Tag - Ueic

Synchronoss Technologies Inc. (Nasdaq:SNCR), Meadowbrook Insurance Group (Nasdaq:MIG) and Volcano Corp. (Nasdaq:VOLC) are among the biggest percentage gainers in Wednesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: CardioNet Inc. (Nasdaq:BEAT), American Woodmark Corp. (Nasdaq:AMWD), TeleCommunication Systems Inc. (Nasdaq:TSYS), Energy Solutions Inc. (Nasdaq:ES), FreightCar America Inc. (Nasdaq:RAIL) and Universal Electronics Inc. (Nasdaq:UEIC).

Microsemi Corp. (Nasdaq:MSCC), Primeenergy Corp. (Nasdaq:PNRG) and Flushing Financial Corp. (Nasdaq:FFIC) are among the new 52-week lows in Friday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Princeton National Bancorp Inc. (Nasdaq:PNBC), Center Bancorp Inc. (Nasdaq:CNBC), Albany International Corp. (Nasdaq:AIN), First South Bancorp Inc. (Nasdaq:FSBK), Universal Electronics Inc. (Nasdaq:UEIC) and Tennant Co.(Nasdaq:TNC).

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) closed in the red while the other major U.S. indices rose on news of a plan to help bond insurers. The small-cap index fell 0.85 points, or 0.12%, to 695.43. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) gained 96.72 points, or 0.79%, to 12,381.02.

On a year-to-date basis, the Russell 2000 has declined 9.22%, while the Dow is down 6.66% and the S&P 500 has retreated 7.85%.

Bond insurers were the story today, first causing steep declines and then becoming the catalyst of a breathtaking rebound that lifted all but the small-cap index.

Stocks small and large spent the majority of the session deep in negative territory on speculation that rating agencies Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s and Fitch will move to downgrade major bond insurers MBIA Inc. (NYSE: MBI) and Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE: ABK).

Marketocracy is a unique website developed by Ken Kam, former portfolio manager and co-founder of Firsthand Funds, that allows individual investors to manage "virtual" $1 million portfolios. Designed with the same restrictions as a “real” mutual fund, the system allows investors to test their skills against other individual investors and compare their performance against their peers and the professional money management world.

Today, Marketocracy has over 55,000 people managing 65,000 model portfolios.

“We have followed over 10,000 stock positions at any one time and more than four million trades,” Kam says. By comparing the long- and short-term performance of each stock picker and their buys and sells, Kam attempts to identify what he believes are “truly the best investors.”

This lengthy introduction to his strategy is important, as it is this analysis of all the trades within these model portfolios that forms the basis for Kam’s specific stock selections. One example is his Stock Alerts newsletter. He begins by analyzing each of the stock purchases made by those individuals in his system whose performance ranking is in the top 25% of all monitored portfolios.

He then compares these buys — on a stock-by-stock basis — with the buys and sells made by the 75% of investors whose portfolios have underperformed. The third step is to find those stocks that are being bought by the “best” while simultaneously being sold by the “rest.”

From the stocks that pass this step, Kam selects his “buy” recommendations, such as these three small-cap stocks, based on this “best versus the rest” approach.

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) futures are higher on news of an unexpectedly strong October jobs report.

Non-farm payrolls increased 166,000 in October, the U.S. Labor Department reported this morning. That’s significantly above the projected increase of between 80,000 and 90,000 and a welcome sign that the labor market remains strong despite problems in the housing sector. Payrolls rose 96,000 in September.

The unemployment rate is holding steady at 4.7%.

Elsewhere, investors will also be paying attention to numbers on factory orders for September, which will be released by the U.S. Census Bureau at 10 a.m. ET. Economists are expecting a slight decline.

Here are the biggest percentage gainers and losers in pre-market trading among companies with a market cap between $100 million and $750 million:

Biggest percentage gainers:

• RadiSys Corp. (RSYS), up 21% on news of a narrower third-quarter loss.
• Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VNDA), up 19% on news it said it no longer intends to offer convertible senior notes.
• GB&T Bancshares Inc. (GBTB), up 15% on news it is being acquired by SunTrust Banks, Inc. (STI).

Biggest percentage losers:

• Glu Mobile Inc. (GLUU), down 24% on news of a third-quarter net loss.
• Universal Electronics Inc. (UEIC), down 12% despite news of a solid third-quarter.
• Trump Entertainment Resorts, Inc. (TRMP) down 12% despite news of a higher third-quarter profit.

The Russell 2000 index is in the red this morning following news that the U.S. central bank remains preoccupied with inflation. At 11:35 a.m. ET the Russell 2000 was down 2.84 points, or 0.34%, to 832.47. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 8.62 points, or 0.06%, to 13,415.77.

Shares of Israeli information solutions provider Sapiens International Corp. (Nasdaq: SPNS) are higher following news of a $20 million private placement round led by institutional investors Formula Systems Ltd. (Nasdaq: FORTY), Sapiens’ parent company. “One of our missions for this year was to ensure that all our subsidiaries have the adequate financial resources to support accelerated growth,” Formula President and CEO Gad Goldstein said on Sunday, June 10. Shares are up $0.08, or 3%, to $2.77.