Tag - Spnc

Stocks slid sharply today on weak housing data released this morning and on further stress in the financial sector as investors remain doubtful about the U.S. government’s bank plans. Some of today’s small-cap gainers were Radiant Systems (Nasdaq:RADS), SeaBright Insurance Holdings (NYSE:SBX) and The Spectranetics Corporation (Nasdaq:SPNC).

Other Market Watch highlights today included:

• The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was down 11.04, or 2.68%, to 401.44 at closing.
• The Dow fell 1.09%, and the S&P 500 was down 1.07% at closing.
• For the year, the Russell is now down 19.62%, while the Dow is down 17.15% and the S&P 500 is down 15.32%.
• New data out this morning showed January existing home sales fell by 5.3%, to an annual rate of 4.49M last month from 4.74M in December. This is the lowest level in nearly 12 years.
• The Mortgage Bankers Association released today that U.S. mortgage applications fell last week, reflecting a sharp drop in demand for refinancing as mortgage rates ticked higher.
• The Obama administration has begun making the 20 largest U.S. banks — including Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) and Citigroup (NYSE:C) — undergo "stress tests" today to see if any can weather further recessionary pressure.
• An industry association said this morning that China plans to build up a "Big 10" group of globally competitive automakers, led by General Motors partner Shanghai Automotive Industrial Corp.
• A new report out says that American International Group may scrap its plan to repay a $60 billion U.S. government loan by selling businesses, according to Bloomberg. 

Small Cap Gainers:

• Radiant System shares rose 20% on a better-than-expected Q4 profit. See (Nasdaq:RADS).
• SeaBright Insurance Holdings closed up over 15% on an FBR upgrade and a Q4 EPS that beat estimates. See (NYSE:SBX).
• The Spectranetics Corporation climbed 11% and pared some major losses seen Tuesday when the small cap reported a widened Q4 loss. See . . .

Biodel Inc. (Nasdaq:BIOD), Gateway Financial Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq:GBTS) and James River Coal Co. (Nasdaq:JRCC) are among the biggest percentage losers in Monday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: A Power Energy Generation Systems Ltd. (Nasdaq:APWR), National Coal Corp. (Nasdaq:NCOC), Double Take Software Inc. (Nasdaq:DBTK), City Holding Corp. (Nasdaq:CHCO), Gushan Environmental Energy Ltd. (Nasdaq:GU) and Spectranetics Corp. (Nasdaq:SPNC).

Here are the biggest percentage losers among small caps:

Gehl Co. (Nasdaq:GEHL), Biodel Inc. (Nasdaq:BIOD) and Solarfun Power Holdings Co Ltd (Nasdaq:SOLF) are among the most actively traded companies in Monday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: China Sunergy Co Ltd (Nasdaq:CSUN), AuthenTec Inc. (Nasdaq:AUTH), UCBH Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq:UCBH), Spectranetics Corp. (Nasdaq:SPNC), Alvarion Ltd (Nasdaq:ALVR) and Investors Real Estate Trust Units (Nasdaq:IRET).

Here are the most actively traded companies among small caps:

Small-cap stocks closed higher Friday, finishing off a volatile week on a “good news/bad news” tilt as concerns about global growth and slumping labor markets in the United States took a toll for the week, but didn’t stop an impressive recovery for the day Friday. The big news today was that the unemployment rate in America jumped to 6.1%, which marked the highest level in nearly five years. The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) closed up 0.23, or 0.03%, at 718.95 and is now down 6.1% for the year.  For the week, the Russell was down 2.8%. Meanwhile, the Dow was up 0.29% for the day and is down 15.4% for 2008, while the S&P 500 was up 0.44% Friday and now 15.3% lower for the year.

Despite the preponderance of bearish news on the data front this morning, the stock market staged a fairly heroic comeback from the morning lows, powered by a recovery in financial shares, which have beaten down in recent weeks and months. The PHLX KBW Banking Index rallied 4.1%, and the Financial Select Sector SPDR Index rose 2.8%, while key stocks like Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C), Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:LEH) and Bank of America Corp. (NYSE:BAC) all posted gains of 4% or more. Even investment banking firm Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc. (NYSE:MER) generated an impressive recovery from the morning lows despite suffering an analyst downgrade by rival Goldman Sachs.

The highly anticipated monthly employment report projected an ugly picture of the labor market, no matter how anyone might try to spin the numbers. Most market watchers were looking for the jobless rate to hold steady in August at 5.7%, or perhaps tick up to 5.8% at the worst … but soaring above 6% was a sobering thought for all. In addition to the dreary jobless news, the headline figure on non-farm payrolls tumbled 84,000 jobs, which was a tad below the forecast for a loss of 71,000 jobs.

“So far this year, 605,000 jobs have been lost. The economy has clearly slipped into a jobs recession because the housing meltdown and credit market turmoil has spread to the broader economy,” Steven Wood, chief economist with Insight Economics, said in an email. “Over the past year, the number of unemployed people has increased by more than 2.24 million and the unemployment rate has increased by 1.4 percentage point. In the post World War II period, every time the unemployment rate . . .

Spectranetics Corp. (Nasdaq:SPNC), Royal Bancshares of Pennsylvania Inc. (Nasdaq:RBPAA) and Hoku Scientific Inc. (Nasdaq:HOKU) are among the biggest percentage gainers in Friday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Atlantic Southern Financial Group Inc. (Nasdaq:ASFN), Chemgenex Pharm Depository Receipt (Nasdaq:CXSP), Shiloh Industries Inc. (Nasdaq:SHLO), Marlin Business Services Corp. (Nasdaq:MRLN), Website Pros Inc. (Nasdaq:WWWW) and Material Sciences Corp. (Nasdaq:MSC).

Here are the biggest percentage gainers among small caps:

Small-cap stocks collapsed Thursday, unable to stave off a firestorm of sellers that were ignited by fears of a global economic slowdown. Worries about Friday morning’s Labor Department release on the U.S. employment picture also stoked the flames after a private employment survey this morning came in on the weak side of expectations. In the end, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) tumbled 23.29, or 3.14% to 718.62, matching the largest one-day decline of 2008 in the process — a decline posted way back on Jan. 4.

It was a rout throughout the equity markets, with the Dow off 2.99% and the S&P 500 down 2.99% as well. For the year, the Russell is down 6.1%, while the Dow is down 15.6% and the S&P 500 is off 15.8%.

Fear definitely got the upper hand on greed Thursday, as investors bailed on stocks in favor of safer fare. Money flow into credit instruments was clearly an important theme, as the yield on benchmark 10-year notes tumbled nearly 2% to the lowest point since April. Yields move inversely to bond and note prices, which means that the price for those credit instruments was driven higher on the demand for safe-haven investments.

The market was already on the defensive overnight as equities around the world edged lower and the selling mentality heated up before the opening when the ADP National Employment Report showed that 33,000 private sector jobs were lost in August. Market watchers were looking for the ADP report to show a loss of about 20,000 jobs, so a pullback in stocks on the weaker figure was not a surprise, but the velocity of today’s afternoon descent in stocks was a jolt. Interestingly, the ADP report would seem to suggest a decline on Friday’s big Labor Department employment report of about 40,000 non-farm jobs, which would actually be better than the consensus forecast for a decline of 71,000 workers. Whatever the outcome, it should be noted that the ADP data has not been a reliable predictor of the . . .

Small-cap stocks went into freefall mode through midday trading as investors fretted about the state of the U.S. economy and even the global picture ahead of Friday’s key employment report. A bevy of mixed economic indicators this morning only served to stoke this jitters. At 12:49 p.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was down 18.70, or 2.52%, at 723.21.

Today’s decline was impressively broad-based; index products on homebuilders, retailers, airlines, financials, energy, industrial, banking and drug stocks were all deep in the red, with consumer staples one of the few themes higher…and even those gains were lean.

The stock market was already trading lower heading into the opening as overseas equities were sinking, but the selling mood darkened as a private employment report came in below expectations. The ADP employment report came in at minus 33,000, which was below the forecast for a decline of 20,000. Even though the ADP report hasn’t been a very reliable gauge for the Labor Department release, it was still enough of a scare to keep buyers on the sidelines and to spook out longs ahead of Friday morning. A separate report on the non-manufacturing sector actually topped the estimate, but a sub-index within that date series on employment tumbled . . .

Spectranetics Corp. (Nasdaq:SPNC), Volt Information Sciences Inc. (Nasdaq:VOL) and Blyth Inc. (Nasdaq:BTH) are among the biggest percentage losers in Thursday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Opnext Inc. (Nasdaq:OPXT), Hovnanian Enterprises Inc. (Nasdaq:HOV), Houston American Energy Corp. (Nasdaq:HUSA), Acme Packet Inc. (Nasdaq:APKT), Northern Oil and Gas Inc. (Nasdaq:NOG) and Diamond Management & Technology Consultants Inc. (Nasdaq:DTPI).

Here are the biggest percentage losers among small caps:

Small-cap stocks opened lower, pressured by concerns on the jobs front ahead of Friday’s big employment report. In addition, money flow appeared to favor “safe haven” routes like Treasury products to the detriment of equities. At 10:03 a.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was down 8.70, or 1.17%, at 733.20.

The ISM Non-Manufacturing Survey came in at 50.6, which was above the forecast of 49.5. However, the employment sub-index slipped to 45.4, compared with 47.1 last month, which offset some of the bullish implications of the headline number.

The ISM data marked the final piece of data on a very busy morning for economists. Earlier this morning, investors had to navigate through the ADP employment survey, weekly unemployment claims and the productivity report. For the record, the ADP report came in at minus 33,000, which was worse than the forecast for a dip of 20,000; the weekly unemployment claims were at 424,000, which was basically in line with the 423,000 forecast; and the productivity report came in at 4.3%, which was way ahead of the 3% projection. Who knows why productivity surged this summer (lower pay and more work by employees perhaps?), but the productivity report was basically ignored and the market remained on the defensive primarily on the ADP data.

Even though the ADP report hasn’t had a very strong correlation to the actual Labor Department report, investors are still nervous ahead of Friday’s big event. The employment report is expected to show a decline of 71,000 on non-farm payrolls, with the unemployment rate at 5.8%.

It is worth noting that interest rates continue to push lower. Rates work inversely to credit instruments, which means that demand for bonds and notes is strong. The rate on the benchmark 10-year note tumbled to the lowest point this morning . . .

Canadian Solar Inc (Nasdaq:CSIQ), China Sunergy Co Ltd (Nasdaq:CSUN) and Fuqi International Inc (Nasdaq:FUQI) are among the most actively traded companies in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Phase Forward Inc (Nasdaq:PFWD), TASER International Inc (Nasdaq:TASR), Cal-Maine Foods Inc (Nasdaq:CALM), Spectranetics Corp (Nasdaq:SPNC), Ladish Co Inc (Nasdaq:LDSH) and Ness Technologies Inc (Nasdaq:NSTC).

Here are the most actively traded companies among small caps:

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) gained despite news of government reports and minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve that showed economic problems. The small-cap index added 7.68 points, or 1.09%, to 710.02. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) advanced 90.04 points, or 0.73%, to 12,427.26.

On a year-to-date basis, the Russell 2000 has declined 7.31%, while the Dow is down 6.31% and the S&P 500 has shed 7.38%.

Small-cap stocks moved up for the second consecutive session but began the day in negative territory following news that the consumer price index added 0.4% in January, above the expected 0.3%.

The U.S. Labor Department also reported that core consumer prices, which exclude the costs of food and energy, increased 0.3%, above the projected 0.2%.

Core prices have added 2.5% on a year-over-year basis, which is beyond the U.S. Federal Reserve’s preferred range of between 1% and 2%. Worse, annual consumer prices growth has accelerated from 2.4% in December 2007.

The rise in inflation makes it more difficult for the U.S. Federal Reserve to stimulate the economy by cutting its target federal funds rate, the rate at which commercial banks make overnight loans to each other.

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) and the other major U.S. indices are falling on news that January inflation outpaced expectations.

At 10:34 a.m. ET, the small-cap index had declined 3.90 points, or 0.56%, to 698.44. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) was down 71.56 points, or 0.58%, to 12,265.66.

The consumer price index added 0.4% in January, the U.S. Labor Department reported before the start of trading. Economists were expecting the CPI to rise 0.3%. Consumer prices have added 4.3% on a year-over-year basis.

The core inflation index, which excludes the price of food and energy, gained 0.3%, above the projected 0.2%. Core prices have added 2.5% on a year-over-year basis.

The U.S. Federal Reserve has stated that it prefers annual core inflation to be in the range between 1% and 2%.

News of higher-than-expected inflation complicates the Fed’s task of lowering its target interest rate to spur economic growth while simultaneously keeping inflation in check. The U.S. central bank will probably grow more cautious, as any cut in the federal funds rate will give the economy a jolt that could also lead to a rise in prices.

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) are rising fast following news of higher June sales at U.S. retailers. At 11:49 a.m. ET the Russell 2000 was up 8.81 points, or 1.05%, to 848.78. The Dow Jones Industrial Average had added 160.38 points, or 1.18%, to 13,738.25, beyond the June 4th record close of 13,676.32.

Shares of The Spectranetics Corp. (Nasdaq: SPNC) are rising on news the maker of medical devices has received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for one of its catheters. Regulators have approved the TURBO elite laser catheters, which are used for the treatment of problems arteries within the leg, the Colorado Springs, Colo.-based company said before the start of trading. A catheter is a thin and flexible tube inserted into a body cavity in order to allow for the insertion of fluids or instruments. Spectranetics’s shares are up $0.41, or 3%, to $12.43.