Tag - Hayn

Ampco Pittsburgh Corp. (Nasdaq:AP), Safe Bulkers Inc. (Nasdaq:SB) and Ladish Co Inc. (Nasdaq:LDSH) are among the biggest percentage losers in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Haynes International Inc. (Nasdaq:HAYN), Protective Life Corp. (Nasdaq:PL), Zoltek Companies Inc. (Nasdaq:ZOLT), Amicus Therapeutics Inc (Nasdaq:FOLD), Gaylord Entertainment Co. (Nasdaq:GET) and Geo Group Inc. (Nasdaq:GEO).

Small-cap stocks hovered near steady levels on the opening, outperforming the Dow and S&P 500 early on as investors took a cautious stance waiting on a smorgasbord of news events out of Washington today. At 10:01 a.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was up 0.60, or 0.13%, at 468.54.

Investors are waiting for the final rollout of the bank bailout plan today from Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, although quite a few of the details have started to leak out. Bank stocks were lower to start things today, but have been in rally mode lately in anticipation of the news.

In addition to the bank rescue plan, the market is waiting to hear about the Senate vote on the Obama Administration’s stimulus bill. A vote is expected at some point today, possibly in the midday time frame. Last night President Obama addressed the nation to talk about the plan and to implore Senate Republicans not to take a hard partisan stance.

As if all that wasn’t enough, the market also will get a chance to respond to Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, who will testify about the financial crisis today before the House Financial Services Committee. Bernanke headlines will likely start to flow around 1:00 p.m. ET.

There were a couple of minor economic reports out this morning, with the Johnson Redbook chain store sales report up 0.5% for February-to-date numbers. Meanwhile, the wholesale inventories report came in at minus 1.4%, which was a bigger drop than forecast. Neither report appeared to have much of an impact on the market, as investors are much more preoccupied trying to decipher whether or not the bank bail out and fiscal stimulus plans will spark a rally in the market.

One area of strength today came from the energy arena, with energy stocks up about 0.6% shortly after the open. Energy shares gathered some support from a rally in crude oil prices, which climbed about $1.60 a barrel amid talk from OPEC . . .

Small-cap stocks hovered near steady levels on the opening, outperforming the Dow and S&P 500 early on as investors took a cautious stance waiting on a smorgasbord of news events out of Washington today. Some of today’s small-cap gainers were Skilled Healthcare Group Inc. (NYSE:SKH), SuccessFactors Inc. (Nasdaq:SFSF) and Flamel Technologies SA (Nasdaq:FLML).

Other Market Watch highlights today included:

• Asian stocks were mixed, with China shares finding support as inflation data eased and supported hopes for a rate cut out of the central bank.   
• Energy shares gathered some support from a rally in crude oil prices, which climbed about $1.60 a barrel.  
• The wholesale inventories report came in at minus 1.4%, which was a bigger drop than forecast.  
• Bank stocks were lower to start things today, but have been in rally mode lately in anticipation of the bailout news.

Small Cap Gainers:

• Skilled Healthcare Group Inc. gapped higher and was up 16%, receiving an earnings-related boost. See (NYSE:SKH).  
• SuccessFactors Inc. climbed 11% as the management solutions software firm reported earnings. See (Nasdaq:SFSF).  
• Flamel Technologies SA rose 9% as the French biopharma firm climbed to the highest level since early December without any apparent fresh news behind the move. See (Nasdaq:FLML).  
• GT Solar rises over 6% in pre-market after reporting results for fiscal year 2009 third quarter. See (Nasdaq:SOLR).

Small Cap Losers:

• Ladish Co. fell 17% as the aerospace metals component maker also had an adverse reaction to quarterly figures. See (Nasdaq:LDSH).  
• Haynes International Inc. gapped lower and tumbled 18% as the nickel and cobalt manufacturer took a hit after releasing quarterly results. See (Nasdaq:HAYN).  
• Zoltek falls 12% in pre-market after reporting first-quarter results. See (Nasdaq:ZOLT).  
• Cubist Plans to commence patent infringement litigation against Teva Parenteral Medicines in response to ANDA filing. Shares of CBST drop 14.4% in pre-market. See (Nasdaq:CBST).

Zale Corp. (Nasdaq:ZLC), Dycom Industries Inc. (Nasdaq:DY) and Skillsoft ADR (Nasdaq:SKIL) are among the biggest percentage losers in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Haynes International Inc. (Nasdaq:HAYN), Titan International Inc. (Nasdaq:TWI), Mentor Graphics Corp. (Nasdaq:MENT), Pioneer Drilling Co. (Nasdaq:PDC), Redwood Trust Inc. (Nasdaq:RWT) and TreeHouse Foods Inc. (Nasdaq:THS).

Small-cap stocks opened lower, succumbing to a series of bad news events overnight, including massive quarterly losses at insurance firm American Insurance Group (NYSE:AIG), disappointing sales at discount giant Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE:WMT), a bounce in crude oil prices and sobering economic data on the jobs front. At 10:03 a.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was down 6.09, or 0.84% at 719.80.

The market was already on the defensive ahead of the weekly claims report this morning and when unemployment filings topped the forecast, it generated another leg down in futures ahead of the regular opening. Weekly claims were pegged at 455,000, which marked the largest weekly figure since March 2002. What’s more, the number was well above the forecast of 420,000 and simply adds another layer to ongoing concerns about the labor market. The continuing claims number rose to a fresh cycle high at 3.311 million. The Labor Department said that claims were goosed by a program to extend benefits, but it’s not exactly like the people who need an extension have found a job yet.

“Continuing claims, which are inversely related to job creation, jumped this week to their highest level since December 2003,” Steven Wood, chief economist with Insight Economics, said in an email. “This is an indication that hiring has weakened,” he said.

The pending home sales report, which came out at 10:00 a.m. ET, was up 5.3% and appeared to have limited impact on the market. Even with a gain during June, the number was still down 12% from last year...

Small-cap stocks opened higher Wednesday, providing a welcome respite to the bulls who endured a slide to two-month lows in the Russell 2000 the previous session. The market was underpinned by short-covering amid oversold conditions ahead of this afternoon’s FOMC meeting announcement and by a bounce in financial stocks. At 10:02 a.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was up 4.67, or 0.66%, at 712.59.

The new home sales report came in at minus 2.5% and the inventory of new homes was at 10.9 months, which was a mild rise over the previous report. Although the home sales data was weak, it didn’t deter the stock market, which is already focused on the FOMC later today.

Earlier this morning, orders for May durable goods came in unchanged, which was slightly softer than the forecast for a rise of 0.1%. Although durables missed the median forecast, it was close enough to have very little impact on stock market trading.

Also on the data front, the MBA mortgage application survey came in at minus 9.3%, which was the lowest level since July 2001. In addition, the report showed that the purchasing index fell 7.4% to the lowest point since February 2003. Also, the refinance index tumbled 12.1% to the lowest level since July 2001. With the housing market still soft and rates firming, mortgage activity has slowed to a crawl.

Crude oil prices were lower this morning, which allowed some breathing room for this morning’s bounce in U.S. equities. However, stocks remain extremely sensitive to intraday gyrations in energy prices, and any rise in black gold during the session could endanger the early bounce in stocks. The weekly inventory report is slated . . .