Tag - ZGEN

Small-cap stocks went into a tailspin on the opening, with worries about the banking sector combining with slumping retail sales to spark a flight away from equities. Some of today’s small-cap gainers were YRC Worldwide Inc. (Nasdaq:YRCW) and Sequenom (Nasdaq:SQNM).

Other Market Watch highlights today included:

• Copper tumbled 5% on the opening, yet another worry sign for the economy as copper is a key component in construction.  
• Traders say that concerns over the appointment of Timothy Geithner to Treasury Secretary has played into the overall market malaise.  
• Earlier this morning the import price series tumbled 4.2%, well below the forecast for a drop of 0.5%.  
• Within the economic data news, business inventories came in at minus 0.7%, slightly below the forecast for a drop of 0.5%.

Small Cap Gainers:

• YRC Worldwide Inc. up 10.3% in pre-market today, paring some of the losses the stock saw earlier this week after it was downgraded late last week. See (Nasdaq:YRCW).
• Sequenom up 3% in pre-market after commencing an exchange offer to acquire EXACT Sciences. See (Nasdaq:SQNM).  

Small Cap Losers:

• Under Armour Inc. announced preliminary results that were sloppy and UA’s stock took a 15% hit early this morning. See (NYSE:UA).  
• Biopharmaceutical company Crucell N.V. down 5.7% in pre-market on very light volume. See (Nasdaq:CRXL).  
• ZymoGenetics, Inc. down 4.3% in pre-market, giving back some of the huge losses the stock clocked on Tuesday. See (Nasdaq:ZGEN).

Small-cap stocks pushed higher Tuesday, as investors tried to balance ongoing worries about the economy and corporate profits versus hope for fresh stimulus funds. Short-term oversold conditions likely played a supportive role as well. Some of today’s small-cap gainers were Targanta Therapeutics (Nasdaq:TARG), ZymoGenetics (Nasdaq:ZGEN) and Aercap Holdings NV (NYSE:AER).

Other Market Watch highlights today included:

• The market appeared to slip initially, then staged a recovery move during the first speech of the year by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke.
• Bernanke said this morning that TARP funds should be directed toward toxic mortgage-backed assets, which was news that traders seemed to openly embrace.
• The international trade report showed that the U.S. deficit narrowed by 28.7% in November, which marked the largest contraction in 12 years. 
• On the commodities scene, gold climbed and copper reversed a big overnight decline in Asia to trend higher.
• Crude oil prices closed out the day with a modest gain of $0.19 a barrel, which was off the U.S. trading session highs, but still quite a bit better than losses seen in overseas action.
• Gains in energy and other commodities were hampered somewhat today by a strong tone in the U.S. dollar, which rose 1.4% against the euro. 
• Looking ahead to Wed., the market will see a ramp up of econ data, with retail sales, import prices and biz inventories out in the morning. 

Small Cap Gainers:

• The Medicines Company announced it will acquire Targanta Therapeutics. Targanta shares closed up a whopping 109%. See (Nasdaq:TARG).
• Bristol-Myers to buy ZymoGenetics’ experimental Hepatitis C drug. Shares of ZymoGenetics popped 26%. See (Nasdaq:ZGEN).
• Aercap Holdings NV soared 25% as the Netherlands aviation firm . . .

Small-cap stocks edged slightly lower on the open, pulled down by declines in overseas markets but a bounce in crude oil prices into the stock market opening helped limit selling interest, as did Federal Reserve comments on the TARP.  Some of today’s small-cap gainers were ZymoGenetics (Nasdaq:ZGEN), Lexington Realty Trust (NYSE:LXP) and Symmetry Medical Inc. (NYSE:SMA).

Other Market Watch highlights today included:

• Europe stocks were down about 2%, while Asian equities were off about 3%, with mining, energy, telecom, bank and tech stocks taking a hit.  
• In overseas trading, European and Asian markets appeared to be “catching up” with the slide Monday in U.S. equities.  
• Crude oil prices were down about $1 a barrel overnight, but rallied back into positive territory just ahead of the stock market open today.  
• The international trade report showed that the U.S. deficit narrowed by 28.7% in November, which marked the largest contraction in 12 years.  

Small Cap Gainers:

• Bristol-Myers buys ZymoGenetics’ experimental Hepatitis C drug; shares of ZymoGenetics pop 53% in pre-market. See (Nasdaq:ZGEN).
• Lexington Realty Trust rose 14%, essentially recovering Monday’s big decline. See (NYSE:LXP).  
• Symmetry Medical Inc. climbed 13% as the medical implant firm tried to rally after sinking to the lowest daily close in more than a year on Monday. See (NYSE:SMA).
• InterOil Corp. rose 12% as the firm updated drilling progress on a reservoir in Papua, New Guinea. See (NYSE:IOC).  

Small Cap Losers:

• Cepheid gapped lower and fell 18% gene analysis firm reported earnings that didn’t match up with investor expectations. See (Nasdaq:CPHD).  
• Prestige Brands lowers guidance; stock slumps over 13%. See (NYSE:PBH).   
• AMB Property Corp. slipped 8% as the firm made some dividend announcements. See (NYSE:AMB).  

The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) is rallying, having gained more than the other major U.S. indices. At 1:58 p.m. ET, the small-cap index had added 8.81 points, or 1.29%, to 691.99. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 85.81 points, or 0.70%, to 12,302.21.

Stocks small and large are rising as investors are apparently reacting to the Bush administration’s plan to overhaul financial regulation to prevent future crises like the ongoing subprime mortgage mess.

The proposal, outlined by U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson after the opening, would broaden the powers of the U.S. Federal Reserve and allow it to oversee financial services beyond banks. Additionally, oversight of U.S. securities and futures markets will be centralized under a single regulatory body.

The plans will take years to implement, Paulson said.

Shares of companies offering printing services are currently the best-performing industry group. Among the winners is Champion Industries, Inc. (Nasdaq:CHMP). Shares of the Huntington, W.Va.-based commercial printer and supplier of office products are up 1%.

Similarly, brand image solutions company Schawk Inc. (NYSE:SGK) is also seeing its stock price rise.

Switching gears, shares of Seattle, Wash.-based Zymogenetics Inc. (Nasdaq:ZGEN), which makes therapeutic proteins, are sagging.

“We believe ZGEN could trade down to around $5 to $6 on a soft launch . . .

Shares of ZymoGenetics, Inc. (Nasdaq: ZGEN) fell $2.16, or 17%, to $10.89 today on news that the maker of therapeutic proteins was downgraded by an analyst.

“We are downgrading ZGEN to ‘Underperform’ from ‘Perform’, as of January 18, based on concerns about product pricing and initial market acceptance of Recothrom,” wrote Kevin DeGeeter, an analyst with investment bank Oppenheimer & Co. Inc., in a research note. Recothrom is a blood clotting drug that was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Jan. 17.

DeGeeter also wrote that he thinks the Seattle-based company will have difficulty getting regulatory approval for an additional two drugs currently in development.

The analyst forecasts total sales of between $52.6 million and $65.3 million in 2008, resulting in a net loss of between $2.32 per share and $2.18 per share.

“We continue to think 2008 Street sales estimates for ZGEN are too high,” DeGeeter wrote. The consensus view on Wall Street is for revenues of $76 million.

The stock’s 52-week low of $10.64 was established on Jan. 4, whole the 52-week high of $16.80 was reached on May 30, 2007.

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) fell as investors were not impressed with a stimulus package designed to prevent a recession. The small-cap index tumbled 7.39 points, or 1.09%, to 673.18, its second consecutive decline. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) lost 59.91 points, or 0.49%, to 12,099.30.

On a year-to-date basis, the Russell 2000 is down 12.12%, while the Dow has declined 8.79% and the S&P 500 is missing 9.75%.

The U.S. economy is in a recession and policymakers will not be able to do much about it. It appears that was the dominating sentiment on Wall Street as the major U.S. indices posted a second day of losses despite news of a stimulus package designed to invigorate the economy.

But stocks small and large actually began trading in the green following news that General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) reported a rise in fourth-quarter profit, matching analysts’ expectations.

Also contributing good news was Armonk, N.Y.-based International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM), which reported fourth-quarter earnings and issued a 2008 guidance above projections.

However, the bullish sentiment did not last. Stocks lost steam ahead of President Bush’s speech to discuss an economic stimulus package and stayed below the flat line after details were made public.

“There is a risk of a downturn,” President Bush said today. “I have concluded that additional action is needed.”

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) and the other major U.S. indices lost ground following news of Bush’s plan to invigorate the economy. At 1:33 p.m. ET, the small-cap index was down 4.92 points, or 0.72%, to 675.65. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) had declined 47.63 points, or 0.39%, to 12,111.58.

“To keep our economy growing and creating jobs, Congress and the administration need to work to enact an economic growth package as soon as possible,” President Bush said during a press conference this afternoon.

Calls for a policy response to help the U.S. economy avoid recession have been mounting recently as politicians on both sides of the aisle have been scrambling to develop a stimulus package.

Bush continued that the growth package must about 1% of gross domestic product and has to focus on “broad-based tax relief.”

The White House wants to give one-time income tax rebates to taxpayers and eliminate the 10% income tax bracket for one year. Democrats generally agree, but want the aid to be more targeted toward the poor and unemployed.