*from www.bloomberg.com, Mar. 13, 2013 (To view original article click here.)
Take Away #1: U.S. stocks fluctuated between gains and losses, after an eight-day rally drove the Dow Jones Industrial Average to record highs, as a report showed retail sales increased in February.
Key Facts and Figures:
- Netflix Inc. jumped 6.6% after announcing new social features integrated with Facebook Inc.
- Spectrum Pharmaceuticals Inc. plunged 34% after saying sales will miss analysts’ estimates.
- Express tumbled 8.2% after forecasting first-quarter and full-year earnings below estimates.
- The S&P 500 Index (SPX) rose 0.2% to 1,554.92 at 12:54 p.m. in New York.
- The Dow Jones industrial Average added 13.02 points or 0.1% to 14,463.08, extending its record high.
- Trading was about 25% below the 30-day average at this time of day.
Take Away #2: All economic data is incrementally positive and with many investors waiting to get into the market, any potential pause in the market or a correction, will likely be nominal.
Key Facts and Figures:
- The S&P 500 fell yesterday, ending a seven-day winning streak that drove the index within 9 points of its all-time high.
- The benchmark gauge has more than doubled from its bottom in 2009 with a rally fueled by corporate earnings that topped estimates and monetary stimulus from the Federal Reserve.
- The Dow rose for an eighth straight day yesterday, its longest stretch of gains in two years.
Take Away #3: Retail sales advance as progress in the job market spurs demand.
Key Facts and Figures:
- The 1.1% advance in retail sales was more than forecast and followed a revised 0.2% gain in January.
- The advance more than doubled the median projection in a Bloomberg survey which called for a 0.5% advance.
- Sales excluding the volatile categories of automobiles and gasoline climbed 0.4%
- Demand has increased for merchants like Costco Wholesale Corp. easing the burden of a 2% increase in the levy that funds social security.
- The boost to household wealth from home values and stock prices also helped to maintain spending in the face of higher fuel prices.
- The S&P 500 index is valued at 15.3 times reported earnings, a 22-month high, but still 7.4% below an average of 16.6 over the last decade.
- The Dow is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.1, the highest level in almost two years and 11% below its 10-year average of 15.8.
Take Away #4: A number of companies in the retail sector saw significant advances pacing gains among retailers amid today’s positive sales data.
Key Facts and Figures:
- Best Buy Co. rallied 4.1% to $21.12.
- Abercrombie & Fitch Co. added 2.3% to $49.57.
- Nike Inc. rose 2.4% to $54.78.
- Netflix jumped 6.6% to $194.04.
- Walgreen Co. rallied 4.3% to $42.78 its highest level since July 2011, as UBS raised its rating on the drugstore chain to buy from neutral.
- J.C. Penny Co. slumped 2.1% to $15.32.
Take Away #5: Mounting competition puts pressure on Apple to step up its pace of product releases.
Key Facts and Figures:
- Since iPhone’s initial debut about six years ago, the company has held one big phone unveiling each year.
- There’s a drumbeat of rumors about Apple working on more than one version of the iPhone, says Jan Dawson of Ovum.
Take Away #6: Commodities show a slump as phone companies, energy producers, and raw materials shares retreated the most out of 10 S&P 500 Groups.
Key Facts and Figures:
- Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. sank 3.6% to $23.03 declining the most in the benchmark index.
- Valero Energy Corp. fell 2.7% to $44.30 and Tesoro Corp. slid 1.9% to $56.72.
- Spectrum Pharmaceuticals tumbled 34% to $8.16 as the drug maker said 2013 revenue will be $160 million to $180 million, with analysts having anticipated total sales of $297 million.
Take Away #7: The rally that pushed the S&P 500 toward a record is poised to pause after faltering yesterday, judging by trading patterns, according to DZ Bank AG.
Key Facts and Figures:
- The five-day relative strength index or RSI for the benchmark, was 74.6 yesterday after reaching 84.8 the day before.
- The RSI measures the velocity of price changes to identify overbought or oversold conditions and turning points.
- Readings above 70 indicate prices will probably fall.
*To view original article from www.bloomberg.com click here.