Tag - Sglp

A fresh batch of economic data today was predictably awful, with the New York Manufacturing Survey . . .

The Russell 2000 careened at closing Wednesday, plummeting 9.5%, or the second-lowest close in five years. The dramatic close was due to dreadful retail sales, a cautious tone from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and the “beige book” report on the economy that showed activity weakening across the United States. The Russell 2000 is now down 34% for the year, while the Dow is off 35% and the S&P 500 is down 38%. Small-cap gainers today include Tufco Technologies (Nasdaq:TFCO), BankAtlantic (NYSE:BBX) and Rocky Mountain Chocolate (Nasdaq:RMCF). Other Market Watch highlights today included:

• The Commodity Research Bureau Index of 19 physical markets got hammered again today, losing nearly 4.5% while sinking to the lowest level since February 2005.
• Copper prices shed some 8% today.
• The retail sales report out today marked the third consecutive negative reading for retail sales — something that has not happened in some 17 years.
• Today’s freefall represented the largest one-day decline of the year for small caps, just two days after the market put together the biggest one-day advance of 2008.
• Crude drops 5% today, settling under $75 for the first time since Sept. 2007.
• The NY Manufacturing Survey is down 24.6% to the lowest reading in some seven years, adding to the bleak tone from the retail sales figure.

Small Cap Gainers:

• Tufco Technologies (Nasdaq:TFCO) doubles stock buyback program to 200,000 shares; stock soars 40%.
• BankAtlantic Bancorp, Inc. (NYSE:BBX) up 16% as regional banks . . .

Small-cap stocks went back into full-fledged collapse mode Wednesday as recession fears were stoked by dreadful retail sales, a cautious tone from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and the “beige book” report on the economy that showed activity weakening across the U.S. The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) closed down 52.54, or 9.47%, at 502.11, the second-lowest close in more than five years. The Russell 2000 is now down 34% for the year, while the Dow is off 35% and the S&P 500 is down 38%. Today’s freefall represented the largest one-day decline of the year, just two days after the market put together the biggest one-day advance of 2008.

The market was already in a defensive posture ahead of this morning’s opening, but if the bulls were hoping for some kind of friendly surprise out of the latest batch of economic data, it just didn’t happen, which opened the floodgates of selling pressure. Then, as the morning progressed, the awful retail sales number was followed up by a speech from Bernanke that worried investors, then the afternoon ushered in the beige book report that underscored a fragile economic position right now.

When it was all said and done, the biggest headline today was likely the retail sales report, which not only slumped to the worst percentage decline in more than three years, but which was also woefully short of the forecast. For the record, September retail sales were down 1.2%, compared with the projection for a slide of 0.6%. In addition, this marked the third consecutive negative reading for retail sales — something that has not happened in some 17 years. With the U.S. economy largely driven by consumer spending, a pullback in retail sales heading toward rising unemployment was not the kind of news needed to extend the recent recovery bounce in stocks.

Fears of a global slowdown punctuated by a deep recession in the U.S. permeated all investment classes. Crude oil prices slumped to fresh 13-month lows, sinking some 5% to close at $74.54 a barrel, and the recent collapse in energy prices has been a bearish element in play for energy stocks. But the slide in commodities was more than just an energy story. Copper prices shed some 8% today and Chile’s Codelco, which operates the largest copper mines in the world, acknowledged that the 2009 outlook likely included lower prices. The Commodity Research Bureau Index of 19 . . .

Small-cap stocks edged lower Thursday, unable to overlook a dramatic rally in crude oil prices and ongoing concerns about financial stocks. The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) closed down 6.35, or 0.8%, at 725.25 and is now down 5.3% for the year. Small caps lagged the performance in the Dow and S&P 500, but were on a similar track to the Nasdaq Composite for much of the day. The Dow gained 0.1%, and is down 13.8% for 2008, while the S&P 500 was up 0.2% and is down 12.9% on the year.

The big story today was the energy market, with crude oil prices soaring some $5 dollars, or more than 5% a barrel back above the $120 barrier, while generating the largest one-day gain in about two months. If previous price action was any indicator, the stock market starts to get very queasy when crude oil prices rise above $130 dollars a barrel. When Goldman Sachs reiterated its call this week for $149 crude by year’s end, it sent shivers through consumer goods stocks, which stand to get the short end of the consumer stick if everyone has to start paying more than $4 a gallon at the pump — especially if food price inflation kicks into gear.

The Commodity Research Bureau Index went absolutely nutty Thursday, jumping 3.7%. This index of 19 physical markets covers more than just the energy component, and the rise in commodity prices today wasn’t just a one-trick pony. For instance, coffee was up 6%, sugar was up 3%, cotton was up 2.7%, silver shot up 5%, gold was up nearly 3% and copper jumped some 4%. The market has been trying to shrug off recent inflation reports on consumer and producer prices as “dated” pointing to the sharp slide off the highs in crude oil prices, but with commodities back on the prowl, it might make it more difficult to explain away the data next time around.

A big component of the surge in commodities on Thursday was tied to a sudden reversal in fortune for the U.S. dollar. The mighty buck had been on an impressive bullish charge in recent days, soaring to multi-month highs against the yen, pound sterling, the euro and a host of other currency markets, but went into a tailspin today, tumbling some 1.1% against the yen and over 0.9% versus the euro. Many of the world’s commodity markets — including crude oil — are priced in dollar . . .

Mexco Energy Corp. (Nasdaq:MXC), SemGroup Energy Partners LP (Nasdaq:SGLP) and Metalico Inc. (Nasdaq:MEA) are among the biggest percentage gainers in Thursday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.   

Also included among the results: Citi Trends Inc. (Nasdaq:CTRN), Info Group Inc. (Nasdaq:IUSA), Central Gold Trust (Nasdaq:GTU), Century Bancorp (Nasdaq:CNBKA), Pyramid Oil Co. (Nasdaq:PDO) and Union Drilling Inc. (Nasdaq:UDRL).        

Here are the biggest percentage gainers among small caps:    

Stanley Furniture Co Inc (Nasdaq:STLY), A Power Energy Generation Systems Ltd (Nasdaq:APWR) and Lakeland Bancorp Inc (Nasdaq:LBAI) are among the most actively traded companies in Monday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Canadian Solar Inc (Nasdaq:CSIQ), SemGroup Energy Partners LP (Nasdaq:SGLP), ViroPharma Inc (Nasdaq:VPHM), Cbeyond Inc (Nasdaq:CBEY), Center Financial Corp (Nasdaq:CLFC) and Hoku Scientific Inc (Nasdaq:HOKU).

Here are the most actively traded companies among small caps:

Stewart Enterprises Inc (Nasdaq:STEI), Arthrocare Corp (Nasdaq:ARTC) and Volterra Semiconductor Corp (Nasdaq:VLTR) are among the most actively traded companies in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Industrial Distribution Group Inc (Nasdaq:IDGR), SemGroup Energy Partners LP (Nasdaq:SGLP), Solarfun Power Holdings Co Ltd (Nasdaq:SOLF), CKX Inc (Nasdaq:CKXE), Ceragon Networks Ltd (Nasdaq:CRNT) and Crocs Inc (Nasdaq:CROX).

Here are the most actively traded companies among small caps:

Small-cap stocks are treading higher in afternoon trading, boosted by healthy earnings on the banking front and mergers and acquisitions news. At 2:07 p.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was up 2.96, or 0.43%, at 696.04. As oil prices rose and two pharmaceutical blue chips delayed reporting their quarterly results, the broader market was down in afternoon trading. The Dow lost 36.88, or 0.32%, to 11,459.69.

The leading indicators report, which came out at 10:00 a.m. ET, was in line with the forecast for a dip of 0.1% and had almost no immediate impact on the market. Overall, this is a very light week for economic data, but it will be a huge week for earnings results.

Pharmaceutical giants Merck & Co. (NYSE:MRK) and Schering-Plough Corp. (NYSE:SGP) delayed releasing their second-quarter earnings until after the closing to let researchers report results from a study of a cholesterol drug marketed by the two companies in a joint venture.

In what has become an ongoing trend, a major U.S. bank has posted better-than-expected earnings. This time around, the good news was from Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), as the nation’s largest retail bank topped the Street earnings forecast and jumped 7% in the afternoon session. The earnings surprise follows on the heels of better-than-expected results last week from Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE:WFC), JP Morgan (NYSE:JPM) and Citigroup (NYSE:C).

Within the financial spectrum, government-sponsored mortgage lenders Fannie Mae (NYSE:FNM) and Freddie Mac (NYSE:FRE) were solidly higher this morning in the wake of weekend comments from Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, who said that he expects Congress to quickly pass his bail-out program for GSEs. Paulson . . .

SemGroup Energy Partners LP (Nasdaq:SGLP) said ahead of the opening that creditors had assumed control of its parent company SemGroup Holdings LP. The news sent shares up 20%. Last week, SemGroup Holdings announced it was considering filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. SemGroup Energy is a Tulsa, Okla.-based operator of midstream energy assets. High fuel costs have threatened the delivery aspect of its business. Shares are down 65% since January.

In today’s trading, shares of SemGroup Energy are at $9.96 at 11:51 a.m. ET, up $1.66 from Friday’s close. Shares have ranged from $5.98 to $31 during the past year.

Arthrocare Corp (Nasdaq:ARTC), UAL Corp (Nasdaq:UAUA) and Ceragon Networks Ltd (Nasdaq:CRNT) are among the most actively traded companies in Monday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: SemGroup Energy Partners LP (Nasdaq:SGLP), Blue Phoenix Solutions (Nasdaq:BPHX), Solarfun Power Holdings Co Ltd (Nasdaq:SOLF), Canadian Solar Inc (Nasdaq:CSIQ), IMAX CORPORATION (Nasdaq:IMAX) and Crocs Inc (Nasdaq:CROX).

Here are the most actively traded companies among small caps:

SemGroup Energy Partners LP (Nasdaq:SGLP), Northern States Financial Corp (Nasdaq:NSFC) and Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co Inc (Nasdaq:GAP) are among the new 52-week lows in Friday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Community Valley Bancorp (CA) (Nasdaq:CVLL), Global Partners LP (Nasdaq:GLP), Courier Corp (Nasdaq:CRRC), Great Northern Iron Ore Properties (Nasdaq:GNI), Virtusa Corp (Nasdaq:VRTU) and Lincoln Bancorp (Nasdaq:LNCB).

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

Small-cap stocks are stumbling in Friday afternoon trading, pulled down by profit-taking ahead of the weekend from money traders who caught the bounce this week and by weak earnings in the tech sector. At 1:54 p.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was down 5.65, or 0.81%, at 690.98.

Despite the rise in financials led by Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C), techs were on the defensive this afternoon, paced by losses in Google (Nasdaq:GOOG) and Microsoft (Nasdaq:MSFT), both of which reported earnings that disappointed investors.

The greenback is up against the yen, but down against the dollar. A positive reaction to Citibank’s results seemed to boost the U.S. dollar briefly. Crude oil is up to $129.90 in recent trading.

Broad market sectors on the rise this afternoon included casinos, technology retailers, construction raw materials, money center banks and trucking companies. On the downside, catalog and mail-order retailers, grocery stores, coal, insurance, and audio and video equipment companies were experiencing a sell-off.

Small-cap stocks on the move this afternoon include airline holding company Pinnacle Airlines Corp. (Nasdaq:PNCL), which is up more 36% after announcing after the close on Thursday it had extended its agreement with Delta Air Lines Inc. (NYSE:DAL). Brookings, S.D.-based ethanol producer VeraSun Energy Corporation (NYSE:VSE) was upgraded early Friday by UBS to “buy” from “neutral,” sending shares up more than 25%. AMCOL International Corporation (NYSE:ACO) has jumped 19% in today’s trading after reporting better-than-expected second-quarter results. The specialty mineral producer reported ahead of the bell that 2008 . . .

SemGroup Energy Partners LP (Nasdaq:SGLP) is down 38% to a 52-week low today after announcing after the close Thursday its parent company, Semgroup LP, is having liquidity problems and could seek Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. SemGroup Energy is a Tulsa, Okla.-based company that owns and maintains a portfolio of midstream energy assets. Also, ahead of today’s opening, the company announced Terry Ronan will replace Kevin Foxx as the president of CEO SemGroup LP.

In today’s trading, shares are at $6.79 at 9:59 a.m. ET, down $4.21 from Thursday’s close. Trading volume is well above the average number of shares. During the past year, shares have ranged from the 52-week low of $6.27 it reached just after the opening to a high of $31.

SemGroup Energy Partners LP (Nasdaq:SGLP), UAL Corp (Nasdaq:UAUA) and Gmarket Inc (Nasdaq:GMKT) are among the most actively traded companies in Friday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Medivation Inc (Nasdaq:MDVN), Crocs Inc (Nasdaq:CROX), ValueClick Inc (Nasdaq:VCLK), Overstock.com Inc (Nasdaq:OSTK), Canadian Solar Inc (Nasdaq:CSIQ) and ViroPharma Inc (Nasdaq:VPHM).

Here are the most actively traded companies among small caps:

SemGroup Energy Partners LP (Nasdaq:SGLP), TeleTech Holdings Inc (Nasdaq:TTEC) and ValueClick Inc (Nasdaq:VCLK) are among the new 52-week lows in Thursday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Courier Corp (Nasdaq:CRRC), Northern States Financial Corp (Nasdaq:NSFC), Hawthorn Bancshares Inc (Nasdaq:HWBK), Cornerstone Progressive (Nasdaq:CFP), China Nepstar Chain Drugstore Ltd (Nasdaq:NPD) and C&F  Financial Corp (Nasdaq:CFFI).

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

Small-cap stocks generated another solid rally Thursday, boosted by decent earnings from key bellwether stocks and a downward spiral in crude oil prices. The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) closed up 9.88, or 1.44%, at 696.63.

For the second consecutive session, investors were willing to dip their toes back into what had been chilly water surrounding the financial arena. The Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund rose 5.3% and pushed through the 20-day moving average for the first time since mid-May. Within the financial sphere, JP Morgan (NYSE:JPM) was the big catalyst for the bulls today, jumping 10% after reporting solid quarterly earnings that topped the forecast. Once again, embattled government-sponsored mortgage giants Fannie Mae (NYSE:FNM) and Freddie Mac (NYSE:FRE) produced a stout rally, which calmed investor fears about the banking system and lent a supportive tone as well.

Crude oil prices tanked again today, crumbling some $5 dollars a barrel to slip through $130 dollars as options expirations heightened a selling mentality that was already in play amid concerns about softer demand from the higher price structure. Lower energy costs would be a welcome sign not only to consumers already pinched from higher food and gasoline prices, but also from many businesses that have seen margins sliced away by higher input fuel costs. Elsewhere on the commodities inflation front, soybeans, corn, wheat, sugar and cocoa all were sharply lower, and the iPath GSCI Total Return commodities index tumbled 3.0%.

While JP Morgan’s strong results appeared to be a driving force behind today’s stock market rally, there was a raft of big name companies that had surprisingly stout quarterly earnings on display. For example, United Technologies Corp. (NYSE:UTX), the world’s largest maker of elevators and air conditioners, climbed a cool 5.8% after beating the Street’s forecast. Within the capital-goods industry, UTX . . .

SemGroup Energy Partners LP (Nasdaq:SGLP), TeleTech Holdings Inc (Nasdaq:TTEC) and Insteel Industries Inc (Nasdaq:IIIN) are among the biggest percentage losers in Thursday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: ValueClick Inc (Nasdaq:VCLK), Courier Corp (Nasdaq:CRRC), Citizens Holdings Co (Nasdaq:CIZN), Texas Capital Bancshares Inc (Nasdaq:TCBI), Meridian Bioscience Inc (Nasdaq:VIVO) and Lakeland Bancorp Inc (Nasdaq:LBAI).

Here are the biggest percentage losers among small caps: