effectiveness and aptitude of corporate leaders, economists, strategists and political powers. My feeling from Bullard was that there's little value add in terms of original opinion. His statement that the Fed Chief has support at the Fed, seems to say there's little courage among the Fed Board of Governors and its regional presidents to take personal responsibility and to look toward adding value to Fed decision making. In other words, the weight is squarely on Bernanke.

Consumer Sentiment
Greek Factor: -1*

The Reuters/University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment reading improved slightly in mid-August, to 69.6. Recall that previous readings marked sharp down-slide in confidence, and so the latest improvement should be taken in context. In absolute terms, it still signifies a low level of confidence among America's underemployed consumer base.

The consensus of economists are not going out on a limb for this latest reading, as their forecast sits at 69.6. We expect the measure to slip slightly, as it sort of settles into new paradigm thinking (re economy). Even though the report comes after the market open, I've assigned an anticipatory Greek Factor rating for its release, should it be slightly lower, as I expect.

Corporate Drivers

The day's corporate schedule is light. Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) and Dell (Nasdaq: DELL) have traded new offers for 3Par (NYSE: PAR), and the fight is officially on. We're up above $30 now to take control of the firm. Tiffany (NYSE: TIF), Frontline (NYSE: FRO) and Golar LNG Ltd. (Nasdaq: GLNG) report results and host conference calls today. Healthspring (NYSE: HS) will acquire Bravo Health. Boeing (NYSE: BA) is delaying its Dreamliner yet again, to the middle of the first quarter of 2011. Genentech (NYSE: DNA) receives a Refuse to File Letter from the FDA for T-DM1; Immunogen (Nasdaq: IMGN) will host a conference call in this regard.

EPS reports are due from China Eastern Airlines (NYSE: CEA), Computacenter Plc (LSE: CCC.L), Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical (NYSE: SHI) and others. Thursday's EPS schedule included data from A-Power Energy (Nasdaq: APWR), Aruba Networks (Nasdaq: ARUN), Bebe Stores (Nasdaq: BEBE), Bio-Reference Laboratories (Nasdaq: BRLI), Cellcom Israel (NYSE: CEL), Chunghwa Telecom (NYSE: CHT), Conn's (Nasdaq: CONN), DHT Holdings (NYSE: DHT), Dollar Financial (Nasdaq: DLLR), DRD Gold (Nasdaq: DROOY), Fred's (Nasdaq: FRED), Gerber Scientific (NYSE: GRB), GigaMedia (Nasdaq: GIGM), Immunomedics (Nasdaq: IMMU), International Rectifier (NYSE: IRF), J. Crew (NYSE: JCG), Magma Design Automation (Nasdaq: LAVA), Met-Pro (NYSE: MPR), Mobile Telesystems (NYSE: MBT), Net 1 UEPS (Nasdaq: UEPS), Netezza (NYSE: NZ), Newmarket Technology (Nasdaq: IPVO), Novell (Nasdaq: NOVL), Omnivision (Nasdaq: OVTI), Overland Storage (Nasdaq: OVRL), Patterson Dental (Nasdaq: PDCO), QAD (Nasdaq: QADI), Quanex Building Products (NYSE: NX), Regis (NYSE: RGS), Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE: RY), Ship Finance (NYSE: SFL), Signet Jewelers (NYSE: SIG), Solera (NYSE: SLH), Standex (NYSE: SXI), Tel-Instrument Electronics (AMEX: TIK) and XETA Technologies (Nasdaq: XETA).



Please see our disclosures at the Wall Street Greek website and author bio pages found there. This article and website in no way offers or represents financial or investment advice. Information is provided for entertainment purposes only.

Morning Market Report 08-25-10

Morning Greek
Greek Factor: -3

We've applied a dramatically negative Greek Factor to today's morning market report, based greatly on the bad news on Durable Goods for July. Orders fell in many key categories, including previous areas of strength, business investment and computer and electronics. Stock futures agree, and point to a markedly lower start to the day. The "Greek Factor" ranges from +3 to -3, and is a subjective measure of "The Greek's" view of the market impact of individual and aggregate premarket news events.

Our founder earned clients a 23% average annual return over five years as a stock analyst on Wall Street. "The Greek" has written for institutional newsletters, Businessweek, Real Money, Seeking Alpha and others, and Mr. Kaminis has appeared across major media. While writing for Wall Street Greek, he presciently predicted the financial crisis in detail.

(Tickers: Nasdaq: CWTR, NYSE: MDT, Nasdaq: CVLT, Nasdaq: JDSU, NYSE: DNR, Nasdaq: AREX, Nasdaq: FNGN, NYSE: TOL, Nasdaq: NKBP, NYSE: GES, Hong Kong: 656.HK, OTC: HKFI.PK, NYSE: ACH, NYSE: AEO, Nasdaq: ANGN, Nasdaq: AVNW, NYSE: BHP, NYSE: BWS, NYSE: CM, NYSE: LFC, NYSE: CHA, Nasdaq: CYBX, Nasdaq: DLIA, Nasdaq: HAIN, NYSE: HEI, Nasdaq: ITRN, NYSE: JAS, Nasdaq: KONG, Nasdaq: OSIS, Nasdaq: PERY, NYSE: PTR, Nasdaq: RAVN, Nasdaq: RUE, Nasdaq: SMTC, Nasdaq: SHLO, Nasdaq: SCVL, Nasdaq: SIGM, Nasdaq: SYNO, Nasdaq: TBAC, Nasdaq: TIVO, Nasdaq: VSNT, NYSE: DIA, NYSE: SPY, Nasdaq: QQQQ, NYSE: DOG, NYSE: SDS, NYSE: QLD, NYSE: NYX, NYSE: ICE, Nasdaq: NDAQ)

Morning Market Report

Today's market has a lot weighing against her. The importance of July's Durable Goods data cannot be overstated in this morning market report, with most industry segments, except perhaps auto orders, weighing against economic life. Meanwhile, mortgage activity improved, but we must take note of why. Mortgage rates dropped to historical bottoms, and that is indicative of an anemic real estate marketplace. That is NOT a good thing, and gives reason to sell again today. Enjoy your coffee, donut and economic double-dip.

Mortgage Application Volume
Greek Factor: -1

Mortgage activity for the week ending August 20 improved, but only as mortgage rates collapsed to the lowest levels in recorded history. Contracted mortgage rates on 30-year and 15-year fixed rate mortgages fell to 4.55% (from 4.60%) and 3.91% (from 3.99%), respectively, in the measured period. Thus, the Refinance Index gained 5.7%, to its highest level since May 1st. Purchase activity was less robust, rising 0.6% on a seasonally adjusted basis, but losing 1.1% when unadjusted. The Market Composite Index increased 4.9%. We are applying a negative factor rating to this data point due to the fact that purchase activity remains nonexistent, and even due to the depth of mortgage rates. While this should be fueling economic growth, its anemic mark is reflective of the pathetic state of our economy and housing market.

Durable Goods Orders
Greek Factor: -3

Durable Goods Orders were reported this morning for the month of July. New Orders increased just 0.3%, well short of the economists' consensus for a gain of 2.5%. Excluding volatile transportation data on big ticket orders, the result was a 3.8% drop. July's result compared against a revised higher June result of -0.1%.

The strength was clearly in transportation, where orders gained 13.1% after posting two consecutive monthly drops. Aircraft orders were up on nondefense, as non-defense aircraft orders jumped 75.9%. Total New Orders ex-defense were up 0.3%. Computers and Electronics Products Orders fell 2.4%, and most related segments showed drops in order activity as well. This was a strength in recent months, so the turn around will disappoint investors today. Also dreadful, Capital Goods Orders Ex-Defense and Aircraft collapsed 8.0% in July, meaning businesses stopped investing. Again, investors were desperately hopeful here, and the rug has been pulled out from under them. This is a key driver today, and we'll take a closer look in a later article.

New Home Sales

New Home Sales data for July is due for release at 10:00 AM. This follows the lousy Existing Home Sales Report released yesterday. Existing home sales account for about 90% of total sales, and therefore matter significantly more than New Home activity. That said, economists forecast an annual rate of New Home Sales of 340K for July. This would compare against June's rate of 330K. I am not expecting good news here. We do not assign a Greek Factor to the data point because it has not been released in the premarket. However, we expect it to weigh against the market today.

FHFA House Price Index

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) will report on its House Price Index (HPI) at 10:00 AM. This latest reading will be for the month of June, and will compare against May's monthly gain of 0.5%. Eventually, one of these indices is going to turn sour, and we might see it in FHFA data, due to price ceilings here. The House Price Index is derived from transactions involving conforming conventional mortgages purchased or securitized by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. In contrast to other house price indexes, the sample is limited by the ceiling amount for conforming loans purchased by these government-sponsored enterprises (GSE).

EIA Petroleum Status

The EIA reports on Petroleum Status every Wednesday at 10:30. The last report, covering the period ended August 13, showed oil inventory fell by 0.8 million barrels. Gasoline stocks remained relatively unchanged last week. Both oil and gasoline stores remained above the upper limit of the average range for this time of year. Energy prices are giving way now as economic expectations deteriorate.

Corporate News Drivers

Coldwater Creek (Nasdaq: CWTR), Medtronic (NYSE: MDT), Commvault (Nasdaq: CVLT) and JDSU (Nasdaq: JDSU) discuss earnings and more with investors today. Denbury Resources (NYSE: DNR) and Approach Resources (Nasdaq: AREX) make presentations at the EnerCom Inc. Oil & Gas Conference. The IPO lockup period expires for Financial Engines (Nasdaq: FNGN). BHP Billiton (NYSE: BHP) reports results this morning, and its CEO said it would maintain discipline in its bid for Potash (NYSE: POT).

The day's EPS schedule includes news from Coldwater Creek, JDSU, Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL), China Nuokang (Nasdaq: NKBP), Guess (NYSE: GES), Fosun Int'l (Hong Kong: 656.HK), Hancock Fabrics (OTC: HKFI.PK), Aluminum Corp. of China (NYSE: ACH), American Eagle (NYSE: AEO), Angeion (Nasdaq: ANGN), Aviat Networks (Nasdaq: AVNW), BHP Billiton (NYSE: BHP), Brown Shoe Co. (NYSE: BWS), Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (NYSE: CM), China Life Insurance (NYSE: LFC), China Telecom (NYSE: CHA), Cyberonics (Nasdaq: CYBX), dELiA's (Nasdaq: DLIA), Hain Celestial Group (Nasdaq: HAIN), HEICO (NYSE: HEI), Ituran Location & Control (Nasdaq: ITRN), Jo-Ann Stores (NYSE: JAS), Kongzhong (Nasdaq: KONG), OSI Systems (Nasdaq: OSIS), Pery Ellis Int'l (Nasdaq: PERY), PetroChina (NYSE: PTR), Raven Industries (Nasdaq: RAVN), rue21 (Nasdaq: RUE), Semtech (Nasdaq: SMTC), Shiloh Industries (Nasdaq: SHLO), Shoe Carnival (Nasdaq: SCVL), Sigma Designs (Nasdaq: SIGM), Synovis Life Technologies (Nasdaq: SYNO), Tandy Brands (Nasdaq: TBAC), TIVO (Nasdaq: TIVO) and Versant (Nasdaq: VSNT).



Please see our disclosures at the Wall Street Greek website and author bio pages found there. This article and website in no way offers or represents financial or investment advice. Information is provided for entertainment purposes only.

Market Preview 08-18-10

Morning Greek
Greek Factor: -2

We've applied a negative Greek Factor to today's open and trading in this market preview, based on the bad news communicated about the European economy through Deere's EPS release. Also, Target's report and subsequent premarket share decline shows that yesterday's enthusiasm was overdone in retail (as we stated yesterday). The "Greek Factor" ranges from +3 to -3, and is a subjective measure of "The Greek's" view of the market impact of individual and aggregate premarket news events.

Our founder earned clients a 23% average annual return over five years as a stock analyst on Wall Street. "The Greek" has written for institutional newsletters, Businessweek, Real Money, Seeking Alpha and others, and Mr. Kaminis has appeared across major media. While writing for Wall Street Greek, he presciently predicted the financial crisis in detail.

(Tickers: NYSE: TGT, NYSE: DE, NYSE: BJ, NYSE: CHS, Nasdaq: AFCE, Nasdaq: AMAT, AMEX: BLD, Nasdaq: BRCD, NYSE: DL, Nasdaq: CEDU, Nasdaq: IMOS, Nasdaq: CTRN, NYSE: CCM, NYSE: DGW, NYSE: EV, Nasdaq: FLXS, NYSE: GU, Nasdaq: GYMB, Nasdaq: HOTT, NYSE: CTC, Nasdaq: LCRY, NYSE: LTD, Nasdaq: NTAP, Nasdaq: NTES, Nasdaq: OTEX, Nasdaq: PETM, NYSE: STP, Nasdaq: SNPS, Nasdaq: VVTV, NYSE: DIA, NYSE: SPY, Nasdaq: QQQQ, NYSE: DOG, NYSE: SDS, NYSE: QLD, NYSE: NYX, NYSE: ICE, Nasdaq: NDAQ)

Market Preview

You caught a break today, as only the two regular economic reports are scheduled, with the mortgage activity data reported in the premarket and the petroleum status information scheduled for later today. More importantly today, two EPS reports are playing a role in general trading. Our market preview centers on Deere's report, which implies trouble in Europe. European austerity is affecting economic value in a bad way.

Mortgage Activity Report
Greek Factor: +1

In the premarket, we received an interesting look at the Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Applications Survey. Thanks to the lowest mortgage rates in the survey's history, the Market Composite Index jumped to its highest level since May 2009 (which was not a hot period folks, so contain yourselves). The data for the week ended August 13 (Friday, keep in mind) showed a 13% jump in the Market Composite Index of mortgage activity.

The Purchase Index, which measures mortgage applications for home purchase, decreased 3.4%. That's not fantastic news and continues a trend we've been pointing to. In our weekly copy, we said, "This component has been fizzling out and could even turn negative soon if business conditions falter further (which we expect)." The term for that is called, "Spot on!"

The Refinance Index soared 17.1%, benefiting from very low average contracted rates on 30-year and 15-year fixed rate mortgages to 4.6% (from 4.57% the week before) and 3.99% (from 3.95%), respectively. It's also possible that a large bank or mortgage broker initiated some sort of campaign to increase fees, considering that last week's data was relatively unchanged on similar rates. We give the data point a mildly positive factor rating on the refinance activity, which does create value for households.

Petroleum Report

The EIA's Petroleum Status Report is due at 10:30 AM ET. Last week's report covering the period ended August 6, showed crude oil inventory decreased by 3.0 million barrels. Total motor gasoline inventory increased by 0.4 million barrels. Both crude oil and total motor gasoline inventory remain above the upper limit of the average range for this time of year. However, the average world crude oil price increased $4.10 since last week, to $78.79. The spot price for conventional gasoline in the New York Harbor was 204.84 cents per gallon, 1.23 cents less than last week's price but 12.59 cents over this time last year.

Corporate News Drivers

Deere Disappoints
Greek Factor: -2

Deere (NYSE: DE) noted better than expected EPS in its quarterly report, but its forward guidance came in short of analysts' consensus. The shares are down 1.8% in the premarket on the news. Deere noted that US farmer demand for tractors and harvesters supported results, while European markets were down sharply. We've been talking about this scenario playing out, and these are some of the first signs from a corporate source. Deere also noted what it sees as a bottom in demand for forestry and construction equipment, but reported absolute-basis low level activity in these segments.

Sales were up 16%, and that's pretty good. EPS rose even more, and at $1.44 exceeded the analysts' consensus. The disappointment came in the company's view that industry wide sales will drop 15-20% in Western Europe moving forward, on weakness in dairy and livestock sectors. This news will bring heightened awareness of derivative impacts from European austerity, and so we apply the stronger negative factor to the news. This is a medium to long-term negative factor for stocks in fact.

Target Shares Lower
Greek Factor: -1

Target's (NYSE: TGT) shares are down 2.8% in the premarket on a revenue disappointment. This did not stop WalMart yesterday (see our report here: WMT Red Flag), but TGT is taking a hit nonetheless. At $0.92, Target's EPS came in line with Wall Street's view. Revenues were up 3.1%, slightly less than analysts were looking for. Target's same-store sales grew 1.7%, versus WalMart's decline.

Apparently, the company's efficient management, adding value with the sales of food goods, was not enough to offset market concerns about weaker sales of its primary products. It seems that some of Target's reasoning for a better future is faulty, as it emphasizes improved consumer confidence. As we've seen, and relayed here, over recent weeks, confidence is waning now. Target's P/E ratio is a bit higher than WalMart's, and could be playing a role in the greater sensitivity; but it's growth forecast is also higher. I view management's focus on negatives, and its overcoming them, within its press release a factor in TGT's decline today (PR could have been better). More importantly, Target rose with WalMart yesterday, but dropped with it towards the end of the day, as we believe the market took heed of our warning (see linked to article above). So it's more likely that investors are reconsidering retail generally, and see the weaknesses again in TGT's data.

EPS Reports

The corporate EPS wire highlights data from Target (NYSE: TGT), Deere (NYSE: DE), BJ's Wholesale Club (NYSE: BJ) and Chico's FAS (NYSE: CHS). The remainder of the list includes AFC Enterprises (Nasdaq: AFCE), Applied Materials (Nasdaq: AMAT), Baldwin Technology (AMEX: BLD), Brocade Communications (Nasdaq: BRCD), China Distance Education (NYSE: DL), ChinaEdu (Nasdaq: CEDU), Chipmos Tech (Nasdaq: IMOS), Citi Trends (Nasdaq: CTRN), Concord Medical Services (NYSE: CCM), Duoyuan Global Water (NYSE: DGW), Eaton Vance (NYSE: EV), Flexsteel Industries (Nasdaq: FLXS), Gushan Environmental Energy (NYSE: GU), Gymboree (Nasdaq: GYMB), Hott Topic (Nasdaq: HOTT), IFM Investments (NYSE: CTC), LeCroy (Nasdaq: LCRY), Limited Brands (NYSE: LTD), NetApp (Nasdaq: NTAP), NetEase.com (Nasdaq: NTES), Open Text (Nasdaq: OTEX), PetSmart (Nasdaq: PETM), Suntech Power (NYSE: STP), Synopsis (Nasdaq: SNPS) and ValueVision Media (Nasdaq: VVTV).



Please see our disclosures at the Wall Street Greek website and author bio pages found there. This article and website in no way offers or represents financial or investment advice. Information is provided for entertainment purposes only.

Premarket News 08-17-10

Morning Greek
Greek Factor: -1

The "Morning Greek" replaces your old "Wake Up Call" article that was a perennial favorite here at the blog. It is your premarket report, giving you all the important market moving news of the morning, including especially economic data, overseas news and corporate events of interest. The "Greek Factor" ranges from +3 to -3, and is a subjective measure of "The Greek's" view of the market impact of individual and aggregate news events and factors. While many of the economic data points of the day came in better than expected, we see the absolute level of activity still weak. Also, we note that several retail factors, including same-store sales & Wal-Mart's report should slap traders on the back of the neck before too long this morning and send stocks back downward.

Markos N. Kaminis earned clients a 23% average annual return over five years as a stock analyst on Wall Street. "The Greek" has written for institutional newsletters, Businessweek, Real Money, Seeking Alpha and others, and Mr. Kaminis has appeared across major media. While writing for Wall Street Greek, he presciently predicted the financial crisis in detail.

(Tickers: NYSE: WMT, NYSE: HD, NYSE: ANF, NYSE: BHP, NYSE: MW, NYSE: ADI, NYSE: CS, NYSE: DIA, NYSE: SPY, Nasdaq: QQQQ, NYSE: DOG, NYSE: SDS, NYSE: QLD, NYSE: NYX, NYSE: ICE, Nasdaq: NDAQ)

Premarket News

Your Tuesday will be just as busy as the day before, with five economic reports reaching the market before the open. We received Housing Starts shorter than expectations, a hotter Core PPI than expected, better than forecast industrial production, an inflation warning from the Bank of England and a miserable bit of retail sector news from Wal-Mart. Enjoy!

Housing Starts
Greek Factor: -1

We said: "There could be a slight increase in July's Housing Starts, as Building Permits edged higher in June. Whatever happens, we're not looking for a significant and market stimulating data-point here." Starts came in up 1.7% above the revised lower June mark of 537K (from 549K). The annual pace of Starts, running at 546K in July, missed the economists' consensus forecast for 565K.

Producer Price Index
Greek Factor: +3

The Producer Price Index surprised both economists and The Greek this morning, as July's Core PPI, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, jumped 0.3%. Economists were looking for a Core rise of 0.1%. The Headline PPI figure came in up 0.2%, which was in line with the economists' view. Since this data-point runs counter to deflation concerns, it proves a net positive factor in today's premarket.

BOE Raises Inflation Warning
Greek Factor: 0

The Bank of England today raised a surprising concern; that being inflation. How wonderful! So now we have no idea where to look for trouble. It could come from deflation or inflation? Hey, how about stagflation then too, since economic growth is likely to lag. We have to give this a neutral market factor, since it offsets more pressing global deflation concerns. We happen to share the BOE's long-term inflation concerns, as we see paper currency losing ground against all goods. Look for the return of the gold standard eventually even!

Industrial Production
Greek Factor: +2

Industrial Production increased a full point in July, versus economists' expectations for a 0.6% increase. This represents a small portion of the American economy folks, and this number measures July, so temper your enthusiasm. Also, the absolute level of activity is not enthusing, and manufacturing has shown signs of slowing of late. Capacity Utilization moves in line with production, and increased to 74.8%, against expectations for a 74.5% gain. My feeling is that the market will value this more than it's really worth, so the +2 mark versus what I would give it normally, +1.

Weekly Same-Store Sales
Greek Factor: -1

Sales deteriorated further in the August 14 period, with the week-over-week comparison losing 1.3%. The yearly comparison still shows growth of 3.3%, but that's down from last week's 3.7% change. We also remind that last year's comparable economic activity was simply the worst in generations. Redbook showed a 2.7% increase against the prior year, versus 3.0% last week. We only rate this factor a negative one because it's not as widely followed by the general investing public as other economic metrics. Otherwise, we would be raising more concern for traders today. It should impact downgrade activity in the retail sector, unless analysts want to feel the back-to-school season out a bit longer.

China Leading Economic Index

The Conference Board's check up of China's Leading Economic Index shook up stocks in June. That report covered the month of April, and May's data showed a 0.8% increase to an index mark of 145.8. Tuesday offers the Board's check for June, and will be closely followed by investors.

DC Happenings

The US Treasury and Housing Department will have a forum including PIMCO's Bill Gross, within which they will work on ideas for the futures of Fannie Mae (OTC: FNMAS.OB) and Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC.OB). At 12:30 PM ET, Minneapolis Federal Reserve Branch President Narayana Kocherlakota will speak at Northern Michigan University.

Corporate News Drivers

Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT)
Greek Factor: -2

Wal-Mart is an economic barometer. It is the most significant American retailer by far and influences all sector index activity and relative economic metrics. Thus, its EPS report matters to the market in a big way.

NYSE: WMT shares were up about a percentage point in the pre-market, given its EPS results. Most importantly for WMT investors, the company raised its earnings guidance for the full year ahead. WMT beat EPS estimates by a penny, earning $0.97, but the gains came mostly on cost management. All the news was not good, and the market might turn negative on the rest of the economy and retail sector based on the report. You see, same-store sales for stores open at least a year fell 1.4% on weakness in its US namesake stores. That's bad news for the general economy, so while WMT might be rising this morning, the message is sell retail generally.

The Gamescom trade fair starts in Cologne, Germany. The corporate news wire highlights the Men's Wearhouse (NYSE: MW) meeting with analysts and major earnings reports from Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) and Home Depot (NYSE: HD). Also look for reports from Analog Devices (NYSE: ADI), Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE: ANF) and CF Industries (NYSE: CF).

The rest of the EPS schedule covers 3SBio (Nasdaq: SSRX), Aastrom Biosciences (Nasdaq: ASTM), Astro-Med (Nasdaq: ALOT), BioLase Technology (Nasdaq: BLTI), BluePhoenix Solutions (Nasdaq: BPHX), Bob Evans Farms (Nasdaq: BOBE), CACI Int'l (Nasdaq: CACI), Cardica (Nasdaq: CRDC), China Digital TV (NYSE: STV), China Recycling Energy (Nasdaq: CREG), China TechFaith Wireless (Nasdaq: CNTF), Elbit Systems (Nasdaq: ESLT), G&K Services (Nasdaq: GKSR), Greenman Technologies (Nasdaq: GMTI), Jack Henry (Nasdaq: JKHY), Jamba Juice (Nasdaq: JMBA), JSE Limited (OTC: JSLMF.PK), Key Tronic (Nasdaq: KTCC), La-Z-Boy (NYSE: LZB), Longtop Fin'l Technologies (NYSE: LFT), NXP Semiconductors (Nasdaq: NXPI), Photronics (Nasdaq: PLAB), Polymer Group (OTC: POLGA.OB), Pressure BioSciences (Nasdaq: PBIO), Saks (NYSE: SKS), Silicon Graphics (Nasdaq: SGI), Spectrum Brands (NYSE: SPB), Sypris Solutions (Nasdaq: SYPR), TJX Cos. (NYSE: TJX), ULURU (AMEX: ULU), VanceInfo Technologies (NYSE: VIT) and WSP Holdings (NYSE: WH).



Please see our disclosures at the Wall Street Greek website and author bio pages found there. This article and website in no way offers or represents financial or investment advice. Information is provided for entertainment purposes only.

Premarket Report 08-16-10

Stock Market Preview

Your market warm-up for Monday includes a slew of economic and earnings reports.

Markos N. Kaminis earned clients a 23% average annual return over five years as a stock analyst on Wall Street. "The Greek" has written for institutional newsletters, Businessweek, Real Money, Seeking Alpha and others, and Mr. Kaminis has appeared across major media. While writing for Wall Street Greek, he presciently predicted the financial crisis in detail.

(Tickers: NYSE: DIA, NYSE: SPY, Nasdaq: QQQQ, NYSE: DOG, NYSE: SDS, NYSE: QLD, NYSE: NYX, NYSE: ICE, Nasdaq: NDAQ, NYSE: ACL, NYSE: NVS, Nasdaq: URBN, NYSE: A, Nasdaq: CMED, Nasdaq: DIET, Nasdaq: GLOI, Nasdaq: KITD, NYSE: LOW)

Premarket Report

Your workweek gets busy quickly, as three economic reports are slated for Monday morning. Before the bell rings, we'll hear about the state of affairs in New York area manufacturing and foreign trade in US securities. Then before you catch your second wind and finish your first coffee, homebuilders will offer their latest take on construction activity.

The Empire State Manufacturing Survey was one of the latest economic data points to make us look psychic, or at least really smart. In July, it dropped about 15 points to a mark of 5.08. That move solidified the cement within the form we laid out. Manufacturing, the column of economic support and the main component of growth for the economy, was giving way. Economists are looking for a slight adjustment higher in August, to a reading of 8.0. Like the latest consumer sentiment data, we do not think a few points here or there really matter, as the news would be bad (or not good enough) either way.

The Treasury International Capital (TIC) Report is due at 9:00 AM. June's data will compare against May's $35.4 billion in net foreign purchases of long-term securities. While August could show an uptick in such investment on the nascent flight to quality, June might not be as special. There is no economists' consensus forecast for the data point.

The final economic report comes from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). This biased organization has been unable to hide the bad mood of its members. The home building environment, given the flood of distressed property to housing inventory, the new lending standards being employed by banks, and the deteriorated credit standing of Americans on average, has soured all hope. There's no consensus estimate for the Housing Market Index. However, we do not see a complex set of possibilities. Rather, the same sorry state should prove through again in August. July's report marked the second consecutive decline, to a reading of 14, the lowest level since April 2009.

US hedge funds file quarterly statements of holdings, an off-radar data point that might show where smart money is parked. General Motors might file its IPO registration with the SEC as early as today, and likely sometime this week. Alcon (NYSE: ACL) shareholders vote on board members, as Novartis (NYSE: NVS) seeks to gain a majority stake.

The day's earnings schedule highlights data from Urban Outfitters (Nasdaq: URBN), Agilent Technologies (NYSE: A), China Medical Tech (Nasdaq: CMED), eDiets.com (Nasdaq: DIET), Global Options (Nasdaq: GLOI), KIT Digital (Nasdaq: KITD) and Lowe's (NYSE: LOW).

The rest of the EPS schedule includes 4Kids Entertainment (OTC: KIDE.PK), Abraxis Petroleum (Nasdaq: AXAS), Advanced Photonix (AMEX: API), American Oil & Gas (AMEX: AEZ), Ark Restaurants (Nasdaq: ARKR), Axion Power (Nasdaq: AXPW), Beacon Enterprise (Nasdaq: BEAC), Bitstream (Nasdaq: BITS), China Auto Logistics (Nasdaq: CALI), China Biologic (Nasdaq: CBPO), China Ritar Power (Nasdaq: CRTP), China Southern Airlines (NYSE: ZNH), China Wind Systems (Nasdaq: CWS), Cumberland Pharma (Nasdaq: CPIX), Cytomedix (AMEX: GTF), Deerfield Capital (Nasdaq: DFR), Digital Ally (Nasdaq: DGLY), eLong (Nasdaq: LONG), Emcore (Nasdaq: EMKR), Emisphere (Nasdaq: EMIS), Emrise (PCX: ERI), Energy (Nasdaq: EGAS), Entech Solar (Nasdaq: ENSL), First Marblehead (NYSE: FMD), Fuwei Films (Nasdaq: FFHL), Great American (OTC: GAMR.OB), Gulf Resources (Nasdaq: GFRE), Hollywood Media (Nasdaq: HOLL), ICX Technologies (Nasdaq: ICXT), Impac Mortgage (AMEX: IMH), InterOil (NYSE: IOC), JinkoSolar (NYSE: JKS), LGL Group (AMEX: LGL), MMR Information (Nasdaq: MMRF), Nautilus (NYSE: NLS), Northern Dynasty Minerals (AMEX: NAK), Ohio Legacy (Nasdaq: OLCB), Onstream Media (Nasdaq: ONSM), Orbit/Fr (Nasdaq: ORFR), Pacific Ethanol (Nasdaq: PEIX), Perfect World (Nasdaq: PWRD), Pernix Therapeutics (AMEX: PTX), Primus Telecommunications (Nasdaq: PMUG), PUDA Coal (Nasdaq: PUDA), QKL Stores (Nasdaq: QKLS), Rick's Cabaret (Nasdaq: RICK), RINO Int'l (Nasdaq: RINO), Royal Standard Minerals (OTC: RYSMF.OB), SCM Microsystems (Nasdaq: INVE), Sinovac Biotech (Nasdaq: SVA), Six Flags (NYSE: SIX), Skystar Bio-Pharma (Nasdaq: SKBI), Solar Power (Nasdaq: SOPW), SUBAYE (Nasdaq: SBAY), Sysco (NYSE: SYY), Telkonet (Nasdaq: TKOI), Terra Nova Royalty (NYSE: TTT), Trubion Pharma (Nasdaq: TRBN), US Dataworks (Nasdaq: UDWK), Valspar (NYSE: VAL), ViewCast (Nasdaq: VCST), Vitacost.com (Nasdaq: VITC), Vringo (Nasdaq: VRNG), WidePoint (AMEX: WYY), Wuhan General (Nasdaq: WUHN), Xenonics (AMEX: XNN) and Yuhe Int'l (Nasdaq: YUII).



Please see our disclosures at the Wall Street Greek website and author bio pages found there. This article and website in no way offers or represents financial or investment advice. Information is provided for entertainment purposes only.