Tag - Ccix

Small-cap stocks rejected a morning pullback to close higher on the day, backing up the euphoric FOMC rate cut rally with an impressive showing given early weakness. Tuesday’s FOMC rise was powered by financial and homebuilder stocks, while today’s climb branched out to retailer, selected commodity and telecom names. The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) closed up 3.75, or 0.78%, at 486.59 and is now down 36% for 2008. Meanwhile, the Dow was down 1.12% on the day, and is down 33% for the year, while the S&P 500 was down 0.96% Wednesday and down 38% for 2008.

Action today was noticeably calm after the big rate cut rally Tuesday. Investors were likely pondering just how the Federal Reserve would bolster the economy now that interest rates for short-term loans from the government are basically at zero. One clear path would seem to be buying longer-dated instruments, and Treasury markets were higher throughout the day, although down quite a bit from the morning rise when equities were on thinner ice to start the session.

On the retailer front, Macy’s Inc. (NYSE:M) jumped some 18%, leading the S&P Retail Index to a decent 1.8% gain on the day. Small-cap firms such as Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF) rose 3.9%. Retail sales reports have been spotty through this difficult holiday season, but Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE:BBY) shot higher Tuesday ahead of the FOMC news on a solid earnings report.

Selected commodity areas provided support to the stock market today, with metals, mining, gold and steel companies counted among the top performing sectors. Some of the bullish edge may have been taken off commodities however as crude oil prices plunged this afternoon, sinking some 8% to the lowest level in more than four years. The sell-off in crude took place right in the face of an announced production cut by OPEC leaders. Perhaps the sting of OPEC’s proposed cut was limited by the fact that non-members Russia and Mexico did not weigh in to support a pullback in production. Interestingly, even though crude oil prices slumped to four-year lows, . . .

Small-cap stocks climbed to an impressive rally Thursday, quickly putting aside any downward momentum from Wednesday’s historic collapse. Investors were picking through the rubble for bargains, and also appeared to be testing the waters for a potential bottom. Traders had to endure choppy waters as the market traded more than 3% on both sides of the ledger, buffeted about by mixed economic data. The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) closed up 34.46, or 6.86%, at 536.57, rejecting an intraday slide to the second-lowest point in more than five years to notch the third-largest one-day gain of the year. The Russell is now off 30% for 2008, while the Dow is down 32% and the S&P 500 is off 35%.

One encouraging element of the recovery move today was that small caps paced the move over the Dow and S&P 500 – even when the market struggled in the midday time frame. In addition, today marked the most solid chart action that we have seen since this whole collapse kicked into gear in late September. The Russell had a decent test of the recent lows without violating the bottom, then closed strong, which is a positive signal. In addition, the market has now left twin long “wicks” on the major low testing days, which is a form of a double bottom. It should be noted that these signs are on daily charts, and it will take a more dynamic formation on weekly charts to support any bottoming theory at this stage of things.

Even investors playing for a bottom that don’t watch chart dynamics have their own story to hang a hat on right now. Some of those elements include: (a) signs that frozen credit markets are starting to thaw vis-à-vis the pullback in Libor rates; (b) various valuation tools suggest the market is a bargain; (c) a majority of market pundits believe that the market has either made the lows, or is close to the low, which means downside risk might not be that bad compared to upside gain; (d) governments around the world have poured hundreds of billions into financial systems, which will stabilize the market. And even though economic statistics are truly . . .

Small-cap stocks started off the day in negative territory and were never able to recover, even though large-cap stocks pared losses significantly from the intraday lows. Anxiety over the latest version of the financial rescue plan, soft economic data, sluggish consumer, technology and commodity stocks weighed down the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM), which slipped 7.99, or 1.18%, to 671.59. For the year, the Russell is down 12.3%, while the Dow is off 18.3% and the S&P 500 is down 20.9%.

The Senate is slated to vote later this evening on a new version of the $700 billion bailout plan, with additions to bank deposits that are insured and tax breaks. There is a strong sense among market watchers that some version of a rescue plan will be approved —  probably as soon as this weekend — but there are also growing fears that the bailout alone won’t fix all the economic ails facing not just America, but also the world.

General Electric Co. (NYSE:GE) plunged after the bell this morning following analyst downgrades overnight. GE is seen as a bellwether for the economy, and when that company is struggling, it can create a downward ripple throughout industrial and consumer stocks. However, after billionaire investor Warren Buffett said he planned to invest $3 billion in GE, the stock did rally off the lows. For the day, GE was off about 4%.

Most of the recent twists and turns in the stock market have been tied to the massive proposed bailout plan, but today economic data started to make a dent in the investor psyche — perhaps stirred by the realization that the big jobs report comes out Friday morning. An early take on the employment situation from private surveys didn’t exactly paint a great picture. Even though the ADP Employment survey was on the low side of the forecast, a report on layoffs by Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc. showed a 7.2% jump in layoffs last month and a rate that was 33% above year-ago levels. What’s more, analysts at Challenger said that layoffs in the financial sector . . .

The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) declined more than the other major U.S. indices as investors digested news of the latest economic reports. The small-cap index fell 9.21 points, or 1.33%, to 683.18. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was off 86.06 points, or 0.70%, to 12,216.40.

On a year-to-date basis, the Russell 2000 is down 10.82%, while the Dow has shed 7.90% and the S&P 500 has retreated 10.43%.

Small-cap stocks spent the first half of the session seesawing on news before the opening that personal income rose 0.5% in February, beating expectations of a 0.3% increase, according to the U.S. Commerce Department.

The same report also showed that personal consumption increased a feeble 0.1%, in line with expectations but below January’s 0.4% climb. Consumption is about 70% of U.S. gross domestic product and must be strong in order for the economy to keep growing.

A key measure of core inflation climbed just 0.1%, putting 12-month inflation within the U.S. Federal Reserve’s target range. That makes it easier for the Fed to cut its target federal funds rate in order to stimulate the economy.

Meanwhile, the Reuters/University of Michigan survey released after the opening shows that U.S. consumer confidence tumbled to its lowest level since 1992, . . .

Coleman Cable, Inc. (Nasdaq:CCIX) CEO Gary Yetman said volatility in the copper market, continued weakness in residential construction and general market uncertainty have hurt the maker of electrical wire and cable’s bottom line. Yetman said the Waukegan, Ill.-based firm is also experiencing inflationary pressures due to higher fuel and PVC costs. The expense pressures have been “somewhat offset” by price increases and cost-saving initiatives, he said. Yetman made the comments during a midday conference call.

For the first quarter of 2008, Coleman said in a statement that it expects revenue between $245 million and $255 million. First-quarter earnings are projected to range from $0.15 to $0.24 per share.

If the market remains calm, the CEO said he anticipates an uptick during the second half of 2008.

“Based on stable market conditions and the benefit from the synergies of our acquisitions and our cost-saving initiatives, we would expect consistent performance in the second quarter of 2008 and would then anticipate an uptick in the second half of the year from the projected benefits of the acquisition of [electrical products maker Woods Industries Inc.],” Yetman said.

After Thursday’s close, Coleman Cable reported fourth-quarter revenue of $254.3 million, up 146% from $103.2 million a year earlier. Wall Street analysts anticipated $227.4 million in revenue.

For the three months ended Dec. 31, Coleman’s net income was $4 million, or $0.24 per share, compared with $1.7 million, or $0.12 per share, during . . .

Coleman Cable, Inc. (Nasdaq: CCIX) shares are dipping after the maker and supplier of electrical wire and cable reported its third-quarter profit declined despite a spike in revenue.

During the three months ended Sept. 30, pricing pressures caused the Waukegan, Ill.-based company’s gross profit margin to fall to 11.5%, from 21.1% a year earlier. The firm’s acquisition of copper wire maker Copperfield, LLC—completed in April for $213 million in cash—ate away Coleman’s quarterly income. Acquisition-related costs caused interest expense during the third quarter to rise 95% to $8.2 million, from $4.2 million last year. Also, selling, general and administrative expense increased 28% to $11.8 million, from $9.2 million during the same period of 2006.

Coleman’s third-quarter net sales soared 121% to $253.5 million, above Wall Street estimates of $250.1 million and from $114.9 million a year earlier. However, the firm’s quarterly profit declined to $4 million, or $0.24 per share, below analyst estimates of $0.29 per share and down 59% from $9.8 million, or $0.77 per share, during the same period of 2006.

“We typically experience softness in the fourth quarter as many of the end markets reduce their inventory stocking levels in conjunction with the year-end holidays. Not withstanding, we started the fourth quarter with strong results in October,” CEO Gary Yetman said in a statement. “While we continue to experience inflationary cost pressures from higher material and fuel costs, we have been successful in offsetting some of these pressures by the implementation of our cost reduction initiatives.”

The chief executive warned that the downturn in copper prices and fluctuating market demands could have “a negative impact on our fourth-quarter revenues and profitability.” Yetman said the firm expects fourth-quarter revenue in the range of $220 million to $240 million, below analyst estimates of $243.9 million.

In morning trading, CCIX shares are down 10.45%, or $1.40, at $12. Over the last 52 weeks, shares have ranged from $9.37 to $30.30.

Labopharm Inc. (Nasdaq: DDSS) shares down sharply following an announcement at the closing bell Thursday that the Toronto, Canada-based pharmaceutical company has received a second approvable letter from the Food and Drug Administration regarding the pain relief drug Tramadol. The letter said that Labopharm has not demonstrated the efficacy of its once-daily formulation of Tramadol, because the statistical methods the company used to analyze data from its clinical trials “did not adequately address missing data relating to subjects who dropped out of the trials.” In a press release, the company said the FDA did not explain why the statistical methods were inadequate. Labopharm said it seeks to clarify the issue with the FDA as soon as possible.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corp. (Nasdaq: GLDD) are up after a bullish mention Thursday evening by MSNBC pundit Jim Cramer. The Illinois, Ill.-based business provides dredging, marine construction and demolition services.

Shares in DexCom, Inc. (Nasdaq: DXCM) are up following the announcement after Thursday’s closing bell that the FDA approved its seven-day continuous glucose monitoring device for people with diabetes. The San Diego-based medical devices maker said it plans to launch the monitoring device – called Seven – by the end of the summer.

Phazar Corp. (Nasdaq: ANTP) shares are soaring following the announcement Thursday evening that the company’s Antenna Products unit received a $0.9 million order from the Spanish telecom company Page Iberica S.A. The Madrid-based company ordered four Multiport Antenna Systems. Phazar said the order will be shipped in October for installation at a Spanish NATO site.

The following are the most actively traded companies in Friday pre-market trading among those with market capitalizations under $500 million: