Tag - NASDAQGS:STEC

Palm Inc New (Nasdaq:PALM), STEC Inc (Nasdaq:STEC), Airtran Holdings Inc (Nasdaq:AAI) and Radian Group Inc (Nasdaq:RDN)are among the most actively traded companies in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Imax Corp (Nasdaq:IMAX), Vivus Inc (Nasdaq:VVUS), Susquehanna Bancshares Inc (Nasdaq:SUSQ), Force Protection Inc (Nasdaq:FRPT) and Nergy Conversion Devices Inc (Nasdaq:ENER).

Us Airways Group (Nasdaq:LCC), STEC Inc (Nasdaq: STEC), A Power Energy (Nasdaq:APWR) and Trina Solar Ltd (Nasdaq:TSL) are among the most actively traded companies in Friday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Synaptics Inc (Nasdaq:SYNA), Centene Corp (Nasdaq:CNC), Airtran Holdings (Nasdaq:AAI), Canadian Solar Inc (Nasdaq:CSIQ) and Centrais Eletricsas Brasileiras (Nasdaq:EBR).

US Airways (Nasdaq:LCC), STEC Group (Nasdaq:STEC), Origin Agritech (Nasdaq:SEED) and Mannkind Corp (Nasdaq:MNKD) are among the most actively traded companies in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Brightpoint Inc (Nasdaq:CELL), Airtran Holdings (Nasdaq:AAI), Alliance One International (Nasdaq:AOI), Western Refining Inc (Nasdaq:WNR) and American Axle And Manufacturing Holdings (Nasdaq:AXL).

Spire Corp (Nasdaq:SPIR), Grupo Radio Centro (Nasdaq:RC), Cornerstone Therapeutics (Nasdaq:CRTX) and Entorian Technologies (Nasdaq:) are among the biggest percentage Gainers in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

 

Also included among the results: China Advanced Construction Materials (Nasdaq:CADC), Spectranetics Corp (Nasdaq:SPNC), Stmyx Technologies (Nasdaq:SMMX), First Capital Inc (Nasdaq:FCAP) and Advocat Inc (Nasdaq:AVCA).

Compugen Ltd (Nasdaq:CGEN), STEC Inc (Nasdaq:STEC), US Airways Group (Nasdaq:LCC) and Amicas Inc (Nasdaq:AMCS)are among the most actively traded companies in day's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Athersys Inc (Nasdaq:ATHX), Airtran Holdings (Nasdaq:AAI), China Northeast Petroleum (Nasdaq:NEP) and LDK Solar (Nasdaq:LDK) and MGIC Inventory Corp (Nasdaq:MTG).

"STEC (NASDAQ: STEC), a maker of flash memory and dynamic random access memory," is our latest "Stock of the Month'," says Dennis Slothower in Stealth Stocks.

"Over the past several years, the company has expanded its custom design capabilities of flash products for OEM applications.

"It has invested significantly in the design and development of customized flash controllers, firmware and hardware, and made strategic acquisitions that have expanded its flash design capabilities and sales and marketing infrastructure.

"Flash product revenue increased 20.2%, from $91.7 million in 2006 to $110.2 million in 2007, and increased 36.4%, from $110.2 million in 2007 to $150.3 million in 2008.

"The company expects its continued investments in flash custom design capabilities and controller development to result in sustained revenue growth from its flash product line in 2009.

"STEC makes solid-state drives that are designed to replace disk drives and are built using NAND flash memory chips. The drives are known as solid-state drives because they have no moving parts. They are more durable and use less power than disk drives and work in extreme temperatures.

"These devices tend to be faster at retrieving stored data and more energy efficient and shock resistant than disk drives. The best part is that STEC enjoys a near monopoly on solid-state drives. Sales have more than tripled from last year. How many companies can say that in this economy?

"According to my numbers, STEC should be selling in the low $60s over the next three to five years. It is currently trading in the high $30s, so STEC has large upside potential.

"Place a sell stop at 25% below your entry price. As the stock rises, continue to raise your stop so that you are trailing the Friday close by 25%."
 

CardioNet Inc (Nasdaq:BEAT), Cepheid (Nasdaq:CPHD) and OmniVision Technologies Inc (Nasdaq:OVTI) are among the most actively traded companies in Monday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: AgFeed Industries Inc (Nasdaq:FEED), Spectrum Pharmaceuticals Inc (Nasdaq:SPPI), Canadian Solar Inc (Nasdaq:CSIQ), A Power Energy Generation Systems Ltd (Nasdaq:APWR), Solarfun Power Holdings Co Ltd (Nasdaq:SOLF) and STEC Inc (Nasdaq:STEC).

Stocks started positive in morning trading, but quickly gave ground before the noon lunch hour Eastern time and never recovered. The Dow Jones Industrials were down 1.25% to close at 8,504; the Nasdaq closed down 1.11% at 1,796; and the S&P 500 shed 1.27% to end the day at 912.

Small-cap stocks, as measured by the Russell 2000 Index, fared worse, giving up 1.22% to close at 505.

Today's small-cap gainers were lead by STEC Inc (Nasdaq:STEC), a California-based memory chip maker, up 29%. STEC increased its Q2 financial outlook stating that improved sales of its ZeusIOPS solid-state drive product line had caused the company to revision its guidance. STEC now expects adjusted earnings of between 32 and 36 cents per share.

Other small-caps showing leadership include La-Z-Boy, (NYSE:LZB) up 22% on news that it returned to profitability in Q4 and beating analysts' EPS estimates; Merge Healthcare (Nasdaq:MRGE) up 17%; Alvarion (Nasdaq:ALVR) up 16%; and Satyam Computer Services (NYSE:SAY) up 16%.

Small-cap decliners were lead by Matrixx Initiatives (Nasdaq:MTXX) down 70% on receiving a warning from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to discontinue selling it's Zicam product and for consumer to stop using it immediately. The FDA has indicated that there have been 130 reported cases of people losing the sense of smell after using the products. Zicam is a leading product for preventing and minimizing the effects of the common cold when the patient uses the product at the first symptoms of a cold. The FDA action affects only the nasal swabs and gels and does not apply to the tablets or lozenges.

Although Matrixx is on record stating that the product does not cause a loss of smell the company has indicated that it will consider withdrawing the products in questions, which in total account for roughly 40 percent of its sales.

Other small-cap decliners include Myriad Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq:MYRXV) down 32%; Magyar Bancorp (Nasdaq:MGYR) down 34%; A-Power Energy Generation Systems (Nasdaq:APWR) down 24% on news that first quarter earnings fell by nearly half; and two of yesterday's leaders: Jazz Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq:JAZZ) down 17% and QEP (Nasdaq:QEPC) down 15%. 

*****Jason Cimpl, technical analyst at TradeMaster Daily Stock Alerts, called yesterday's 2.5% drop on the S&P 500 to a tee. If you watched the video chart analysis from Jason that I included in Friday's Daily Profit, then you were ready for Monday's sell-off. I hope you were able to profit from it.

And bonus points to Jason for calling the closing level of the S&P within 2 points. I think Jason's video chart analysis will be a welcome addition to Daily Profit. Look for the next one in Friday's edition.

******If it weren't for gasoline, prices at the wholesale level would have fallen 0.1% in May. Still, prices are off 5% from this time last year. That's the biggest drop in 50 years. Is this good news?

Not for corporate profits, and so probably not for valuations. And not for the Fed, who's terrified of deflation. But for the crowd expecting runaway inflation because of a weaker dollar and rising interest rates, it might be.

It should be obvious that weak demand and high unemployment will keep a lid on prices in the short-term. Remember too that it took 18 months before rising oil prices really started to find their way into the prices of consumer goods, too. Right now, inflation expectations are just that - expectations.

Still, those expectations have helped oil and commodity prices run higher…

*****And inflation expectations aren't the only thing driving commodity prices higher. Demand from emerging markets, especially China and India, remains fairly strong. After all, these countries have money to spend to help re-inflate their economies.

Jason Cimpl will be discussing the outlook for inflation and commodity prices in a special video conference next Wednesday, June 24 at 6:00 P.M. It's totally free, and Jason will share his top gold stocks with attendees (yes, we see significant upside for certain gold stocks). This video conference is free of charge, you can sign up HERE.

*****The Ural mountain city of Yekaterinburg, Russia takes center stage in global economic news today. The BRIC countries--Brazil, Russia, India and China--are holding their first ever summit starting today. The U.S. is not invited.

That's because these emerging economic giants want more control over the global economy. And with a combined 42% of global currency reserves, they are in position to throw their weight around a little.

It's no secret that the U.S. depends on these countries to buy our Treasuries and fund our bailout and stimulus plans, not to mention our trade deficit. So the news that these countries will be discussing plans to diversify away from American bonds and buy IMF bonds is important for the U.S. dollar. Just last week Brazil pledged $10 billion purchase IMF bonds. That's a far cry from the day's when Brazil was synonymous with hyper-inflation and a poster child for coming to the developed world hat-in-hand.

But there's more to the story, especially with China. Some estimate that China has as much as $1.3 trillion of foreign reserves, most of it in dollars. And right now, China is putting that money to work stockpiling commodities and supporting its economy. So buying Chinese stocks, especially Chinese commodity stocks, is a great idea right now.

At SmallCapInvestor PRO, we just loaded up on Chinese stocks. I believe this is the one reliable growth story in the world today. I've got a Special Report ready with my top investment recommendations; you can get a copy HERE. 

Vivus Inc. (Nasdaq:VVUS), Exide Technologies (Nasdaq:XIDE) and GigaMedia Ltd. (Nasdaq:GIGM) are among the most actively traded companies in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Omniture Inc (Nasdaq:OMTR), Federal Mogul Corp. (Nasdaq:FDML), Solarfun Power Holdings Co Ltd. (Nasdaq:SOLF), Ceradyne Inc. (Nasdaq:CRDN), STEC Inc. (Nasdaq:STEC) and SunPower (Nasdaq:SPWRA).

KongZhong Corp. (Nasdaq:KONG), Great Southern Bancorp Inc. (Nasdaq:GSBC) and Stein Mart, Inc. (Nasdaq:SMRT) are among the new 52-week highs in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: SXC Health Solutions Corp. (Nasdaq:SXCI), Symmetricom Inc. (Nasdaq:SYMM), NeurogesX Inc. (Nasdaq:NGSX), STEC Inc. (Nasdaq:STEC), Central Garden & Pet Co. (Nasdaq:CENTA) and Spartan Motors Inc. (Nasdaq:SPAR).

Virtus Investment Partners Inc. (Nasdaq:VRTS), Bridge Bancorp Inc. (Nasdaq:BDGE) and AsiaInfo Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq:ASIA) are among the new 52-week highs in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Clearwater Paper Corp. (Nasdaq:CLW), Pervasive Software Inc. (Nasdaq:PVSW), Smith Micro Software Inc. (Nasdaq:SMSI), STEC Inc. (Nasdaq:STEC), Seabridge Gold Inc. (Nasdaq:SA) and ESB Financial Corp. (Nasdaq:ESBF).

Great Southern Bancorp Inc.(Nasdaq:GSBC), STEC Inc.(Nasdaq:STEC) and Loral Space & Communications Inc.(Nasdaq:LORL) are among the new 52-week highs in Monday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Hawkins Inc.(Nasdaq:HWKN), Medifast Inc.(Nasdaq:MED), Pervasive Software Inc.(Nasdaq:PVSW), Diedrich Coffee Inc.(Nasdaq:DDRX), Ardea Biosciences Inc.(Nasdaq:RDEA) and ESB Financial Corp.(Nasdaq:ESBF).

Ciena Corp. (Nasdaq:CIEN), Eagle Bulk Shipping Inc. (Nasdaq:EGLE) and STEC Inc. (Nasdaq:STEC) are among the most actively traded companies in Monday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq:VNDA), Perfect World Co Ltd. (Nasdaq:PWRD), TBS International Ltd. (Nasdaq:TBSI), A Power Energy Generation Systems Ltd. (Nasdaq:APWR), Energy Conversion Devices Inc. (Nasdaq:ENER) and Isle of Capri Casinos Inc. (Nasdaq:ISLE).

PrivateBancorp Inc. (Nasdaq:PVTB), GMX Resources Inc. (Nasdaq:GMXR) and Century Aluminum Co. (Nasdaq:CENX) are among the most actively traded companies in Thursday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Medarex Inc. (Nasdaq:MEDX), Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq:VNDA), CommVault Systems Inc. (Nasdaq:CVLT), Medicines Co. (Nasdaq:MDCO), STEC Inc. (Nasdaq:STEC) and Apollo Investment Corp. (Nasdaq:AINV).

Small caps are lower today following a drop in U.S. exports in March and multiple stock offerings across the board that doused enthusiasm.

At 2:04 pm ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) is down 2.46%, while the Dow is down 0.26% and the S&P 500 has fallen 0.97%.

New data out today showed that the U.S. trade gap widened in March for the first time in eight months and exports fell 2.4%, weighing on the market.

Small caps bucking the trend today include STEC, Inc. (Nasdaq:STEC), up 31% after reporting operating results, while small-cap Chinese seller of mobile phone ringtones and games Hurray! Holding Co., Ltd. (Nasdaq:HRAY) is up 28% on speculation that Shanda Interactive, China’s biggest online games provider, may acquire the company.

*****Oil is above $60 a barrel. Investors are buying on the expectation that the end of the recession is in sight. And hopefully, Daily Profit readers are benefiting via my recommendation of oil services company Graham Corp. (AMEX:GHM). Graham is breaking above $15 a share today. It’s now up 65% for those who have been following me for a while.

Of course, oil stocks are up on expectations. A dose of reality comes from the housing market today. It’s reported that home prices fell in 134 of the 152 metropolitan areas the National Association of Realtors tracks during the 1st quarter.

Sounds bad, but there is a silver lining. The number of homes sold more than doubled in Nevada, rose 81% in California and 50% in Arizona. These states were among the hottest real estate markets during the housing bubble, and they suffered mightily when the bubble popped. That homes are selling is far more important than the price they are selling for. Housing inventory must get turned over for the economy to improve.

*****Nobel prize winning economist Paul Krugman isn’t convinced the recession is nearing an end. He doesn’t believe economic fundamentals support the recent rally and warns that recent economic data could breed “a dangerous complacency.”

The fear, of course, is that we will have the proverbial “double dip” of recession once government stimulus money (and patience) runs out. Like in the housing market, first time buyers are assisted by an $8,000 credit. That will boost

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corp. (Nasdaq:AGM), STEC Inc. (Nasdaq:STEC) and O'Charley's Inc. (Nasdaq:CHUX) are among the biggest percentage gainers in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Winn Dixie Stores Inc. (Nasdaq:WINN), Nelnet Inc. (Nasdaq:NNI), Kenexa Corp. (Nasdaq:KNXA), RXi Pharmaceuticals Corp. (Nasdaq:RXII), Insight Enterprises Inc. (Nasdaq:NSIT) and Consolidated Water Co. Ltd (Nasdaq:CWCO).

Dendreon Corp (Nasdaq:DNDN), DryShips Inc (Nasdaq:DRYS) and OmniVision Technologies Inc (Nasdaq:OVTI) are among the most actively traded companies in Monday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Clean Energy Fuels Corp (Nasdaq:CLNE), DrdGold ADR (Nasdaq:DROOY), Cepheid (Nasdaq:CPHD), Matrix Service Co (Nasdaq:MTRX), Sun Bancorp Inc (Nasdaq:SNBC) and STEC Inc (Nasdaq:STEC).

Liberty Media Corp. (Nasdaq:LCAPB), Eastern Insurance Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq:EIHI) and First Bancorp Inc. (Nasdaq:FNLC) are among the biggest percentage losers in Thursday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: STEC Inc. (Nasdaq:STEC), SmartHeat Inc. (Nasdaq:HEAT), Life Partners Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq:LPHI), Conn's Inc. (Nasdaq:CONN), Quicksilver Gas Services LP (Nasdaq:KGS) and Unica Corp. (Nasdaq:UNCA).

Synutra International Inc (Nasdaq:SYUT), STEC Inc (Nasdaq:STEC) and Sun Communities Inc (Nasdaq:SUI) are among the biggest percentage gainers in Friday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Eagle Bancorp Inc (Nasdaq:EGBN), Hibbett Sports Inc (Nasdaq:HIBB), eHealth Inc (Nasdaq:EHTH), FEI Co (Nasdaq:FEIC), Healthways Inc (Nasdaq:HWAY) and Green Bankshares Inc (Nasdaq:GRNB).

STEC Inc. (Nasdaq:STEC), Palm Inc. (Nasdaq:PALM) and Hibbett Sports Inc. (Nasdaq:HIBB) are among the most actively traded companies in Friday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: UAL Corp. (Nasdaq:UAUA), GMX Resources Inc. (Nasdaq:GMXR), Sequenom Inc. (Nasdaq:SQNM), Harbin Electric Inc. (Nasdaq:HRBN), Force Protection Inc. (Nasdaq:FRPT) and DrdGold ADR (Nasdaq:DROOY).


Also included among the results: UAL Corp. (Nasdaq:UAUA), GMX Resources Inc. (Nasdaq:GMXR), Sequenom Inc. (Nasdaq:SQNM), Harbin Electric Inc. (Nasdaq:HRBN), Force Protection Inc. (Nasdaq:FRPT) and DrdGold ADR (Nasdaq:DROOY).

The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) closed up 6.7% today, thanks to the Fed’s decision to cut the key interest rate to the lowest level on record. Some of today’s small-cap gainers are Genworth Financial (NYSE:GNW), The Pennsylvania Real Estate Trust (NYSE:PEI) and Terra Industries (NYSE:TRA).

Other Market Watch highlights today included:

• The housing starts report came out at an annualized rate of 625,000 units, which was well below the forecast of 730,000.
• Housing starts tumbled 18.9%, the largest drop since March 1984 and the lowest unit rate on record.
• The CPI came in at -1.7%, which was even lower than the -1.2% projection, but not a surprise given steep declines in energy costs. 
• Homebuilder shares retain a potential bottom on long-term charts and were back on an upside tilt today after sinking on Monday.
• Another clear source of strength today came from insurance stocks, with the S&P Insurance Index climbing throughout the day.
• The Fed cut its target for the key interest rate to the lowest level on record and promised to use "all available tools" to combat the severe financial crisis and possible prolonged recession.

Small Cap Gainers:

• Small-cap firm Genworth Financial Inc. soared some 25%, climbing to the highest point since early November. See (NYSE:GNW).
• The Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust jumped 22% on news that the company completed a financing deal. See (NYSE:PEI). 
• Terra Industries Inc. rallied 19% as the fertilizer company also . . .

Small-cap stocks extended the rally into mid-session trading, boosted by a bounce in the financial arena, which has been a notable source of weakness in previous days. In addition, homebuilder, retailer and insurance firms were strong performers today and the raft of companies fitting those profiles in the small-cap universe helped the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) outperform the Dow and S&P 500. Some of today's small-cap gainers are Genworth Financial Inc.(NYSE:GNW), Terra Industries Inc. (NYSE:TRA) and Maidenform Brands Inc (NYSE:MFB).

Other Market Watch highlights included:

• The market now will go into a waiting mode for the 2:15 p.m. ET FOMC policy announcement.  
• Another clear source of strength today came from insurance stocks, with the S&P Insurance Index climbing 4.2%.  
• It was interesting to see homebuilder shares doing so well today despite a terrible report on housing starts, which tumbled to a record lows and were off 18.9%.  
• The ISE Homebuilder Index was up 5.6%, with small-cap firm KB Home (NYSE:KBH) rising 7.1%.

Small Cap Gainers:

• Small-cap firm Genworth Financial Inc. soared some 40%, climbing to the highest point since early November. See (NYSE:GNW).  
• Terra Industries Inc. rallied 13% as the fertilizer company also mounted a big bounce off Monday’s pullback. See (NYSE:TRA).  
• Maidenform Brands Inc. rallied 15% as the intimate apparel maker mounted a recovery off Monday’s big decline. See (NYSE:MFB).  
• Novatel Wireless Inc. names new VP of sales and general manager; shares rise 13%. See (Nasdaq:NVTL). 

Small Cap Losers:

• Satyam Computer Services Ltd. tumbled 56% on unusually heavy volume as the Indian software firm said it will invest $1.6 billion on two infrastructure firms. See (NYSE:SAY).
• Tech company Stec lowers Q4 revenue view, shares fall 15% in pre-market. See (Nasdaq:STEC).  
• Cabot Corporation "repositioning" in light of weaker demand; shares tumble 10%. See (NYSE:CBT).  
• Monolithic Power Systems lowers guidance below estimates; shares dip 4% in pre-market. See (Nasdaq:MPWR).

Small-cap stocks opened solidly higher, boosted by a positive reaction to key profit reports and optimism ahead of the FOMC meeting this afternoon. Financial and banking shares were on the mend today after being noticeably weak in recent days, helping to counter any dread from this morning’s gloomy housing starts report. Some of today's small-cap gainers are The Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust (NYSE:PEI), Terra Industries (NYSE:TRA) and Brandywine Realty Trust (NYSE:BDN).

Other Market Watch highlights included:

• Crude oil prices were on the rise this morning, up about $1.30 per barrel ahead of the open, which should provide a boost to energy stocks.  
• It is widely expected that the Fed will slash another 50 basis points off the Fed funds rate today, lowering the rate to 0.50%.  
• Small-cap stocks opened solidly higher, boosted by a positive reaction to key profit reports and optimism ahead of the FOMC meeting this afternoon.  
• Even though energy markets were on firm footing this morning, industrial metals were lower, including copper, lead, tin and nickel. 

Small Cap Gainers:

• The Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust jumped 12.1% on news that the company completed a financing deal. See (NYSE:PEI).  
• Merrill Lynch upgrades a bevy of fertilizer stocks including Terra Industries, which is 10% higher on the news. See (NYSE:TRA).
• Brandywine Realty Trust up 7% after announcing a Q4 2008 dividend last week. See (NYSE:BDN).   
• Macerich inks Mervyns tenants, lands $250M loan; shares climb 6%. See (NYSE:MAC).  

Small Cap Losers:

• Tech company Stec lowers Q4 revenue view, shares fall 15% in pre-market. See (Nasdaq:STEC).  
• Cabot Corporation "repositioning" in light of weaker demand; shares tumble 10%. See (NYSE:CBT). 
• Monolithic Power Systems lowers guidance below estimates; shares dip 4% in pre-market. See (Nasdaq:MPWR).  
• Heelys down 4% in pre-market on very light volume. See (Nasdaq:HLYS).

Iconix Brand Group Inc. (Nasdaq:ICON), Salix Pharmaceuticals Ltd. (Nasdaq:SLXP) and Human Genome Sciences Inc. (Nasdaq:HGSI) are among the  lead small-cap volume in pre-market in Wednesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: i2 Technologies Inc. (Nasdaq:ITWO), Cadence Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq:CADX), Harmonic Inc. (Nasdaq:HLIT), STEC Inc. (Nasdaq:STEC), Progenics Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq:PGNX) and Evergreen Solar Inc. (Nasdaq:ESLR).

Here are the  lead small-cap volume in pre-market among small caps:

Shares of STEC, Inc. (Nasdaq:STEC) are pushing higher in pre-market trading after the flash memory and DRAM technologies maker reported this morning that second-quarter revenues jumped 29%, beating the Street. Second-quarter earnings also managed to trump analysts’ estimates by a penny.

Adding to the robust financial update, the Santa Ana, Calif.-based company issued third-quarter revenues above the consensus on Wall Street and is forecasting earnings inline to above the Street for the next quarter.

Shares gained 10%, or $1.05, to $11.45 in pre-market trading. For detailed price information and recent news stories about STEC, click STEC.

PetMed Express Inc (Nasdaq:PETS), Ness Technologies Inc (Nasdaq:NSTC) and American Commercial Lines Inc (Nasdaq:ACLI) are among the most actively traded companies in Friday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Innophos Holdings Inc (Nasdaq:IPHS), Pharmasset Inc (Nasdaq:VRUS), Eresearchtechnology Inc (Nasdaq:ERES), Hansen Medical Inc (Nasdaq:HNSN), Finish Line Inc (Nasdaq:FINL) and STEC Inc (Nasdaq:STEC).

Here are the most actively traded companies among small caps:

Datascope Corp (Nasdaq:DSCP), Aehr Test Systems (Nasdaq:AEHR) and American Spectrum Realty Inc (Nasdaq:AQQ) are among the new 52-week highs in Wednesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

STEC Inc (Nasdaq:STEC), Cytori Therapeutics Inc (Nasdaq:CYTX) and Volterra Semiconductor Corp (Nasdaq:VLTR) are also among the new 52-week highs.

Here are the new 52-week highs among small caps:

As memory chips keep increasing in capacity, “solid state” devices with no moving parts relentlessly displace storage devices that depend on spinning disks. Just look what Apple’s iPod has done to portable CD players.

Now STEC, Inc. (Nasdaq:STEC), formerly known as SimpleTech Inc., based in Santa Ana, Calif., has made a bold move into solid state drives (SSDs) made from “flash” memory chips that can similarly replace hard disk drives (HDDs) on computers. Founded in 1990, and public since October 2000, SimpleTech has made a variety of memory products — such as memory boards, plug-in flash drives and plug-in SDDs — for both consumers and corporate systems, including Cisco (Nasdaq:CSCO) routers. But technical issues and costs have largely kept SDDs relegated to a niche of add-on storage devices rather than as full-blown replacements for HDDs.

So in February 2007, SimpleTech got serious. It sold its consumer business to privately held Fabrik Inc. for $43 million and changed its name to STEC, Inc. It also began developing a new line of high-capacity SSDs for EMC Corp. (NYSE:EMC), a leading provider of corporate storage, backup, and security products and services.

Investors didn’t get it, though. Between Jan. 3 and May 21 of 2007, the stock plunged to $5.80 from $12.92. It bottomed at $5.67 in early March 2008, after STEC announced a fourth-quarter profit of $1.4 million, down 85% on revenues that were down 28.7% to $53 million because of the missing consumer business.

But it’s now payoff time. On Jan. 14 of this year, STEC announced that EMC would begin incorporating its 73-gigabyte and 146-gigabyte ZEUS IOPS SSDs in some of its high-end networked storage systems. Corporations that conduct hundreds or even thousands of transactions every minute, such as investment and credit card companies, need ultra-fast storage and retrieval systems no matter what the cost; EMC began providing them.

The EMC deal “gave people in the industry a wakeup call that (SSD technology) is fully baked,” says Richard Kugele at Needham & Co. “EMC would never use something that wasn’t.” Kugele initiated coverage of STEC with a “buy” rating on March 10.

On May 5, STEC announced its first-quarter earnings. It earned $2.1 million, or $0.04 per share, down from a profit of $6.7 million, or $0.13 per share, in the same period a year earlier. But last year’s results were boosted by a gain of nearly $8 million from the sale of the consumer business to Fabrik. Revenues were up 7% to $50.7 . . .

GeoResources Inc (Nasdaq:GEOI), STEC Inc (Nasdaq:STEC) and Peerless Manufacturing Co (Nasdaq:PMFG) are among the new 52-week highs in Monday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $750 million.

Sun Hydraulics Corp (Nasdaq:SNHY), CP Holders (Nasdaq:HCH) and Transact Technologies Inc (Nasdaq:TACT) are also among the new 52-week highs.

Here are the new 52-week highs among small caps:

Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc (Nasdaq:VNDA), Broadway Financial Corp (Nasdaq:BYFC) and Habersham Bancorp (NASDAQ:HABC) are among the biggest percentage gainers in Monday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $750 million.

INX Inc (Nasdaq:INXI), Riverview Bancorp, Inc (Nasdaq:RVSB) and STEC Inc (Nasdaq:STEC) are also among the biggest percentage gainers.

Here are Monday's biggest percentage gainers among small caps:

Small-cap stocks began Monday in the red and have continued slipping in afternoon trading. The wave of selling was partially staved off by a better-than-expected non-manufacturing survey, but has not been able to break the 725 mark since about half-past 10 a.m. ET. At 1:40 p.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was down 2.35, or 0.32%, at 723.39.

The ISM Non-Manufacturing Survey came out at 52%, which was well above the median forecast of 49.5%, and the highest point since December. The reading also snapped three consecutive months of contractions, which is a plus for the economic outlook.

News that Microsoft (Nasdaq:MSFT) abandoned its takeover bid for Yahoo! (Nasdaq:YHOO) kept investors gloomy during the first session of the week. Yahoo shares dipped on the news, sinking as much as 18% in early trading, but down about 13% in afternoon trading. Several reports over the weekend suggested the deal might go through and Wall Street was evidently disappointed with the end result.

The dollar/commodities inflation front was a source of concern for equity bulls this morning. Crude oil prices jumped back above $117 dollars a barrel overnight . . .

Small-cap stocks started out the week in the red, but the early dip in equities did not live up to the selling interest suggested by overnight trends and a surprisingly stout ISM Non-Manufacturing Survey sparked a bout of buying that lifted stocks back toward steady levels. At 10:01 a.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was down 1.05, or 0.1%, at 724.69.

The ISM Non-Manufacturing Survey came out at 52%, which was well above the median forecast of 49.5%, and the highest point since December. The reading also snapped three consecutive months of contractions, which is a plus for the economic outlook.

The market had a bit of the merger blues this morning after weekend news that Microsoft (Nasdaq:MSFT) pulled out of negotiations for a takeover bid of internet services company Yahoo! Inc. (Nasdaq:YHOO). Yahoo shares took it in the chin on the news, sinking 18% in early trading Monday. The deal was reportedly close to fruition and the failure to close might take some excitement out of the M&A picture — at least in the short run. That said, wireless phone company Sprint (NYSE:S) was up 7% on news that the firm could be a takeover target.

Marvel Entertainment Inc. (NYSE:MVL) shot up nearly 8% this morning . . .

Shares of Stec, Inc. (Nasdaq:STEC) are treading higher after the provider of flash memory products posted first-quarter results this morning that trumped analysts’ estimates and issued rosy second-quarter guidance, also above the consensus on Wall Street.

Shares gained 9%, or $0.83, to $10.16 in pre-market trading. For detailed price information and recent news stories about Stec, click STEC.  

Here are the biggest percentage gainers and losers in pre-market trading among companies with a market cap between $50 million and $750 million:

Biggest percentage gainers:

• STEC, Inc. (Nasdaq:STEC), up 10% after the provider of flash memory products posted first-quarter results that trumped analysts’ estimates and issued rosy second-quarter guidance above the consensus on Wall Street.
• Eagle Test Systems Inc. (Nasdaq:EGLT), up 9%.
• Approach Resources, Inc. (Nasdaq:AREX), up 9%.

Biggest percentage losers:

• RRsat Global Communications Network Ltd. (Nasdaq: RRST), down 4.3%, despite reporting first-quarter results that met Wall Street’s expectations. The provider of content management and global distribution services also issued second-quarter revenue guidance that was inline with the Street.
• Immersion Corp. (Nasdaq:IMMR), down 3.3%.
• PeopleSupport Inc. (Nasdaq:PSPT), down 2.3%.

EMCORE Corp (Nasdaq:EMKR), Website Pros Inc (Nasdaq:WSPI) and Alvarion Ltd. (Nasdaq:ALVR) are among the most actively traded companies in Monday's pre-market trading among those with market capitalizations under $750 million.

STEC Inc (Nasdaq:STEC), NextWAVE Wireless Ord Shs (Nasdaq:WAVE), AgFeed Industries Inc (Nasdaq:FEED) and TASER International Inc (Nasdaq:TASR) are also among the most actively traded small-cap companies in pre-market trading.

Here are the most actively traded small-cap companies in Monday's pre-market trading:

Mercury Computer Systems Inc. (Nasdaq:MRCY), Houston American Energy Corp. (Nasdaq:HUSA) and Origin Agritech Ltd. (Nasdaq:SEED) are among the biggest percentage gainers in Monday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $750 million.

Community Bank Shares of Indiana, Inc. (Nasdaq:CBIN), STEC, Inc. (Nasdaq:STEC) and New Oriental Energy & Chemical Corp. (Nasdaq:NOEC) are also among the top small-cap percentage gainers.

Here are Monday's biggest percentage gainers among small caps:

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) and the other major U.S. indices are posting significant declines less than an hour before the close. At 3:15 p.m. ET, the small-cap index was down 16.67 points, or 2.44%, to 667.07. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) had retreated 178.29 points, or 1.45%, to 12,076.70.

The bears are running the show on news that residential mortgage lender Thornburg Mortgage Inc. (NYSE: TMA) and investment company Carlyle Capital Corp. Ltd., which has made residential mortgage-backed securities, have failed to meet margins calls.

A “margin call” is when banks call in their loans to investors, who are in turn forced to sell off assets to raise cash, leading to a reduction in the price of those assets and more margin calls and losses.

The subprime mortgage sector started to implode after U.S. home prices began declining in the second half of 2006.

Accredited Home Lenders Holding Co. (Nasdaq: LEND), Physicians Formula Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: FACE) and STEC, Inc. (Nasdaq: STEC) are among the most actively traded companies in Tuesday pre-market trading among those with market capitalizations under $500 million:

Q.E.P. Co., Inc. (Nasdaq: QEPC), ACA Capital Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: ACA) and HydroGen Corp. (Nasdaq: HYDG) the biggest percentage gainers in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $500 million.

Here are today's biggest percentage gainers:

These are the biggest percentage gainers in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $500 million:

In pre-market trading, shares in USA Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: USAT) are up more than 13% following an announcement Thursday morning that Coca-Cola will buy USA’s e-Port wireless non-cash technology for use in vending machines. In the deal which was filed with the SEC, USA will receive 5% of the cashless revenues and a monthly $9.95 fee per unit for each vending machine using USA’s technology. The company said it expects up to 7,500 e-Ports to be installed by August 31.

Chinese solar cell manufacturer Solarfun Power Holdings Co., Ltd. (Nasdaq: SOLF) shares are up about 5% in pre-market trading. The Shanghai-based company announced Wednesday before trading it swung to a loss for the first quarter ended March 31 of $0.3 million, down from a $4.3 million profit in the same period of 2006. The company’s revenue nearly doubled to $24 million from $13.3 million a year earlier, but operating expenses soared to $3.7 million, up from $0.4 million in the first three months of 2006.

Shares in Novacea, Inc. (Nasdaq: NOVC) are down more than 6% in Thursday pre-market trading after being downgraded by Bear Stearns to “peer perform” from “outperform.” The San Francisco-based biopharmaceutical company announced Wednesday before the start of trading it entered into an exclusive worldwide license agreement with biopharmaceutical company Schering-Plough Corp. (NYSE: SGP) for the development and commercialization of the cancer drug Asentar.

The following are the most actively traded companies in pre-market trading among those with market capitalizations under $500 million:

The following were the most actively traded companies in Tuesday's trading among those with market capitalizations under $500 million:

The Dow and the Russell 2000 are above their record close levels as U.S. stocks add to earlier gains.  At 2:48 p.m. ET the Russell 2000 had added 5.92 points, or 0.71%, to 839.57, above its May 9 record close of 834.77.  The Dow Jones Industrial Average is also breaking records, up 17.63 points, or 0.13%, to 13,560.51.  Its last record close was 13,556.53, set on May 18.

The Russell 2000 small cap index has risen above its record close this afternoon.  At 2:04 p.m. ET the Russell 2000 had added 5.49 points, or 0.66%, to 839.14, surpassing its May 9 record close of 834.77.  The Dow Jones Industrial Average is also at new record levels, up 36 points, or 0.27%, to 13,578.88.

The following are the most actively traded companies in Tuesday's trading among those with market capitalizations under $500 million:

U.S. stocks are trading close to the flat line after the open, following news of major developments on the merger and acquisition front.

At 10:05 a.m. ET the Russell 2000 was up 2.88 points, or 0.35 percent, to 826.54.  Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 2.44 points, or 0.02 percent, to 13,558.97.

General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) has agreed to sell its plastics business to Saudi Arabian chemicals company Saudi Basic Industries Corp. for $11.6 billion in cash.  News of the deal first broke on Friday, May 18.  GE is set to receive $9 billion in after-tax proceeds.

In other business news, private equity group Blackstone Group LP will go public and raise $7.75 billion by selling stock to the general public and the Chinese government.  Blackstone will offer as many as 153.3 million shares for $29 to $31 each to raise $4.75 billion, and give an 8% share to the Chinese government for $3 billion.

The following were the most actively traded companies in Tuesday's trading among those with market capitalizations under $500 million:

These are the biggest percentage losers among companies with market capitalizations under $500 million:

The following are the most actively traded companies in Tuesday's trading among those with market capitalizations under $500 million:

The following are the most actively traded companies in pre-market trading among those with market capitalizations under $500 million:

STEC Inc. (Nasdaq: STEC) fell $0.83 a share, or more than 10%, to $7.30 in after-hours trading after issuing second quarter revenue guidance that fell short of analysts’ expectations. STEC, which uses Flash memory and DRAM technologies for memory applications, said after the close that it expects revenues of $41 million to $43 million in the second quarter ending in June, compared with analyst estimates centered at $49.2 million. For the first quarter ended March 31, STEC said it earned $6.71 million, or $0.13 a share, up from $104 million, or $0.02 a share, a year earlier. Analysts were expecting an average per-share profit of $0.06. Revenues rose to $47.2 million in the first quarter, compared with $40.4 million a year earlier and analyst estimates of $45 million.

ICF International (Nasdaq: ICFI) was trading at $26.13, up $2.41, or about 10%, in after-hours trading, after beating expectations with first-quarter results and guiding analysts to more profitability in the second quarter. For the three months ended March 31, net income was $0.60 per diluted share, compared with $0.11 a year earlier. Revenue was $151.7 million, dwarfing the year-ago quarter’s revenue of $53.4 million. Analysts had been looking for earnings per share of $0.45, and revenue of $129.35 million. The Fairfax, Va.-based consulting company also says it expects second quarter 2007 revenue to range from $135 million to $145 million, and full year 2007 revenue to range from $530 million to $550 million to $43 million.