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U.S. Stocks Fall as Jobs, Services Reports Miss Estimates

*from www.bloomberg.com, April 3, 2013 (To view original article click here.)

Take Away #1: U.S. stocks fell, dragging the S&P 500 Index down from a record, as worse-than-estimated data on employment and the nation’s service industries spurred concern over economic growth.

Key Facts and Figures:

  • The S&P 500 fell 0.6% to 1,561.02 at 12:15 p.m. in New York.
  • The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 52.60 points, or 0.4%, to 14,609.41.
  • The Russell 2000 Index dropped 1.1% to 924.39, extending its loss for the week to 2.9%.
  • Trading among S&P 500 shares was 8.2% above the 30-day average at this time of day.
  • Bank of America Corp. and Morgan Stanley dropped more than 2.6% as financial shares tumbled the most among 10 S&P 500 groups.
  • Alcoa Inc. and General Electric Co. each retreated 1% to pace declines among the largest companies.
  • An S&P gauge of homebuilders fell 3.4%, with PulteGroup Inc. slipping 3.8%.
  • Zynga Inc. rallied 14% after saying it will introduce real-money online gambling in the U.K.

Take Away #2: Companies boosted employment by 158,000 workers in March, figures from ADP Research Institute showed today, lower than the median forecast of economists’.

Key Facts and Figures:

  • The median forecast of 39 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for a 200,000 gain.
  • The report comes ahead of the non-farm payrolls report from the Labor Department on April 5, which may show employers hired a net 200,000 workers this month.
  • The Institute for Supply Management’s index of U.S. non-manufacturing businesses, which covers almost 90% of the economy, fell to 54.4 in March from 56 in the prior month.
  • The median forecast of 73 economists surveyed by Bloomberg was 55.5.
  • Readings above 50 signal expansion.

Take Away #3: U.S. companies begin releasing their first-quarter earnings next week, and profits among S&P 500 companies are forecast to decline.

Key Facts and Figures:

  • Alcoa is scheduled to announce earnings results on April 8.
  • Profits among S&P 500 companies are forecast to decline 1.9% for the period, for the first retreat since 2009 according to estimates by Bloomberg.
  • In January, analysts forecast earnings growth of 1.2%.
  • Profit expanded by 8% in the fourth-quarter.

Take Away #4: The KBW Bank Index slumped and the VIX jumped 3.8% today to 13.26 but is down 26% for the year.

Key Facts and Figures:

  • The VIX or Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index measures the cost of using options as insurance against claims.
  • Investors sold shares of companies most tied to economic growth, sending Morgan Stanley Cyclical Index down 0.8% and the Dow Jones Transportation Index 0.7% lower.
  • Alcoa declined 1% to $8.22 and General Electric retreated 1% to $23.11.
  • The KBW Bank Index slumped 1.6% as all 24 of its members declined.
  • Bank of America lost 3% to $11.79.
  • Morgan Stanley fell 2.6% to $21.15.
  • JPMorgan Chase & Co. slipped 2% to $47.

Take Away #5: All of the 11 stocks in the S&P Supercomposite Homebuilding Index retreated.

Key Facts and Figures:

  • The ADP payroll report showed no jobs growth in the construction industry in March.
  • The builders index has fallen 9.9% since reaching a five-year high on March 20.

Take Away #6: ConAgra and Global Payments Inc. declined, while Monsanto, Newfield Exploration, Zynga, and Facebook advanced.

Key Facts and Figures:

  • ConAgra, the packaged foods manufacturer, slipped 1.1% to $35.16 after it reported third-quarter earnings that missed analysts’ estimates.
  • Operating profit from consumer foods fell to $284.4 million from $332.3 million for the same period a year ago.
  • Global Payments Inc. lost 7.8% to $45.21.
  • The bank-card processor said revenue was $578.7 million in the three months that ended in February compared with the average analyst estimate of $581 million.
  • Monsanto Co., the world’s largest seed company, increased 1.6% to $105.25, and raised its full-year earnings forecast.
  • Monsanto posted fiscal second-quarter profit that beat analysts’ estimates as U.S. farmers bought more genetically modified corn seed.
  • Monsanto said it will earn $4.40 to $4.50 a share in the 12 months through August excluding one-time costs.
  • That is up from a January forecast of $4.30 to $4.40, though the average of 22 estimates was $4.57.
  • Newfield Exploration Co., the Texas-based oil producer, added 1.7% to $22.47.
  • Newfield said it had the “largest conventional exploratory success” in its history with a natural gas discovery off the coast of Malaysia.
  • Zynga, which makes games for Facebook Inc.’s social network, rose 14% to $3.51.
  • Zynga said the two new real-money games called “ZyngaPlusPoker” and “ZyngaPlusCasino” will now be available to players in the U.K. from today.
  • Facebook added 3% to $26.19.

*To view original article from www.bloomberg.com click here.

Filed in: Latest, Markets

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