Tag - Ayr

Stocks put up an impressive rally today after two straight days of decline. June payroll numbers and bank recovery and strength data were the underlying drivers of today's run. Even the beleaguered American International Group (NYSE:AIG) saw shares surge 20% to $27.14 on news that it had posted its first profit in nearly two years.

The Dow closed at 9,370.07, up 113.81 points; the Nasdaq pushed back through and held over the 2,000 mark to end the week at 2,000.25, up 27.09 points; and the S&P 500 got back over the psychological hurdle of 1,000 to finish at 1,010.48, up 13.40 points for the day.

The Russell 2000, a composite of the 2,000 leading small-cap stocks, close up 14.78 points to end the day at 572.40. This represents a 2.65% gain for the day versus daily gains of only 1.23%, 1.37%, and 1.34% for the Dow, Nasdaq, and S&P 500, respectively.

Small-cap volume price gainers were lead by Media General (NYSE:MEG), up 31.25%. Media General was followed by Crocs (Nasdaq:CROX), up 28.57%; YRC Worldwide (Nasdaq:YRCW) up 25.56%; Aircastle Limited (NYSE:AYR) up 23.30%; and Cogent Communications (Nasdaq:CCOI), up 22.09%.

*****The unemployment rate…fell? 247,000 people lost their job in July and that was enough to push the jobless rate down to 9.4% from 9.5%. 

July was a lot better than June, when 443,000 people lost their jobs. And the talking heads are already saying its more evidence that the economy is stabilizing.  

What I want to know is: how does the unemployment rate drop after 274,000 more people become unemployed? Were there that many employed 17 year-olds with a birthday in July? Or was it the upward revision of 43,000 to May and June payroll number?  

Despite today’s nice number, unemployment is still expected to rise into double digits early in 2010. And unemployment is expected to average 9.8% for all of 2010. That means that whatever growth we have right now is about we can expect for next year.  
*****It’s clear that investors are buying stock in the hope that that growth will return to the global economy sooner than pretty much every economist on the planet expects. Or maybe they’re buying stock just because prices are moving higher.  

But there are plenty of potential surprises looming. Last week, Treasury Secretary Geithner said the unemployment rate may not peak until the second half of 2010. Now, imagine if stocks stay strong into next year and the unemployment rate remains stable. Investors will assume the economy is poised for a growth. I bet they’d be pretty disappointed if unemployment spiked in August or September of 2010. 

*****Whatever happens next year, socks are rallying strongly today. As well they should. The unemployment rate is falling, money is cheap and the government has declared that there is no downside.  

The Treasury is considering canceling the 20-year Treasury inflation-protected security (TIPS) and issuing a 30-year TIPS. This can be interpreted as a bold insurance to investors against inflation.

As we know, investors, especially foreign buyers of American debt like China, are worried about inflation and weak U.S. dollar. If the Treasury issues longer dated TIPS, it’s essentially saying that it will reimburse investors if inflation does rise sharply. That’s either bravado, or a sincere belief that inflation is not as much as an issue as some fear.  

Either way, the government has backed just about every other negative potential in the current economy, why not take on inflation too? 

*****TIPS are one way to protect you money against inflation. Buying commodities is another. My Global Commodity Investing advisory service is doing quite well as commodity prices continue to rise. You can learn more here.  

*****I’d like to thank SCI Daily readers for your help with the T-shirt slogan contest to support the launch of my first book, The Small Cap Investor: Secrets to Winning Big with Small Cap Stocks. We're taking submissions on the Small Cap Investor page on Facebook or by email (tshirt@smallcapinvestor.com) until Sunday, August 9th.  

Everyone who submits a T-shirt slogan will get a 30-day, 100% complimentary subscription to my SmallCapInvestor PRO advisory service. The winner gets a one-year subscription to ALL of my advisory and trading services (a $2,680 value), plus a signed copy of the book and three t-shirts.  

*****Now, here’s TradeMaster Daily Stock Alerts technical analyst Jason Cimpl and his weekly video market forecast. It’s been a wild week and investors need to know what’s going happen next week. Click here to view Jason’s video charting analysis; it’s free. 

*****The Managed America web video conference is coming up next Monday, August 10 at 6:00 P.M. It's free to attend and you can register right now. Click here to register for this free online event. 

That's it for today. Have a great weekend.

Media General Inc. (Nasdaq:MEG), Crocs Inc. (Nasdaq:CROX) and 51Job Inc. (Nasdaq:JOBS) are among the biggest percentage losers in Friday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Brooks Automation Inc. (Nasdaq:BRKS), Builders FirstSource Inc. (Nasdaq:BLDR), WNS Holdings Ltd. (Nasdaq:WNS), Cogent Communications Group Inc. (Nasdaq:CCOI), Knot Inc. (Nasdaq:KNOT) and Aircastle Ltd. (Nasdaq:AYR).

Stocks sharply slid at closing on Friday on news that Citigroup would likely have to allow the U.S. government to own a 36% stake in the embattled firm, and on shrinking Q4 GDP. Some of today’s small-cap gainers were Permian Basin Realty Trust (NYSE:PBT), Superior Industries (NYSE:SUP) and Aircastle (NYSE:AYR).

Other Market Watch highlights today included:

• The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) closed down 3.93, or 1%, to 389.02. The S&P 500 closed down 2.36% to 735.09. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 119 points, or 1.66% at 7,062, its lowest close since May 7, 1997.
• For the year, the Russell is down 22.11%, the Dow is down 19.52% and the S&P 500 is down 18.62%.
• Citigroup reported it has reached a deal that will give the U.S. government up to a 36% stake in the embattled bank.
• U.S. government: Economy has shrunken at a faster-than-expected 6.2% pace in fourth quarter -- the worst showing in 25 years 
• Eastern Europe's struggling banks will receive $31.1 billion worth of emergency help from leading international financial institutions.

Small Cap Gainers:

• Permian Basin Realty Trust climbed 20% higher after Jim Cramer recommended the stock on "Mad Money" on Thursday night. See (NYSE:PBT). 
• Superior Industries closed up 19% after being upgraded to "neutral" today. See (NYSE:SUP).
• Aircastle rises 13% after seeing its Q4 adjusted profit increase by 31.8%. See (NYSE:AYR).

Small Cap Losers:

• Macquarie Infrastructure reported a widened Q4 loss; shares head south 37%. See (NYSE:MIC).
• Union group opposes aid to Principal Financial; shares tumble 25%. See (NYSE:PFG).
• A.M. Best downgrades ratings of FBL Financial Group, Inc., sending shares 24%. See (NYSE:FFG). 

Small-cap stocks extended the bear market collapse Thursday, tumbling to the lowest point since May 2003 as a familiar combination of awful economic data and flight-to-quality money flow was accentuated by a rout in energy stocks. The market generated an impressive midday recovery to positive territory on oversold conditions and erratic bargain hunting but failed to sustain the move. Some of today’s small-cap gainers are Ambac (NYSE:ABK), Doral Financial Corp. (NYSE:DRL) and China Distance Learning (NYSE:DL).

Other Market Watch highlights today included:

• The Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund tumbled some 10% today as energy names were a big drag on index products big and small.  
• Crude oil prices tumbled some 8% to three-year lows as fears of sinking global demand continues to hammer energy prices.  
• The market will get a break from any major economic reports Friday, allowing other factors to compete for investor attention.  
• Benchmark 10-year notes saw yields down more than 6%, an astounding move as investors appeared to pour cash into Treasuries.  


Small Cap Gainers:

• Ambac commutes $3.5 billion in CDO exposure; shares skyrocket 80%. See (SEE:ABK).
• Doral Financial Corp. is up 34% after narrowing its Q3 losses by 97%. See (NYSE:DRL).  
• China Distance Learning sees a decline in net profits but a rise in net revenue. Shares are up over 13%. See (NYSE:DL).  
• Aircastle Limited up 12% after kissing a 52-week low of $2.78 this morning, down from a 52-week high of $28.02. See (NYSE:AYR).  

Small Cap Losers:

• Media General shares lost as much as 54% of their value on Thursday after Harbinger Capital sold stock in the newspaper publisher. See (NYSE:MEG).  
• Arbor Realty Trust hit a new 52-week low of $1.90, down from a 52-week high of $19.20. Shares are currently down 31%. See (NYSE:ABR).
• Helix Energy Solutions Group Inc. closed down 44% as the offshore development company said that production in the wake of Gulf hurricanes was near 50% of pre-storm levels. See (NYSE:HLX).  
• Sandridge Energy Inc. tumbled 42% as the natural gas company set record lows for their stock. See (NYSE:SD).  

Heritage Crystal Clean Inc (Nasdaq:HCCI), Apex Silver Mines Ltd (Nasdaq:SIL) and Banro Corp (Nasdaq:BAA) are among the new 52-week lows in Monday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Bancorp Bank (Nasdaq:TBBK), BNC Bancorp (Nasdaq:BNCN), Aircastle Ltd (Nasdaq:AYR), TomoTherapy Inc (Nasdaq:TOMO), KV Pharmaceutical Co (Nasdaq:KV.A) and ExlService Holdings Inc (Nasdaq:EXLS).

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

National CineMedia Inc (Nasdaq:NCMI), Columbia Bancorp (Nasdaq:CBBO) and UAL Corp (Nasdaq:UAUA) are among the new 52-week lows in Thursday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Jazz Pharmaceuticals Inc (Nasdaq:JAZZ), HEICO Corp (Nasdaq:HEI), Crescent Financial Corp (Nasdaq:CRFN), Kona Grill Inc (Nasdaq:KONA), Aircastle Ltd (Nasdaq:AYR) and Rex Stores Corp (Nasdaq:RSC).

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