Tag -  FMFC 

The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) closed slightly higher today on news that a deal was hammered out on the stimulus bill. Some of today’s small-cap gainers were First M&F Corp. (Nasdaq:FMFC), Marshall & Ilsley (NYSE:MI) and Golden Star Resources (AMEX:GSS).

Other Market Watch highlights today included:

• The MBA Mortgage Application Index fell 24.5% today despite a mild dip on fixed rate mortgages, which suggests that the housing market is still struggling mightily.
• Economist Steve Wood: "The housing market is still mired in a deep recession with no indication that a bottom has yet been reached."
• The monthly trade report was released, showed the smallest trade gap in nearly six years, but that gap was still a tad bigger than expected.
• Bank shares were a bright spot for the market today, with the KBW Banking Index rising about 5%. 
• Gold stocks were a source of strength today, likely bolstered by investors looking for a hard goods safe haven away from struggling equities.
• Crude oil prices tumbled 4.2%, losing $1.61 to $35.94 a barrel, pulled down by a surprisingly large build on weekly inventories.
• Copper prices in U.S. trading tumbled some 5% amid news that China’s January imports of copper fell 19%.

Small Cap Gainers:

• Small-cap banks dominated the biggest percentage gainers today, with firms like First M&F Corp. climbing back from a big slide Tuesday. FMFC gained about 21% on the session. See (Nasdaq:FMFC).
• Small-cap bank Marshall & Ilsley Corp. rose 12% today, gaining back some of the 26% spiral from Tuesday. See (NYSE:MI).
• Several small-cap gold stocks were a hot item today, including . . .

Small-cap stocks edged higher Wednesday, finding an afternoon reprieve when news broke that a deal was hammered out on the stimulus bill, which lifted the market back up out of the red. Downtrodden bank and financial stocks provided a lift to the market, as did gold stocks, helping to counter weakness in the technology arena. The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) closed up 2.18, or 0.49%, at 447.95 and is now down 10.3% for the year. Meanwhile, the Dow is off 9.5% for 2009, while the S&P 500 is down 7.6%.

The market still seemed a little shell shocked after Tuesday’s swoon when the bank rescue plan didn’t seem to play well with investors. Reaching a deal on the stimulus plan was just a matter of timing and there is a sense that it will take many months for the plan to generate help for the struggling economy, so perhaps it’s not a surprise that bounce off the stimulus deal didn’t seem to have a lot of traction. For the record, the deal comes in at $789 billion and a vote on the final product could take place Thursday and would most likely get a very fast stamp of approval from the White House.

In other policy events today, banking executives spent the day in Washington testifying about the first batch of TARP money that was doled out last year. Bank shares were a bright spot for the market today, with the KBW Banking Index rising about 5%. Small-cap banks dominated the biggest percentage gainers today, with firms like First M&F Corp. (Nasdaq:FMFC) climbing back from a big slide Tuesday. FMFC gained about 21% on the session. Small-cap bank Marshall & Ilsley Corp. (NYSE:MI) rose 12% today, gaining back some of the 26% spiral from Tuesday; still MI shares are down about 85% from the September 2008 peak.

Gold stocks were a source of strength today, likely bolstered by investors looking for a hard goods safe haven away from struggling equities and also amid talk that asset managers have been ramping up allocation percentages on gold investments. Gold futures climbed some 3% on the day, while the Gold and Silver Index . . .

Small-cap stocks pushed higher in early trading Wednesday, supported by scattered bargain hunting after the big downside press Tuesday on disappointment over a lack of details in the bank rescue plan. Bank, financial and commodity stocks were among the leaders on the early rise today after getting battered Tuesday. At 9:53 a.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was up 5.41, or 1.21%, at 451.17.

Investors will continue to keep a close eye on developments out of Washington today, with hearings slated on the first distribution of the TARP funds, ongoing banter about the stimulus plan and any “damage control” following Tuesday’s messy response to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner’s rollout of the bank bail out package.

The MBA Mortgage Applications Index fell 24.5% in this week’s report, slipping back to the lowest level since November. The purchase sub-index was down 9.8% to the lowest level since December 2000 and this decline in mortgage activity took place even though mortgage rates actually edged slightly lower in the latest week.

“Despite this week's decline in fixed mortgage rates, mortgage rates have drifted higher since the beginning of the year,” Steven Wood, chief economist with Insight Economics, said in an email. “As a result, mortgage activity has collapsed since the first of the year. Moreover, these data are for applications, not approvals; anecdotal evidence indicates that fall out rates are running as high as 50% so the actual effects on economic activity are far weaker than these data indicate. The housing market is still mired in a deep recession with no indication that a bottom has yet been reached,” Wood said.

In addition to the MBA report, the monthly trade report was released and showed the smallest trade gap in nearly six years, but that gap was still a tad bigger than expected. The report reflected the lowest auto import figure in some 10 . . .

Koss Corp. (Nasdaq:KOSS), Solarfun Power Holdings Co Ltd. (Nasdaq:SOLF) and Charming Shoppes Inc. (Nasdaq:CHRS) are among the biggest percentage losers in Wednesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: First M&F Corp. (Nasdaq:FMFC), Pilgrim's Pride Corp. (Nasdaq:PPC), Versant Corp. (Nasdaq:VSNT), eTelecare Global Solutions Inc. (Nasdaq:ETEL), Stoneridge Inc. (Nasdaq:SRI) and Ames National Corp. (Nasdaq:ATLO).

Here are the biggest percentage losers among small caps:

Pacific Sunwear of California Inc. (Nasdaq:PSUN), Perry Ellis International Inc. (Nasdaq:PERY) and First M&F Corp. (Nasdaq:FMFC) are among the biggest percentage losers in Friday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.           

Also included among the results: Marine Petroleum Trust (Nasdaq:MARPS), Noah Education Holdings Ltd. (Nasdaq:NED), Pyramid Oil Co. (Nasdaq:PDO), Temecula Valley Bancorp Inc. (Nasdaq:TMCV), Volcom Inc. (Nasdaq:VLCM) and Citizens & Northern Corp (Nasdaq:CZNC).           

Here are the biggest percentage losers among small caps:   

Small-cap stocks edged higher this morning, underpinned by a slide in crude oil prices overnight that was extended just before the stock market open. Equities are also oversold following sharp recent declines, which sparked a batch of bottom fishing and profit-taking from the shorts. At 9:51 a.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was up 5.03, or 0.76%, at 670.81.

Crude oil futures were down more than $4 dollars a barrel just below $141 heading into the U.S. stock market open, which was a welcome pullback after hitting a record high last week above $145. Still, energy prices were expected to find buyers on dips as tension in the Middle East remains high and crude oil stocks are tight.

The dip in crude prices was accompanied by a rise in the U.S. dollar, which was up about 0.5% against the euro and about 0.8% versus the yen. The tone surrounding ECB comments after last week’s rate hike also were perceived as less hawkish than expected, which lent support to the greenback. Within the commodity spectrum, copper prices tumbled about 3% in early trading and grains futures were called sharply lower ahead of their opening later this morning.

Although the stock market was starting out the week on an up note, it’s hard to look past sharp recent declines that have pushed the Dow and small caps into bear market territory once again. In a weekend research report, analysts at Goldman Sachs said that activity in financial markets closely resembles a double-dip slowdown in economic activity, and that the fiscal stimulus package helped drive up the market from . . .

The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) fell hard as investors worried about corporate earnings and reacted to news of record high oil prices. The small-cap index dropped 13.54 points, or 1.90%, to 698.38. The Dow Jones Industrial Average let go 49.18 points, or 0.39%, to 12,527.26.

On a year-to-date basis, the Russell 2000 has declined 8.83%, while the Dow has retreated 5.56% and the S&P 500 is down 7.75%.

Small-cap stocks suffered more than their bigger brothers today as fears that the sagging economy will weaken corporate earnings led to a sell-off. United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) reported after the close on Tuesday it lowered its first-quarter profit forecast. The Atlanta, Ga.-based company is considered a bellwether because its performance is closely related to the sales of other businesses.

More bearish news came after the start of trading following news reports that investment bank Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MER) will likely post a first-quarter loss due to its exposure to subprime loans and commercial real-estate debt.

In economic news, the price of oil briefly touched a record high of $112.21 a barrel on news after the opening that inventories unexpectedly fell . . .