Tag - Pacr

Stocks extended their gains for a second day in a row with all major indices closing up, though below a one percent gain.

The Dow finished the session at 9,398, up 37 points; the Nasdaq closed today at 2,009, up 11 points; and the S&P 500 finished at 1,012, up 7 points.

The Russell 2000 index, a composite of the leading small-cap stocks, closed at 575, up 4 points.

Small-cap price movers were lead by Kodiak Oil (Amex:KOG), up 30%. Following KOG were Dot Hill Systems (Nasdaq:HILL), up 22%; Pacer International (Nasdaq:PACR), up 16%; BioSante Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq:BPAX), up 16%; and ACADIA Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq:ACAD), up 16%.

*****Last week's better-than-expected payroll data is being offset by new jobless claims today. 558,000 people filed new claims for unemployment benefits. That was more than the median estimate of 545,000.

The number of people collecting unemployment fell by 141,000 and that lowers the unemployment rate. That sounds good, but I don't think it is. Most likely, benefits for these 141,000 have run out. So what little money they had coming in is now gone and they've just stopped asking. 

*****The most direct effect of massive unemployment is less spending and less revenues for America's retailers. Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT) beat earnings but missed on revenue. That basically means Wal-Mart fired a bunch of people to cut costs, then those people spent less at the store.

Overall, retail sales were down 1% in July after a 0.8% rise in June. With the unemployment rate still expected to rise to over 10%, and likely to stay at high levels for a few years, there's not a lot of upside for the retail sector.

*****SmallCapInvestor PRO members are just a few pennies away from knocking down another 100% winner. This time, it's a Chinese organic fertilizer company. The stock has been on a tear for the last month. And despite the fact that it's nearly doubled, the forward P/E is 17 and the PEG ratio is .45. In other words, there are more gains to come.

I have a new special situations report with detailed research on my 100% China winner plus two other high flying Chinese stocks. Click here to get this report now.

And speaking of SmallCapInvestor, we're open for voting for the t-shirt slogan for my first book, The Small Cap Investor: Secrets to Winning Big with Small Cap Stocks. There are some excellent slogan ideas, and if you'd like to help pick a winner, you can cast your vote for the best slogan at the SmallCapInvestor Facebook page.

Click here to cast your vote now.

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I'd like to thank SCI Daily readers for helping with the marketing of my first book. You're helping make it a success and I really appreciate it.

*****I probably shouldn't do this, but TradeMaster Daily Stock Alerts technical analyst Jason Cimpl is alerting his readers to breakouts in the biotech sector. A couple names he's watching are Orexigen (Nasdaq:OREX) and Jazz Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq:JAZZ).

Jason thinks Jazz is good for a 21% move from current levels, so if you're looking for a short-term trade from TradeMaster, this might be a good one.

Be on the look-out for tomorrow's SCI Daily as Jason will once again provide readers with video charting of the week's movements and most importantly, his outlook for how to trade for profits in the coming week. Look for this in tomorrow's issue of SCI Daily.

*****Investors are ignoring short-term weakness in oil demand and focusing on the long-term fundamentals. Oil prices are back over $71 a barrel today despite the highest reserve levels since 1991.

Barclay's expects oil prices to average $76 a barrel in the third quarter. And don't forget, hurricane season is looming. Oil stocks should be bought on dips.

Ian Wyatt
Editor
SCI Daily

The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) closed up 2.47, or 0.55%, at 450.42. Small caps are now down 9.8% for the year, while the Dow is off 9.6% and the S&P 500 is down 7.5%. Some of today’s small-cap gainers were DuPont Fabros (NYSE:DFT), Buffalo Wild Wings (Nasdaq:BWLD) and P.F. Chang’s China Bistro (Nasdaq:PFCB).

Other Market Watch highlights today included:

• Equity markets in Europe and Asia were lower overnight, with financial and consumer product stocks on the slide, which plays into the soft initial tone.
• The retail sales report headline figure came in at plus 1%, which was well ahead of the projection for a slide of 0.7%.
• The weekly unemployment claims report showed that 623,000 workers filed for benefits last week, which was above the projection of 610,000.
• The number of people forced to file for continuing claims marked a record high; the 4-week moving average for claims was at a 26-year peak.
• Retail shares also were struggling today, despite the bullish print on headline monthly retail sales data. The S&P Retail Index was down 1.8%.
• Small-cap stocks edged higher Thursday, a nice reversal from this morning when the market appeared to be in freefall mode.
• Energy markets had a little bit of a divergence today between equities and cash, with crude oil prices closing down 5.4%, losing $1.96 a barrel to $33.98.
• Copper prices tanked in the morning, but also found some buying interest as the stock market righted the ship.

Small Cap Gainers:

• DuPont Fabros popped 37% after reporting Q4 and full-year 2008 results, and enteting into a loan agreement. See (NYSE:DFT).
• Buffalo Wild Wings Inc. gapped higher and shot up some 34% as the . . .

Pacer International Inc. (Nasdaq:PACR), Terex Corp. (NYSE:TEX) and comScore Inc. (Nasdaq:SCOR) are among the biggest percentage losers in Thursday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $2 billion.

Small-cap stocks plunged early Thursday, dismissing an upbeat retail sales report to focus on dreary corporate profit reports and another somber reading on the employment picture. At 10:02 a.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was off 9.39, or 2.10% at 438.55, while the Dow was down 2.70% and the big-cap barometer was now at the lowest point since November.

The retail sales report came in at plus 1.0%, which was quite a bit better than the forecast for a slide of 0.7%. Although the upside surprise did help lift stock index futures off the pre-market lows and might have had a brief supportive tone into the regular stock market opening, the general perception of the retail sales report was that it was a “head-scratcher.”

“This increase broke a record six-month string of declines during which spending fell at a 21.1% annualized rate,” Steven Wood, chief economist with Insight Economics, said via email. “However, both November's and December's earlier estimated declines were revised to be modestly deeper. Despite this month's gain, retail sales have fallen at a 16.3% annualized rate over the past three months. Over the past year, retail spending has decreased by a near record 9.7%. Spending at motor vehicle dealers jumped by 1.6% despite a 7.1% decline in unit sales, which is puzzling,” Wood said.

The rise in retail sales also didn’t seem to fit with anecdotal reports on store traffic and consumer retrenchment amid a deepening recession and rising unemployment. Speaking of unemployment, the weekly claims report showed that 623,000 Americans were forced to file for unemployment benefits last week, which was a mild dip from last week’s 26-year peak, but still a larger number than forecast. The number of workers forced to remain on unemployment rolls rose to a new record high and the four-week moving average on claims was at a 26-year high. Simply put, . . .

Pacer International Inc. (Nasdaq:PACR), Terex Corp. (Nasdaq:TEX) and comScore Inc. (Nasdaq:SCOR) are among the biggest percentage losers in Thursday morning's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $2 billion.

Also included among the results: New Oriental Education & Technology Group Inc. (Nasdaq:EDU), Gildan Activewear Inc. (Nasdaq:GIL), Syneron Medical Ltd. (Nasdaq:ELOS), InfoSpace . . .

Multi-Fineline Electronix Inc (Nasdaq:MFLX), Advisory Board Co (Nasdaq:ABCO) and Pacer International Inc (Nasdaq:PACR) are among the biggest percentage losers in Wednesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: National Financial Partners Corp (Nasdaq:NFP), ACCO Brands Corp (Nasdaq:ABD), 21st Century Holding Co (Nasdaq:TCHC), Smith Micro Software Inc (Nasdaq:SMSI), Cambrex Corp (Nasdaq:CBM) and Kulicke & Soffa (Nasdaq:KLIC).

Here are the biggest percentage losers among small caps:

ILOG ADR (Nasdaq:ILOG), Synchronoss Technologies Inc (Nasdaq:SNCR) and Idera Pharmaceuticals Inc (Nasdaq:IDRA) are among the most actively traded companies in Wednesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: South Finl Group (Nasdaq:TSFG), Hain Celestial Group Inc (Nasdaq:HAIN), Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd (Nasdaq:GILT), Pacer International Inc (Nasdaq:PACR), American Pacific Corp (Nasdaq:APFC) and Cal-Maine Foods Inc (Nasdaq:CALM).

Here are the most actively traded companies among small caps:

Nektar Therapeutics (Nasdaq: NKTR), China Sunergy Co., Ltd. (Nasdaq: CSUN) and Kosan Biosciences Inc. (Nasdaq: KOSN) are among the most actively traded companies in Thursday pre-market trading among those with market capitalizations under $750 million:

The transportation and logistics industries have tried to keep rolling along in 2007, even in a U.S. economy that continues to struggle at fending off the effects of the crumbling subprime mortgage market. Freight volumes are off, however, and many companies are operating with reduced expectations for 2007.

While the stocks of many companies in transportation and logistics have failed to gain much traction in recent months, including intermodal leader Pacer International (Nasdaq: PACR), it’s far from being a train wreck throughout the sector.

Based in Concord, Calif., Pacer International is a holding company that has dropped into the small-cap spectrum as its shares have lost value since February, pulling its market capitalization to around $665 million. With a gross revenue for 2006 of $1.9 billion, Pacer accounted for one-fifth of all intermodal container movement in North America and is also the largest provider of intermodal container services between the United States and Mexico.

Pacer operates in two segments: intermodal, which includes its double-decker Stacktrain and other rail services; and logistics, which provides services including warehousing and distribution. About 80% of its business comes from the intermodal segment, with the remainder coming from logistics.

For the past three years, Pacer was named to the Forbes Platinum 400 list, also called the “Best Big Companies in America.” Pacer, with a five-year total return of 15.6%, was among 17 transportation companies selected from the transportation sector for the list.

April 4(SmallCapInvestor.com) – These are among the most actively traded small cap companies in pre-market trading this morning: Pacer International, Inc. (Nasdaq: PACR) ; IDM Pharma Inc. (Nasdaq: IDMI) ; Royal Gold, Inc. (Nasdaq: RGLD) ; Coldwater Creek Inc. (Nasdaq: CWTR) ; Hayes Lemmerz International, Inc. (Nasdaq: HAYZ) ; EXFO Electrical-Optical Engineering Inc. (Nasdaq: EXFO) .