Tag - Ehth

Simcere Pharmaceutical Group (Nasdaq:SCR), RXi Pharmaceuticals Corp. (Nasdaq:RXII) and Stewardship Financial Corp. (Nasdaq:SSFN) are among the biggest percentage losers in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Prestige Brands Holdings Inc (Nasdaq:PBH), M I Homes Inc. (Nasdaq:MHO), eHealth Inc. (Nasdaq:EHTH), K-Fed Bancorp (Nasdaq:KFED), Zions Bancorp (Nasdaq:ZION) and MSCI Inc. (Nasdaq:MXB).

Synutra International Inc (Nasdaq:SYUT), STEC Inc (Nasdaq:STEC) and Sun Communities Inc (Nasdaq:SUI) are among the biggest percentage gainers in Friday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Eagle Bancorp Inc (Nasdaq:EGBN), Hibbett Sports Inc (Nasdaq:HIBB), eHealth Inc (Nasdaq:EHTH), FEI Co (Nasdaq:FEIC), Healthways Inc (Nasdaq:HWAY) and Green Bankshares Inc (Nasdaq:GRNB).

TomoTherapy Inc (Nasdaq:TOMO), Winn Dixie Stores Inc (Nasdaq:WINN) and eHealth Inc (Nasdaq:EHTH) are among the new 52-week lows in Friday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Transition Therapeutics Inc (Nasdaq:TTHI), Radiant Systems Inc (Nasdaq:RADS), Spartan Motors Inc (Nasdaq:SPAR), AuthenTec Inc (Nasdaq:AUTH), Entegris Inc (Nasdaq:ENTG) and EW Scripps Co (Nasdaq:SSP).

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

TomoTherapy Inc (Nasdaq:TOMO), Transition Therapeutics Inc (Nasdaq:TTHI) and Radiant Systems Inc (Nasdaq:RADS) are among the biggest percentage losers in Friday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Winn Dixie Stores Inc (Nasdaq:WINN), Union Drilling Inc (Nasdaq:UDRL), National Interstate Corp (Nasdaq:NATL), Dynamic Materials Corp (Nasdaq:BOOM), eHealth Inc (Nasdaq:EHTH) and Wabash National Ord Shs (Nasdaq:WNC).

Here are the biggest percentage losers among small caps:

Small-cap stocks slipped into the red shortly after the open, pulled down concerns over a four-year high in the unemployment rate and by massive losses posted by U.S. manufacturing icon General Motors Corp. (NYSE:GM), which only stirs the pot on economic fretting. At 9:51 a.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was down 4.91, or 0.69%, at 709.62.

Investors and analysts continue to grapple with the mixed details seen on today’s monthly Labor Department employment report. The “headline” figure for non-farm payrolls came in at minus 51,000, which was better than the consensus forecast for a loss of 75,000 jobs. There was some trepidation that the non-farm figure could swell beyond the forecast after Thursday’s dreadful weekly claims report (which was taken after the monthly jobs figures were gathered). The initial response to the non-farm payrolls figure was a six-handle bounce in S&P 500 futures, a firming of the dollar against the euro and a rise in Treasury yields. However, the devil is in the details, and today’s jobs report was not without some troubling aspects.

The most obvious concern on the report was that the nation’s unemployment rate rose beyond expectations, climbing to 5.7%, which marked the highest level in more than four years. In addition, the number of people working part-time for economic reasons rose by 291,000 and has increased by 1.34 million, up 31.5% over the past year.

“Over the past year, the number of unemployed people has increased by more than 1.6 million and the unemployment rate has increased by a full percentage point. In the post-World War II period, every time the unemployment rate has jumped by a full percentage point in the course of a year, the economy has slipped into . . .

Internet-based insurance company eHealth Inc. (Nasdaq:EHTH) is 9% higher today after analysts at Oppenheimer upgraded the company ahead of today’s opening to “perform” from “underperform.” In today’s trading, shares are at $15.24 at 1:00 p.m. ET, up about $1.34 from Monday’s close. Trading volume has soared above 1 million shares, well over the average of about 443,000. During the past 52 weeks, the stock has ranged from $13.89 to $36.89, though shares are down 52% since January.

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) and the other major U.S. indices declined for the second day in a row on news of bearish economic reports. The small-cap index fell 3.80 points, or 0.54%, to 701.52. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) declined 28.77 points, or 0.23%, to 12,348.21.

On a year-to-date basis, the Russell 2000 has let go 8.42%, while the Dow has shaved 6.91% and the S&P 500 has fallen 8.06%.

The session belonged to the bears as news of government reports that showed a weak economy and hinted at a rise in inflation spooked investors.

The U.S. Labor Department reported that import prices jumped 1.7% in January due to higher energy and food prices. Economists had projected a rise of 0.5%. The year-over-year rise in import prices was 13.7%, which is the biggest change since the measure was introduced in 1982.

The United States has long relied on cheap foreign imports to keep domestic inflation low.

Adding to the economic worries was news of a report from the New York Federal Reserve that its index of general business conditions fell to its lowest level since May 2005. The numbers show that new manufacturing orders and shipments decreased while the index of prices climbed to its highest level in more than a year.

The reports suggest that the U.S. Federal Reserve might have difficulty holding inflation in check while keeping the economy growing.

Separately, preliminary numbers released by the Reuters/University of Michigan indicate a sharp drop in consumer sentiment in early February. The index fell to a level of 69.6 from 78.4 at the end of January. The result was worse than the decline expected by economists and the lowest reading in 16 years.

Here are the day’s biggest percentage gainers and losers, along with top volume leaders, among companies with a market cap between $100 million and $750 million:

The mention of “health insurance” to most Americans most likely sends a deep shiver to their very core; the mere thought of dealing with a system that’s been under the weather for quite some time could cause some to feel sick — not to mention the resulting pain in the wallet.

Enter eHealth, Inc. (Nasdaq: EHTH), a 10-year-old company that’s only been publicly traded for about a year. The Mountain View, Calif.-based company and its ehealthinsurance.com website are helping to change the way consumers and businesses evaluate and buy health coverage.

The easy-to-navigate site offers visitors the data needed to develop a snapshot of what coverage is available in every state and the District of Columbia. This year, eHealth was presented a prestigious Webby Award for having the best insurance website.

eHealth has a firm grasp on its niche of the insurance market, with little competition emerging since it pioneered the online concept. Yet analysts remain fairly blasé about eHealth’s stock, which has seen its price double since a June 12 low point of $17.67. According to a count by Thomson Financial, of seven analysts covering eHealth, two have it at “strong buy,” four labeled it “hold” and one put it at “underperform.”

After going public in October 2006, shares of eHealth had a rapid runup until the overall stock market came down with the subprime mortgage flu last summer.

eHealth created some IPO fireworks and was one of the best initial public offerings of 2006. The stock started trading at $22.50 after being priced at $14, and finished with a 62% first-day bounce at $22.67.