Tag - WTBA

Dorman Products Inc (Nasdaq:DORM), XL Capital Ltd (Nasdaq:XL) and Prospect Capital Corp (Nasdaq:PSEC) are among the biggest percentage gainers in Friday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Willis Lease Finance Corp (Nasdaq:WLFC), Eastern Virginia Bankshares Inc (Nasdaq:EVBS), West Bancorp Inc (Nasdaq:WTBA), Ardea Biosciences Inc (Nasdaq:RDEA), Western Alliance Bancorp (Nasdaq:WAL) and PacWest Bancorp (Nasdaq:PACW).

Here are the biggest percentage gainers among small caps:

Small-cap stocks charged higher Friday, giving beleaguered bulls a happy weekend sendoff. The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) rose 13.07, or 1.85% to 721.07, the highest daily close since mid-February as investors embraced the latest batch of earnings numbers with open arms.

In a sense, it was a perfect storm of broad-based earnings reactions Friday, with Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) lifting financials, Google Inc. (Nasdaq:GOOG) fueling technology issues, and Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) sparking buying interest in the manufacturing sector.

It perhaps took a little creativity on the part of investors to “spin” the Citigroup story into a positive one, as the company still reported massive debt write-downs and missed the earnings estimate. In essence, investors looked through the headline numbers and decided the story on Citigroup was headed toward happier times.

However, no such rose-colored glasses were needed for Google or Caterpillar. Google shot 20% — or about $90 bucks a share — as earnings topped estimates, and Caterpillar, which climbed about 8%, also beat their forecast despite sluggish economic conditions in the manufacturing sector in recent months. Just to add a little extra good vibes into the mix, another manufacturing giant, Honeywell International Inc. (NYSE:HON) also reported strong earnings and rose nearly 6% on the day.

April options expirations came into play today, and the market appeared to be out of position on the short side, which likely fueled the rally, said Nick Kalivas, vice president of financial research with MF Global, in a phone interview. In addition, “there . . .

The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) has turned around and is posting healthy gains. At 2:03 p.m. ET, the small-cap index had added 4.94 points, or 0.72%, to 691.01. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 37.12 points, or 0.30%, to 12,339.18.

Small-cap stocks have once again reversed course, this time bouncing off their session lows and trending higher. The index moved into positive territory at about 12:30 p.m. ET.

The rebound may be due to investors reacting to news before the opening that regional banks posted first-quarter results that exceeded expectations.

Among the winners is small-cap Enterprise Financial Services Corp. (Nasdaq:EFSC), the parent company of Enterprise Bank & Trust of St. Louis, Mo. Enterprise Financial announced . . .

The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) has trimmed some of its earlier losses but is still deep in negative territory.

At 11:51 a.m. ET, the small-cap index was down 10.86 points, or 1.64%, to 652.04. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) had retreated 59.51 points, or 0.50%, to 11,891.58.

Stocks small and large have pared some of their earlier losses but are still down on news that JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) has purchased Bear Stearns (NYSE:BSC) for just $2 per share, according to an announcement on Sunday.

In an effort to keep other investment banks from going bankrupt, which is what would have happened to Bear Stearns, the U.S. Federal Reserve gave JPMorgan $30 billion in special financing to complete the deal. That’s a risky and desperate move because if something goes wrong, it will be the Fed — not JPMorgan — that will absorb the losses.

The U.S. Central Bank also lowered its discount rate, the rate at which it lends funds to commercial banks, to 3.25% from 3.50%, on Sunday.