Tag - WH

All major indices were trading down for much of today's session with the Nasdaq leading the losses by shedding 0.19% to close at 1,858.80. In late trading the Dow closed at 8,799.26 for a modest gain of 0.32% and the S&P 500 closed up 0.14% to finish the day at 946.21.

The Russell 2000, the widely followed index of the largest 2,000 small cap stocks, closed down today at 524.32 losing 0.33%.

Leading the small-cap gainers today was Savient Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq:SVNT) up 56% to close at $9.26 on news that the Food and Drug Administration said that the firm's gout treatment drug, Krystexxa, works. Based in East Brunswick, NJ, Savient makes specialty biopharmaceuticals as was founded in 1980.

Other small-cap leading gainers include WSP Holdings (NYSE:WH) up 24.5%; Independent Bank Corporation (Nasdaq:IBCPO) up 22.4%; and AC Moore Arts & Crafts (Nasdaq:ACMR) up 16.4%.

Small-cap decliners were lead by Hawaii-based Hoku Scientific (Nasdaq:HOKU) down 30.3% to close at $3.05. Hoku, a raw materials provider for the solar industry, announced that it may be unable to fund its operations over the next year and stated that it will not provide guidance for fiscal year 2010.

The other small-cap stocks posting big share price drops include iPCS (Nasdaq:IPCS) down 21.6%; P&F Industries (Nasdaq:PFIN) down 19.9%; and one of Wednesday's big gainers, Corel (Nasdaq:CREL), which slid 18.4%.

*****Its worse in Europe than here in the U.S. Industrial production dropped 1.9% in a particularly cruel April, nearly double the 1% drop that was expected. First quarter GDP was also down 2.5% for the 16 Euro-zone countries.

The recession there seems far from over, and Europe's weakness might be contagious because it should act as a stark reminder just how tenuous global economic recovery is.

*****Oil prices may have just hit their blow-off highs above $72 yesterday. As you know, I was early to the oil stock party. My SmallCapInvestor PRO readers took a 142% gain on one stock, Gulfport Energy (Nasdaq:GPOR), and we're holding +60% on another. And of course, if you've been following closely over the past six months you know that I've been in and out of Graham (AMEX:GHM) several times.

Now, it's getting late and I suspect the party might be ending, at least for a brief pause. I'm not calling for oil prices to crash. And the $33 a barrel price we saw back in February may never be seen again. But oil stocks, and stocks in general, are due for a pullback.

The 2nd Quarter ends June 30. And it would be reasonable to expect institutional investors to lock in some gains. I'm sure they are using put options to do some hedging, which helps explain the recent rise in volatility. But I also won't be surprised to see some outright selling. And it might have started with yesterday's afternoon drop for the indices.

The Dow Industrials were up well over 100 points in the early afternoon, but couldn't hold it as a late wave of selling left it with a gain of just 30. That's the opposite pattern of what we've seen for much of this rally. Institutional investors have been buying late in the day, supporting prices and leaving stocks with daily gains.

Institutional activity usually occurs at the beginning and end of the trading day, so this is something to keep an eye on.

*****Brazil, Russia, China and India contribute 15% to global GDP, but they have 42% of the world's currency reserves. And they may be on the verge of throwing their liquidity weight around.

Bloomberg reports that these countries will hold their first summit next week, and it's widely expected that they will announce that they are increasing their holdings of IMF bonds. Yes, that comes at the expense of U.S. bond holdings.

Apparently, fears of rising deficits and the potential inflation from an expanded money supply in the U.S. are driving them to diversify a bit.

Investors should take note. While the U.S. muddles through, and Europe continues to be mired in recession, the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) are the only countries in the world that can support their economies without taking on debt.

Chinese stocks are the ones I'm bullish on right now. If there is a slight pullback later this month, then Chinese stocks will suffer the least and more importantly, present great buying opportunities before the next leg up. To get my top Chinese selections, click HERE.

*****Finally, as I announced yesterday, TradeMaster Daily Stock Alerts technical analyst Jason Cimpl has graciously agreed to give us a weekly forecast for the stock market. You can access his video analysis and commentary HERE.

Savient Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq:SVNT), WSP Holdings Ltd. (Nasdaq:WH) and M & F Worldwide Corp. (Nasdaq:MFW) are among the biggest percentage gainers in Friday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Shamir Optical Industry Ltd. (Nasdaq:SHMR), Meta Financial Group Inc. (Nasdaq:CASH), Pain Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq:PTIE), Atlas Pipeline Holdings L P (Nasdaq:AHD), Cowen Group Inc. (Nasdaq:COWN) and NxStage Medical Inc. (Nasdaq:NXTM).

Today was a near flat day, with most indices eking out a close in the green a day after Citigroup (NYSE:C) reported that it is still operating at a profit. Some of today’s small-cap gainers were YRC Worldwide (Nasdaq:YRCW), Axsys Technologies (Nasdaq:AXYS) and Innodata Isogen (Nasdaq:INOD).

Other Market Watch highlights today included:

• Stocks navigated choppy trading Wednesday, with the Russell 2000 closing down 1.48, or 0.4%, to 366.27. The Dow closed up 0.05% to 6,929.76, and the S&P 500 closed up 0.24% to 721.35.
• For the year, the Russell is down 26.67%, the Dow is down 21.03% and the S&P 500 is down 20.14%.
• Analysts are warning that the rally seen Tuesday and part of today willl be short-lived due to deep problems etched within the banking industry.
• Oil prices fell more than 7% today as U.S. inventories swelled with surplus crude and traders started to doubt whether OPEC would cut production further.
• Lower tax revenue and massive government spending on the bank bailout pushed the federal deficit to $765 billion in the first five months of the budget year.

Small Cap Gainers:

• YRC Worldwide stock jumped 44.5% on expectations of an improved second quarter for the company. See (Nasdaq:YRCW).
• Axsys Technologies, a manufacturer of defense surveillance and imaging systems, closed up 32.48% after the small cap put itself up for sale in an auction that drew a first round of bids earlier this week. See (Nasdaq:AXYS).
• Innodata Isogen reported a second straight year of record revenue; shares rose 21%. See (Nasdaq:INOD). 

Small Cap Losers:

• NCI Building closed down 38% after posting a Q1 net loss on Tuesday. See (NYSE:NCS).
• WSP Holdings issued FY 2009 guidance below analysts' estimates, sending shares 35% lower. See (NYSE:WH). 
• Online travel website Orbitz tumbled 26% as competitor Expedia waived flight booking fees. See (NYSE:OWW).

You hear that? It’s a collective moan heard from drivers across the country, after oil hit another record high of $129 on Tuesday, no doubt translating to yet another price hike at the pump.

Oil prices are expected to remain at high levels for the foreseeable future; some experts are even predicting $150 per barrel oil before year-end. While recording-setting oil prices are disgruntling to many, they are supporting strong exploration trends and feeding nicely into the demand for the tools and services of Bolt Technology (Nasdaq:BOLT) and WSP Holdings (NYSE:WH).

Bolt Technology develops, manufactures and markets marine seismic tools such as air guns and hydrophones used to locate energy reservoirs on the ocean’s floor. The company also operates an industrial products segment that develops, manufactures and sells miniature industrial clutches, brakes and sub-fractional horsepower electric motors.

Bolt Technology should benefit from an 11% increase in worldwide exploration spending forecasted to reach $369 billion in 2008. Deepwater spending will be a major growth area, with 85% of over 200 oil and gas exploration and production companies surveyed indicating a heightened focus on deepwater drilling in 2008. These companies also identified 3-D/4-D seismic as the most important technology influencing their E&P business.

Bolt Technology derives approximately 90% of revenues from sales of marine seismic tools. Drillers use the company’s marine air guns to create acoustic waves that travel to great depths in the earth. Portions of the wave, reflected back by the underlying rock layers, are received as signals by hydrophone devices. Using these tools, drillers can identify formations likely to contain oil. A seismic exploration vessel can tow as many as 60 to 70 air guns along with multiple hydrophone streamers. The air guns are fired simultaneously every 75 feet . . .

Yucheng Technologies (Nasdaq:YTEC), Amtech Systems Inc (Nasdaq:ASYS) and Perceptron Inc (Nasdaq:PRCP) are among the biggest percentage losers in Thursday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $750 million.

CapitalSouth Bancorp (Nasdaq:CAPB), WSP Holdings Ltd (Nasdaq:WH) and Steak n Shake Company (NYSE:SNS) are also among the biggest percentage losers.

Here are the biggest percentage losers among small caps:

Shares of WSP Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:WH) have moved up on news before the start of trading that the maker of seamless casing, tubing and drill pipes used for oil and natural gas exploration reported an increase in fourth-quarter profit. The Chinese company said that net income for the three months ended Dec. 31, 2007, rose 6.5% to $16.7 million from $15.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2006.

At 2:03 p.m. ET, the stock was up $0.37, or 7%, to $5.39.