Tag - Hd

Consumer spending trends consistently higher for the most part, and has been trending consistently higher since the second quarter of 2009.

t's not easy for large institutions to reinvent themselves. Look at Blockbuster (BLOAQ.PK) - the video rental outlet was asleep at the wheel while Netflix (Nasdaq: NFLX) and Coinstar (Nasdaq: CSTR) zipped right past it to grab market share. Blockbuster soon crumbled into bankruptcy.

Even mega-cap multinationals like International Business Machines (NYSE: IBM) have faced similar challenges. The need to innovate in a complex and rapidly developing competitive landscape means nothing is assured.

We finally know what's been cooking behind the walls at the Federal Reserve. After weeks of speculation, the number's out - and I think Ben Bernanke nailed it.

Of course there are those who will say that QE 2.0 should have been bigger, that $600 billion isn't enough. And some will say that even $100,000 is too much. But right now the market likes the decision.

Small-cap stocks staged an impressive bullish reversal Thursday, rejecting a morning slide to five-week lows as a rally in retail and chipmaker stocks plotted an afternoon recovery course for stocks in general. Talk of another large government money float to embattled banks also played a role in turning the selling tide. The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) closed up 9.45, or 2.09%, at 462.62, and is now down 7.4% for the year. Meanwhile, the Dow is off 6.4% for 2009, while the S&P 500 is down 6.5%.

The market appeared to pull off the bounce highs when news hit in the final half hour of trading about a plane crash in New York, but there were no signs of foul play and it appears the crash was the result of a flock of geese, which appeared to calm the market into the close and allow the rally in small caps to resume. Right after the close, a passenger on the plane told CNN that he thought everyone was rescued from the flight.

Investors fretted through the morning about reports Bank of America Corp. (NYSE:BAC) needed money to integrate the Merrill Lynch acquisition and also as Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) continued to see share prices collapse. However, rumors started to leak that the Treasury Department would provide more capital for the embattled banks and as the recovery started to take hold CNBC reported that the government would extend guarantees to BAC of $100 billion to $200 billion. While BAC and C were still sharply lower on the day, they did rally quite a bit off the intraday lows. News reports said that BAC would receive some $15 billion in TARP . . .

Small-cap stocks vacillated back and forth in positive and negative territory into the midday time frame, with support from a pocket of upbeat earnings, an optimistic outlook from major PC-maker Hewlett-Packard and strong energy shares countering a soft tone in financials, tech stocks and ongoing concerns about the fragile global economy. At 12:41 p.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was down 3.17, or 0.70%, at 448.12, lagging mild gains in the broad S&P 500 and large-cap Dow.

Energy stocks were among the best performers so far today as crude oil prices reversed overnight losses and investors looked to find bargains in the downtrodden sector. The Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund was up more than 2% at mid-session. Elsewhere on the commodities scene, analysts at JP Morgan said that commodity prices – especially agriculture products – should outperform energy and industrial raw material products in 2009.

Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE:HPQ) stunned investors this morning by not only reaffirming the current profit outlook, but by raising guidance for next year, breaking a long string of corporate expectations that were forecasting declines. If the world’s largest computer maker was still looking at greener pastures next year, then investors reasoned it could spread to a host of entities. HPQ was up some 12%. Elsewhere on the big-cap earnings front, Home Depot Inc. (NYSE:HD) topped the profit forecast and jumped 6%.

That’s not to say that everything was rosy among the earnings releases today. Corning Inc. (NYSE:GLW), who makes the flat glass to stick on all those flat-panel television monitors and computer screens, said fourth-quarter revenue will fall short of expectations. GLW stock was off 15% at midday.

In the small-cap universe, DHT Maritime Inc. (NYSE:DHT), a tanker ship operator, jumped 17% after releasing earnings numbers today. Chiquita Brands International Inc. (NYSE:CQB) rallied 17% amid analyst upgrades for the banana producer. Tetra Technologies Inc. (NYSE:TTI) jumped 15% as the oil and gas services company tries to mount a comeback after sinking to fresh lows last week. On the downside, Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) slumped 16% as the embattled casino operator hovers near record lows even though auditors recently removed doubts . . .

Small-cap stocks are expected to open lower, pressured by slumping equity markets around the world overnight, with Europe off some 2% and emerging markets down 3%. Bank stocks, mining companies and oil services shares were soft overseas, flashing a broad-based show of weakness, but stock index futures bounced solidly off the morning lows when a key technology firm raised guidance this morning. Stock index futures were off about 1% ahead of the opening, which suggests the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) will open near 447.

The PPI report headline figure came in at minus 2.8%, which was a much bigger decline than the forecast of 1.8%. Stock index futures were in the midst of a hard bounce off the lows ahead of PPI, and pulled back slightly after the inflation headlines. Now that the PPI data is out of the way, investors await an appearance on Capital Hill from Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, slated to begin around 9:30 a.m. ET.

Looking at market activity around the world, Japan was down 2.2%, Hong Kong off 4.5%, China down 7.4%, Taiwan down 3%, Australia off 3.2%, South Korea down 4% and India off 3.8%.

On the individual company scene, there were some pockets of bullish news this morning.
Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE:HPQ) jumped more than 10% after the firm raised guidance, which has been unheard of in this difficult environment. Clearly, stock index futures bounce off the lows on the HPQ news. In other corporate news, Yahoo Inc. (Nasdaq:YHOO) showed double digit advances overnight on news that the . . .

Small-cap stocks extended the morning rout into midday trading, pulled down by renewed worries about the economy following the worst decline in October retail sales on record, which only heightens fears about consumer spending moving into the key holiday season. At 2:16 p.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was down 4.29%, on target for the third-lowest daily close in more than five years and the lowest weekly close since August 2003 despite the dramatic recovery explosion from Thursday.

Energy and technology stocks were among the dominant drags on the market, with the Energy SPDR off nearly 5% and the tech-laden Nasdaq 100 down about 4.5%. Within the tech arena, anything tied to the cell phone business was getting hammered following Nokia’s warning that sales would fall far below expectations in coming months. Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK) was down 12%, Motorola Inc. (NYSE:MOT) was off 8% and QUALCOMM Inc. (Nasdaq:QCOM), the largest mobile phone chip maker, was down 6%.

Back on the commodities theme, crude oil prices were down about $1.60 a barrel, as worries about global demand persist. Despite the pullback on energy prices, commodities overall were hanging in there today, with the Commodity Research Bureau Index basically flat at mid-session. In general, commodities are way oversold and the U.S. dollar tone is mixed today (up versus euro, down versus yen).

As for retailers, today just isn’t pretty. The S&P Retail Index is down 6% and a host of name-brand companies released earnings today that were either disappointing, or even when solid for the third quarter reflected downward guidance for the coming quarter. Nordstrom Inc. (NYSE:JWN) was down 8%, JC Penney Company Inc. (NYSE:JCP) was down 9% and although the pain was intense for apparel oriented retailers, there was plenty of agony to go around; for instance, home improvement retailer . . .

Small-cap stocks fell hard Tuesday, as the combination of credit worries, high inflation and a slumping housing market whipped up the perfect bearish storm. The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) closed down 11.94, or 1.61%, at 730.03, while the Dow was off 1.14% and the S&P 500 was down 0.93%. For the year, the Russell is now down 4.69%, backing off quickly after flirting with a test of positive yearly territory late last week. The Dow is down 14.4% for 2008 and the S&P 500 is off 13.7%.

Financial shares remained at the center of the seller hurricane, extending the rout that started Monday as talk of more debt write-downs started making the rounds. The fresh target today was Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:LEH), which crashed 13% after analysts predicted $4 billion more in bad mortgage debt was ready to rolled off the books this quarter. The shudder of renewed bad debt fear swept through financial stocks, with the Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund tumbling 2.9% and the PHLX KBW Banking Index sinking 3.4% Major U.S. banks like Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) and Bank of America Corp. (NYSE:BAC) were hit by the concerns, slipping 2.5% and 4.1%, respectively.

And while the credit crisis was back in play again today, the market also had to come to grips with yet another bad inflation economic report. Last week saw investors essentially shrug off scary inflation numbers on the Consumer Price Index release, dismissing the data as less disturbing because it didn’t reflect the recent collapse in crude oil prices. Then today’s Producer Price Index (PPI) report not only showed headline inflation at 27 year highs, but also reflected “core” inflation, which excludes food and energy prices, at 17-year highs. The realization that the inflation story isn’t just about $4-a-gallon gasoline pump prices and higher grocery bills is a sobering thought for the market.

Just to finish off the bearish news, July housing starts came in below the forecast, with the unit rate at the lowest point since 1991. So, PPI is at 27-year highs, core inflation is at 17-year highs and housing starts are at 17-year lows. Combined, it’s not a pretty picture, and it also handcuffs monetary policy makers who have to walk a tightrope between battling inflation versus coddling economic health.

Broad market sectors on the decline Tuesday included motorcycle manufacturers, real estate management firms, department stores, consumer finance, casinos, . . .

Small-cap stocks went into a tailspin on the opening as runaway inflation, weak housing starts and the never-ending credit crunch saga cast a bearish pall over the market. At 9:55 a.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was down 8.53, or 1.15%, at 733.44.

The inflation horizon became more troubling this morning when the Producer Price Index report came out at 1.2%, which was way ahead of the forecast for a rise of 0.6%. The headline figure marked the largest year-over-year rise in 27 years. Recently, investors have tried to shrug off inflation worries, saying that the data is back-dated and that the biggest inflation ingredient — energy — has been on the decline in late July and in August. However, today’s “core” rate of inflation, which excludes food and energy prices, was up a stunning 0.7%, which was far beyond the forecast for a rise of 0.2%. The year-over-year rise in the core rate was the fastest since 1991. Although you can argue that tracking inflation without including energy and food prices is somewhat silly, one thing the core rate shows us today is that inflation is creeping into other areas than just at the gas pump and in the grocery sack.

Rubbing a little salt in the wound was the Housing Starts report, which came out at the same time as the PPI and which also was a disappointment. The headline for housing starts was down 11.0%, slack compared with the forecast for a decline of 9.9%. The rate of July housing starts was at 965,000 units, which marked the lowest level since March 1991. So, housing starts are at 17-year lows and inflation is at 27-year lows. With many market watchers saying that a recovery in the housing market is a necessary start to a recovery in the financial/credit crisis, the numbers today did nothing to help further the bullish argument.

“With sales still soft, and with lending standards tighter, single family housing starts will contract even further,” Steven Wood, chief economist with Insight Economics, said in an email. “Housing’s contribution to economic growth will be . . .

Bill Martin is well known as the original founder of the Raging Bull, an early leader among financial online communities. Now, in addition to being a director for BankRate.com, he is also the founder of Indie Research, which publishes such sites as BullMarket.com.

His Bull Market Report is a daily investment service focused on identifying what he considers to be "great long-term growth, value, and income generating investments."

As part of a diversified, long-term portfolio Martin will often recommend small-cap stocks, such as one of his latest recommendations, Salary.com, Inc. (Nasdaq: SLRY), with a market cap of $140 million.

"Salary.com will be celebrating the one-year anniversary of its IPO and subsequent listing on the Nasdaq stock exchange,” he says. “It was around this same time that we originally looked at the company, telling investors to steer clear."

Since his first cautious assessment, the shares have ranged between $16.32 per share on the high side to Thursday’s closing price of $8.55.

Now, a year later, he has reexamined the shares. "With the stock price now significantly lower — over 40% lower — and top-line growth still strong, our opinion has changed," he says.

At its core, he notes, Salary.com provides Web-based software suites that help companies manage their employee compensation packages. "As its name suggests, the company helps clients determine employee salary and compensation through a variety of comparable databases, third-party data, and in-house data available from customers," Martin says.

American consumers are in love with cutting-edge electronics and appliances to enhance their lifestyles. Witness the crowds that piled into stores at the wee hours of Nov. 23, “Black Friday,” through closing time on Christmas Eve.

Heightening the demand for big-screen, flat-panel televisions is the coming age of high-definition television and the switch to digital from analog signals in February 2009.

Despite the potential potholes in a field crowded with some better-known competitors, Midwest chain hhgregg, Inc. (NYSE: HGG) decided to make the leap and became a public company last summer.

The competition among big-box retailers is intense, forcing stores to slice their profit margins razor thin. In addition to sector leaders Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE: BBY) and Circuit City Stores, Inc. (NYSE: CC), along with home-improvement chains like The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE: HD) and Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE: LOW), there are thousands of independent retailers that are struggling to survive.

For hhgregg, it was a long journey to the New York Stock Exchange for a family-operated company that began selling appliances in its hometown of Indianapolis in 1955. Not limiting its product mix to what can be found elsewhere, hhgregg targets customers who want competitive prices on higher-end goods, ranging from electronics and appliances to office equipment and Serta bedding.

Now a chain of 84 stores, hhgregg reported $1.1 billion in sales, earnings per share of $0.73 and same-store sales growth of 5.5% for its 2007 fiscal year. Unlike many other retailers, hhgregg boasts a mostly full-time sales force that works on commission.

As a result, analysts covering hhgregg mostly offer favorable opinions about its potential. In a Thomson Financial tally of six analysts, five have hhgregg at “buy” or “strong buy,” with a median price target of $19.25. On Thursday, hhgregg closed at $13.41.

Small and medium-sized businesses are increasingly turning to on-demand software downloaded from the Internet as an effective way to reduce IT spending; Salary.com, Inc. (Nasdaq: SLRY) and Taleo Corporation (Nasdaq: TLEO) are two leading providers that are reaping the benefits of the growing software need.

Gartner, a research firm, expects sales of on-demand software to grow to $11.5 billion by 2011 from $5.1 billion this year. That growth outlook is three to four times higher than projections for conventional business software. The advantages of on-demand software are that it is relatively inexpensive to implement and easily integrated with packaged software already in place. On-demand software is widely deployed in payroll, merchant services, human resources and customer relationship management applications.

Salary.com provides on-demand compensation software that helps small businesses manage payroll and reduce employee turnover while avoiding significant investments in hardware and IT staffing.

Salary.com software is integrated with a proprietary compensation database that lists market pricing for over 3,000 positions across numerous industries.

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) is posting solid gains following news that Wal-Mart reported a rise in its third-quarter financials.

At 10:20 a.m. ET, the small-cap index had added 9.28 points, or 1.21%, to 776.37. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) was up 121.93 points, or 0.94%, to 13,109.48.

The bulls are back in action following news before the start of trading that Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) reported a 7.9% increase in third-quarter profit at its U.S. stores, while revenue rose 8.9%.

The Bentonville, Ark.-based company, the world’s largest retailer, had a profit of $2.86 billion, or $0.70 per share, compared with $2.65 billion, or $0.63 per share, a year ago. That’s above Wall Street’s expected earnings of $0.67 per share and on revenue of $91.67 billion.

Wal-Mart also improved its fiscal 2008 earnings guidance.

Meanwhile, home improvement retailer The Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD) announced a 27% drop in its third-quarter earnings, reflecting the ongoing stagnation in the U.S. housing market.

Overseas, London’s FTSE 100 index slipped 0.1%, while Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index surrendered 0.5%.

No major economic releases are scheduled for today.

Here are the current biggest percentage gainers and losers among companies with a market cap between $100 million and $750 million:

Biggest percentage gainers:

• US BioEnergy Corp. (USBE), up 13% on news of a rise in third-quarter profit.
• BIDZ.com (BIDZ), up 15% on news of a rise in third-quarter profit.
• School Specialty Inc. (SCHS), up 12% on news of a rise in fiscal second-quarter profit.

Biggest percentage losers:

• TravelCenters of America LLC. (TA), down 17% on news it swung to a third-quarter loss.
• Regeneration Technologies Inc. (RTIX) down 12% on news it has purchased Tutogen Medical Inc. (TTG) for $263 million.

If you think back to the glory days of investing (circa 1999), you'll remember how investors morphed their philosophy to fit their dreams of infinite Internet riches.

If your memory fails, here's a refresher: In the early stages of Internet mania, retail merchants like Yahoo! Inc. (Nasdaq: YHOO) and Amazon.com, Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN) took to orbit. When they free-fell back to earth, backbone providers like Cisco Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: CSCO) and JDS Uniphase Corporation (Nasdaq: JDSU) were launched. When they fizzed, energy companies (which were painted as  “Internet” plays, because—as the logic of the day went—they powered the whole system) where ignited. 

In short, investors stepped back from each successive layer of Internet exposure as the risks of each layer became obviously apparent. 

Circuitous as the logic appeared, it was grounded (somewhat) in rationality. Risk-adverse investors want to avoid risk when confronted with it. The risk usually manifests first in front-line companies. 

In today's market, investors are stepping back from the front-lines of housing.  Indeed, price movement suggests investors are more willing to invest in the sector through home improvement centers like Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE: HD) and Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE: LOW) than through homebuilders like Lennar Corporation (NYSE: LEN) and Hovnanian Enterprises, Inc. (NYSE: HOV). 

Investors with even less risk tolerance, but still desiring housing exposure, are stepping back further to the less-roiled environs of title insurance providers—the folks who ascertain the property's ownership and indebtedness status.

One company on these back lines that has maintained a semblance of balance is Stewart Information Services Corporation (NYSE: STC), one of the nation's largest title insurance groups, with a national market share of 11.8%.  Over the past year, its share price has fluttered between $34 and $44 a share (currently fluttering around $36), which compares favorably to the homebuilders, many of whom have seen their share prices plummet by 50% to 70%.

Are you being paid as much as the person in the next cubicle over? Or if you’re a business owner, what sort of compensation package should you offer to hold onto employees while remaining competitive with that company down the street?
 
Salary.com Inc. (Nasdaq: SLRY) can tell you. The Waltham, Mass., company, which held its initial public stock offering in February, calls itself “the market leader in on-demand compensation management software.” Fortune 500 clients include Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT), Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD), UPS Inc. (NYSE: UPS) and Cisco Systems Inc. (Nasdaq: CSCO).
 
Founded in 1999, Salary.com does have one big thing in its favor – solid brand awareness. In addition to the serious business of selling its software and services to companies big and small, Salary.com is better known for its public Web portal where anyone can check out how their paycheck stacks up to various averages. And some well-timed press releases have brought plenty of attention to the company’s services: the amount of each workday wasted in America (close to 20%), or the true value of a working mother to a household, compared with a stay-at-home mom ($138,095 this year) released before Mother’s Day.
 
While the IPO’s proceeds exceeded $51 million, Salary.com isn’t making money, and likely won’t be for at least a few years. Yet at least five analysts who cover the company continue to maintain a favorable view – three have it at “buy,” with two rating it a “strong buy.”

Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) fell hard, with the Dow on its heals, on fears of a slowdown in U.S. consumer spending. The small-cap index lost 16.94 points, or 2.17%, to 762.87. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) dropped 207.61 points, or 1.57%, to 13,028.92.

Economic trends forced Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) to lower its full fiscal year 2008 earnings guidance, the Bentonville, Ark.-based retailer said before the opening bell.

Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD), the largest home-improvement retailer, reported that its second-quarter profit fell 15% to $1.59 billion, from $1.86 billion a year earlier, due to declining sales.

Investors took that as a sign that the seemingly tireless American consumer is feeling the pinch of a slump in the housing sector that has caused a wave of mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures and resulted in a tighter lending environment.

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) are continuing to trade lower as trepidation of credit insolvency burgeoning across global credit markets ensues.

At 2:00 p.m. ET the Russell 2000 had shed 6.65 points, or 0.84%, to 789.01. The Dow had lost 164.61 points, or 1.21%, to 13,493.35.

The mayhem began just after the opening bell this morning after it was reported that France’s largest bank, BNP Paribas, suspended withdrawals from three of its asset-backed securities funds due to a lack of liquidity. Subprime loans comprised roughly one third of the French bank's $2.76 billion in investment funds.

After the French bank suspended its funds, the European Central Bank poured liquidity into European markets for the first time since 2001 by loaning $130.2 billion. The U.S. Federal Reserve followed suit by pouring more cash than usual into U.S. markets to absorb the European overrun.

Following the Fed’s actions, treasuries -- including short-maturity notes and money market rates -- rose. Ten-year note yields exceeded two-year yields by the widest margin since September 2005. The yield on the 10-year-note rose to 4.8%, while the yield on the two-year note rose to 4.5%.

If you’ve ever undertaken or even just considered fixing up your kitchen, there’s a good chance you’ve used the products of 20-20 Technologies Inc. (TSE: TWT). The first step in the process is usually looking at various layouts and plans using a computer. And these days, everybody from custom home design companies to large-scale supply chains does just that using 20-20 Technologies’ products.

Based in Laval, Quebec, 20-20 has a long track record of strong sales and handsome margins. Typical was 2006, when the company’s gross margin was 75.7% on revenues of C$60.4 million.

Much of that revenue comes from dealers and retailers who pay anywhere from US$1,000 to $15,000 per seat for 20-20’s design software, which allows the user to choose from different appliances, cabinets, and furniture, and plan and visualize the interior of residential or commercial spaces.

The company’s software can ensure that a kitchen design meets specific rules and regulations, and will produce realistic 3D representations of the final design. It can generate a list of components including pricing and availability, and even submit purchase orders to the various component makers. The software greatly reduces design and ordering errors, and also helps close sales, since customers are much more willing to make a purchase when they can visualize the final outcome.

20-20 also creates and maintains electronic catalogues for product manufacturers. The company charges anywhere from around US$30,000 to upwards of US$100,000 to develop an electronic catalogue.

The company boasts a dominant market position, with its software found in most outlets of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE: HD), British home improvement retailer B&Q, and Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE: LOW). In addition, retailers often offer a "light" version of the program on their websites.

A recent infusion of big-time talent has things looking up for a beaten-down microcap software play in the human resource management sector.

After years of largely profit-less growth, Burlingame, Calif.-based Workstream Inc. (Nasdaq: WSTM) could finally be poised to turn the corner under a recently revamped management team. In February, Deepak Gupta, the former general manager and founder of PeopleSoft’s On Demand software unit, was named chief executive of tiny $56 million Workstream. Prior to PeopleSoft, Gupta was the chief architect of Oracle Corporation’s (Nasdaq: ORCL) hosting business and the global leader for the software giant’s middleware line.

Since the hiring of Gupta, a string of heavy hitters from established enterprise software leaders have also joined Workstream’s executive ranks. This impressive group of new sales & marketing hires hail from Oracle, PeopleSoft, International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM) and Kronos among other well-known software companies. While it remains to be seen if Gupta can charge up Workstream’s top-line growth and lead this microcap software play to profitability, he certainly has attracted a high-caliber management team that has tasted success before.

Founded a little over a decade ago, Workstream has historically focused its efforts on selling compensation, performance and talent management solutions to large enterprises (over 2,500 employees). Workstream’s 400 customers include such brand names as Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC), Nordstrom, Inc. (NYSE: JWN), Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX), E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company (NYSE: DD), The Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD), the American Red Cross and the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation. In a bid to significantly expand its market opportunity, Workstream unveiled last month three new on-demand solutions for mid-sized businesses (between 100 and 2,500 employees). Workstream’s software frees companies from having to manually manage human resources processes using spreadsheets and paper documents for tracking.

Nanotechnology, a broad field that essentially means the ability to create specifically designed compounds a few nanometers in size, has for many years been hailed as the next great breakthrough for solving a plethora of the world’s problems. At this size, the electrical, chemical and optical properties of the compounds are radically transformed, promising such things as more efficient electronic circuits, longer-lived batteries, improved drug-delivery systems, engineered biofuels, better lasers and more advanced imaging equipment.

But so far, successful commercial products based on the technology have been harder to find than a nanocrystal under a microscope. Nanophase Technologies Corporation (Nasdaq: NANX,) founded in the late 1990s, has for the last several years been focused on getting real products to market rather than on simply creating new nanoparticles. It has partnerships with BASF, Rohm & Haas Company (NYSE: ROH), health care companies and others, through which it has developed more than 200 commercial products. Those products are now being used to create semiconductors with fewer flaws, better fuel cells, scratch-resistant and microbe-resistant coatings, and even better sunscreens and deodorants.

In April, it announced a new deal with Behr, a premium paint company that is using its nanoparticles to make a paint that resists mildew, has better adhesion and requires no primer. The paint will go on sale at The Home Depot, Inc.’s (NYSE: HD) stores soon. Last December Nanophase also signed a deal with a German company to produce a transparent coating that protects automobile paint from scratching.

Several analysts are hoping that signals a turning point for the company’s profitability and long-stagnant stock. Nikolay Tishchenko at Crown Global Capital, sees the potential for 30% to 50% annual revenue growth for Nanophase for the next several years. “Nanotechnology is breaking out of its limited applications and is at the early stage of exponential growth,” he says. “I like the company’s management and business model.”

The Russell 2000 fell hard following a dire warning from the financial sector and neutral inflation comments from the U.S. Federal Reserve’s Chairman. The Russell 2000 violently snapped its five-day winning streak, losing 15.76 points, or 1.85%, to finish at 837.48. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 148.27 points, or 1.09%, to 13,501.70.

Stocks began the day on the wrong foot following news that Sears Holdings Corp. (Nasdaq: SHLD) reported a decline in same store sales for the nine-week period ended July 7 and an announcement by home improvement retailer Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD) that earnings for the year will decline more than expected.

Later, rating agency Standard & Poor scored one for the bears when it announced that it may reduce the credit ratings of $12 billion of bonds backed by subprime mortgages. That could make things even worse for hedge funds and securities firms that had placed bets on subprime mortages, which are mortgages made to borrowers with poor or non-existent credit histories.

The Russell 2000 is lower than the other indices on news of weak earnings from major players and negative developments in the subprime financial sector. At 11:52 a.m. ET the Russell 2000 was down 7.25 points, or 0.85%, to 845.99. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 35.77 points, or 0.26%, to 13,614.20.

Shares of Carrier Access Corp. (Nasdaq: CACS), which makes converged access equipment to wireline and wireless carriers, are in negative territory on news of a larger-than-expected forecast quarterly net loss. The net loss for the second quarter ended June 30 is projected at between $0.28 per share and $0.31 per share, the Boulder, Colo.-based company announced after Monday’s close. Seven analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial were looking for a net loss of $0.27 per share. Carrier Access also said that is streamlining its wireless and converged access businesses. Shares are down $0.58, or 12%, to $4.45.

The Russell 2000 is in the red while the Dow is looking to yet another record close following news of mixed economic data and a lower-than-expected rise in construction spending.  Among small caps, news of a restructuring plan is hurting shares of Delta Galil Industries Ltd. (Nasdaq: DELT), while strong quarterly results lifted Datawatch Corporation (Nasdaq: DWCH).

At 11:57 a.m. ET the Russell 2000 had lost 2.15 points, or 0.26 percent, to 827.55.  The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 11.70 points, or 0.09 percent, to 13,132.64.  That’s above Friday’s record close of 13.120.94.