Tag - Tier

Cowen Group Inc. (Nasdaq:COWN), Tier Technologies Inc. (Nasdaq:TIER) and Basic Energy Services Inc. (Nasdaq:BAS) are among the biggest percentage gainers in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: FBL Financial Group Inc. (Nasdaq:FFG), Vitran Corp Inc. (Nasdaq:VTNC), Eagle Bulk Shipping Inc (Nasdaq:EGLE), TNS Inc. (Nasdaq:TNS), Penford Corp. (Nasdaq:PENX) and Clearwater Paper Corp. (Nasdaq:CLW).

Small-cap stocks pushed higher on the opening, bolstered by an oversold bounce after Tuesday’s jolting losses. Additional upside momentum was tied to solid earnings from tech bellwether IBM. The market will now dissect various earnings numbers today and look for details on the Obama stimulus plan for trading direction. Some of today’s small-cap gainers were Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG), Tier Technologies Inc. (Nasdaq:TIER) and Wimm-bill-Dann Foods (NYSE:WBD).

Other Market Watch highlights today included:

• From a money flow standpoint, Treasury prices were taking a hit today, raising yields on bonds and notes, suggesting money moving into equities.  
• The Architecture Billings Index rose to 36.4 in December, up from 34.7 the previous month.  
• Johnson-Redbook Retail Sales came in down 2.3% for last week, yet another gloomy picture of the spending mentality in play right now.
• This week’s action is basically devoid of economic indicators, which will put extra attention on various earnings reports, political news and world events.  
• Bank stocks have been hammered mercilessly in recent days and paced the declines again during Tuesday’s rout. 

Small Cap Gainers:

• Packaging Corporation of America rallied 19%, getting a lift after reporting quarterly results after the close Tuesday. See (NYSE:PKG).  
• Tier Technologies Inc. was up 14% following news that the firm will buy ePayments Solutions and also will implement a stock repurchase program. See (Nasdaq:TIER).  
• Wimm-bill-Dann Foods was up almost 13% as Russia’s big diary company tries to mount a bounce after several days of heavy losses. See (NYSE:WBD).  
• UAL Corp. (Nasdaq:UAUA) reported results ahead of the opening today, with a big loss (but not as bad as the Street had feared), and an erosion on fuel hedges hurting results. UAUA was up almost 3% shortly after the open. See (Nasdaq:UAUA).

Small Cap Loser:

• Omnicell updates 2008 year-end guidance and announces company reorganization; shares plummet nearly 40% in pre-market. See (Nasdaq:OMCL).

Small-cap stocks pushed higher on the opening, bolstered by an oversold bounce after Tuesday’s jolting losses. Additional upside momentum was tied to solid earnings from tech bellwether IBM. The market will now dissect various earnings numbers today and look for details on the Obama stimulus plan for trading direction. At 9:54 a.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was up 6.56, or 1.51%, at 440.21.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) topped the forecast when reporting earnings after the close Tuesday, rose some 4% in extended trading and was up about 7% shortly after the open today, providing some bullish leadership for a market that was reeling Tuesday.

Bank stocks have been hammered mercilessly in recent days and paced the declines again during Tuesday’s rout. And even though banks remain in a difficult position and traders are fretting about the risk of nationalizing some major banks, there was a bright spot this morning with Northern Trust Corp. (Nasdaq:NTRS) beating the forecast. NTRS was up some 21% early.

There will be plenty of earnings fodder to chew on today, with Apple Inc., Ebay, Abbott Labs, UAL Corp., and United Technologies on the results docket at some point. Looking at airlines, that group was soft in overseas action. UAL Corp. (Nasdaq:UAUA) reported results ahead of the opening today, with a big loss (but not as bad as the Street had feared), and an erosion on fuel hedges hurting results. UAUA was up almost 3% shortly after the open.

President Obama is slated to meet with his economic leadership team today to begin the difficult task of vetting out the right policy to spark a recovery. His pick to lead the Treasury Department, Timothy Geithner, still faces tough questions from Senate leaders on tax issues before his confirmation. Most believe that Geithner will eventually be confirmed – perhaps as soon as this week. Paul Volcker is expected to introduce Geithner to the Senate confirmation hearing, which will put some weight behind the proceedings. Geithner today said that the financial bailout program . . .

Transaction processing services for government agencies is a large, growing market. Companies that provide these services under long-term contracts with the U.S. government enjoy years of recurring revenues since contract terms typically range from two to ten years.

Two small-cap beneficiaries: Tier Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: TIER) and Stanley, Inc. (NYSE: SXE).

A large market for electronic payment processing is developing around tax collection. The Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 authorized the U.S. Treasury to accept credit and debit card payments for federal taxes. In 2006, the IRS expanded credit card payment options to include business tax payments. Between 2001 and 2006, the number of taxpayers making card-based payments grew 47% annually, to 2 million from 288,000.

Despite this rapid growth, credit/debit card payments currently represent just 1.2% of personal and business taxes paid, suggesting a large, untapped market.

The total market for personal and business federal tax payments exceeded $1.8 trillion on a net basis in 2006. The state tax market also presents significant growth opportunities. State tax receipts were estimated at $706 billion in 2006, with individual income taxes representing $244 billion of the state total and sales taxes accounting for $226 billion of the total. Of the 50 states, 26 have already adopted card-based payments. The local market for tax payment processing consists of some 3,000 counties, 13,500 school districts, 16,500 townships and more than 19,400 municipalities across the United States.

Other payment processing opportunities in the public sector include university tuition payments and utilities bills. According to the U.S. Department of Education, there are 6,400 degree-granting colleges and universities in the United States serving 17 million students and generating annual tuition payments of $230 billion. The U.S. Census recorded 6,700 public utilities across the United States generating consumer payments totaling nearly $400 billion annually.