Tag - Pgi

Premiere Global Services Inc. (Nasdaq:PGI), AMCOL International Corp. (Nasdaq:ACO) and Rigel Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq:RIGL) are among the biggest percentage losers in Friday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Deckers Outdoor Corp. (Nasdaq:DECK), Western Alliance Bancorp (Nasdaq:WAL), NetScout Systems Inc. (Nasdaq:NTCT), Firstbank Corp. (Nasdaq:FBMI), Lakeland Bancorp Inc. (Nasdaq:LBAI) and Health Fitness Corp. (Nasdaq:FIT).

The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) closed down 11.85% today, snapping a string of five consecutive winning sessions with the worst daily loss of the year. Some of today’s small-cap gainers are Mentor Corp. (NYSE:MNT), Premiere Global Services (NYSE:PGI) and Telvent (Nasdaq:TLVT).

Other Market Watch highlights today included:

• The Russell is now down 46% for 2008, while the Dow is down 39% and the S&P 500 is down 44%.
• Credit market safe havens were the preferred outlet of choice today, as investors fled stocks and sought refuge in Treasuries.
• The market got off on the wrong foot today when manufacturing data out of China reflected a big drop in new orders.
• The ISM Manufacturing Survey came in at 36.2, which was below the 38 forecast, and which was also the lowest reading in 26 years.
• Sub-index data on prices paid was the lowest in 59 years and the new orders sub-index was the lowest since 1980.
• Energy, commodity stocks were major decliners today. Crude prices plunged 9.4% to $49.28/barrel, pulling down energy shares in the wash.
• Industrial, precious metals took a beating, platinum was down 7%, palladium down nearly 10%, silver off more than 8% and gold down some 5%.

Small Cap Gainers:

• The biggest mover today was Mentor Corp. (NYSE:MNT), as the maker of breast implants shot some 90% higher on news that the firm would be purchased by Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) for $31 a share.
• Premiere Global Services Inc. (NYSE:PGI) rallied 29% as the on-demand . . .

Small-cap stocks may have finished out November like a lamb, but they started out December like a lion, sinking hard and fast today in an abrupt about-face from last week’s strong upward surge. Slumping manufacturing reports around the world triggered today’s rout and the only safe place to park money was in credit instruments as financial, industrial, retail and commodity markets were in retreat mode. The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) closed down 56.05, or 11.85%, at 417.09, snapping a string of five consecutive winning sessions with the worst daily loss of the year. The Russell is now down 46% for 2008, while the Dow is down 39% and the S&P 500 is down 44%.

Credit market safe havens were the preferred outlet of choice today, as investors fled stocks and sought refuge in Treasuries – especially after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said that the Fed could buy long-dated Treasuries and that the economy remained under considerable stress. He also said that the Fed’s scope for reducing rates to stimulate growth was limited at this point, but that the U.S. economy was now better equipped to deal with the credit crisis. Yields on benchmark 10-year notes went wild, sinking more than 7% at one point during the day to about 2.7% as strong demand for notes lifted the price and slashed yields. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said that recent bailout moves were making progress, that banks should increase lending habits and that he has more programs developing to boost lending. He also said that mortgage rates have not come down as much as hoped and that Americans know the economy is in recession. The market extended the afternoon sell-off as he spoke.

The market got off on the wrong foot today when manufacturing data out of China reflected a big drop in new orders. China is the world’s hub for labor, with widgets assembled there and shipped out around the globe. Then, manufacturing reports out of Europe were dour, setting the stage for a startlingly bad report on manufacturing activity here in the United States. The ISM Manufacturing Survey came in at 36.2, which was below the 38 forecast, and which was also the lowest reading in 26 years. What’s more, sub-index data on prices paid was the lowest in 59 years and the new orders sub-index was the lowest since 1980. This is a heavy week for economic data, and today’s numbers clearly sent an icy shudder through the market. As the week progresses, we’ll see data on vehicle sales, services sector activity, factory orders and weekly claims as we head toward Friday’s big monthly employment release. What’s more, we’ll also have weekly and monthly retail sales numbers to pour over, . . .

Small-cap stocks extended the morning free fall, with financial, retail and commodity sectors all taking a beating as investors recoiled from a batch of brutal manufacturing data from around the world and fretted about the true eventual returns from this holiday spending season. Today's small-cap gainers are Premiere Global Services (NYSE:PGI), Emrise Corp. (NYSE:ERI) and VAALCO Energy (NYSE:EGY).

Today's Market Watch highlights included:

• Retail stocks were down today, with the S&P Retail Index at -5.7% despite early press reports that Black Friday was a success.  
• The Commodity Research Bureau Index of 19 physical markets was down 3.2% at midday.  
• The dollar was firm against the euro, which further played into the collapse in commodity markets.  
• Crude oil prices were down some 8% so far today, with U.S. crude benchmark values slipping through the $50 support line.

Small Cap Gainers:

• Shares of Premiere Global Services are up 30% after Oppenheimer & Co. upgraded the company to "outperform" from "perform." See (NYSE:PGI).  
• Emrise Corp. up 12% after receiving $1 million in new orders for in-flight entertainment products. See (NYSE:ERI).  
• VAALCO Energy up 11% on heavy volume. See (NYSE:EGY).  
• Nektar Therapeutics up about 10% on lower-than-average volume. See (Nasdaq:NKTR).

Small Cap Losers:

• China Valves Technology Inc. collapsed 79% on the China manufacturing woes, but it should be noted that this stock rarely trades much anyhow and was down on less than 1,000 shares trading today. See (Nasdaq:CVVT).  
• Russian steelmakers Mechel, TMK request a total of $3 billion in state loans to refinance their foreign debt. MTL is down 28.5%. See (NYSE:MTL).
• Excel Maritime Carriers dives 27% today following a downgrade last week from Cantor Fitzgerald to "sell" from "hold." See (NYSE:EXM).
• Gulf Island Fabrication Inc. tumbled 23% as the offshore drilling platform specialist was caught in the undertow of the slide in energy values. See (Nasdaq:GIFI).  
• Talbot's falls another 22% today following a widened Q3 net loss, conference call last week. See (NYSE:TLB).  

Small-cap stocks went into free-fall mode into midday trading, pulled down by worries a collapse in the nation’s auto manufacturing business could sweep into a wider problem for an economy already in the throes of recession. In addition, money continues to move out of equities and into credit instruments as investors seek safe-haven outlets to try and ride out this storm. That safe-haven mentality also takes a deeper toll on small caps, which are seen as even riskier than large-cap companies. Today’s small-cap gainers are Orexigen Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq:OREX), Bank of Ireland (NYSE:IRE) and Bristow Group (NYSE:BRS). 

Other Market Watch highlights today included:

• While industrial metals such as copper have been pummeled by the economic crisis, gold stands to benefit by panic in financials.  
• The push for safe-haven outlets has extended into the gold market, with global demand for the yellow metal soaring 18% in the 3rd quarter.  
• Yields on benchmark 10-year notes tumbled more than 3.5% at mid-session as investors made a stampede for Treasury products.  
• Small-cap stocks went into free-fall mode into midday trading, pulled down by worries of a collapse in the nation’s auto manufacturing business.

Small Cap Gainers:

• Orexigen Therapeutics Inc. is up 14% without any apparent fresh news behind the move. See ( Nasdaq:OREX).  
• Post Office enters talks with the Bank of Ireland over unlimited guarantee account; IRE shares climb nearly 8%. See (NYSE:IRE).  
• Bristow Group pops up over 7% after announcing preferred dividend. See (NYSE:BRS). 
• Premiere Global Services up 7.5% on heavier-than-average volume. See (NYSE:PGI). 

Small Cap Losers:

• Century Aluminum Co. tumbled 31%, hitting a 52-week low. CENX peaked above $80/share in May – now it's trading below $6. See (Nasdaq:CENX).  
• Liz Claiborne hit a new 52-week low of $2.53 today and is currently down about 20% as the retail sector continues to bruise from the crippled economy. See (NYSE:LIZ).
• GM was down 15% on perceptions that this week’s lobby efforts by auto executives in Washington might not yield a rescue package. See (NYSE:GM).  
• Strategic Hotels & Resorts is down another 13%, continuing its steep decline seen in the past few weeks and making a new 52-week low of $1.10 today in the process. See (NYSE:BEE).

Special delivery to investors from Premiere Global Services (NYSE:PGI): an undervalued growth stock that has the wind beneath its wings. With a bevy of business communications applications and a selling model that makes accessing them easy, Premiere is gliding along in a sector fraught with missed connections.  

The company’s fortunes are tied to its Premiere Global Communications Operating System (PGiCOS), which offers business clients handy access to a number of applications from the Internet. Premiere provides a range of technology to automate and simplify everyday corporate needs including conferencing (both web and audio), document delivery, desktop fax, e-marketing and notifications.

Considering the economic drag on telecommunications, Premiere’s performance has been surprisingly strong. The telecommunications services sector, of which Premiere is a member, was down 15.8% year to date through July 15, 2008. At the same time, Premiere was up 5% on the year. Other telecommunications companies considered peers include AT&T (NYSE:T), down 21%, and Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ), down 19%.

Founded in 1991 and headquartered in Atlanta, Ga., Premiere’s business may seem mundane but its results are anything but. Its flock of business applications pits it against various competitors depending on need, and provides a competitive advantage compared to single-product vendors. None of Premiere’s rivals has a similarly comprehensive on-demand platform, nor — Premiere says — a similar drive to directly integrate and embed their technologies into a customer’s business . . .