Tag - Vimc

Small-cap stocks opened higher, briefly slipped into negative territory, then climbed back to flat levels in the first 30 minutes of trading. Some pressure was linked to disappointment over the lack of a big stimulus announcement out of the G-20 meeting, a decline in worldwide stocks overnight, and a mild rise in Libor rates. However, a better than expected result on industrial production helped limit the initial damage.  Today's biggest small-cap gainers are China Southern Airlines Co. Ltd. (NYSE:ZNH), Level 3  (Nasdaq:LVLT) and General Motors (NYSE:GM).

Other Market Watch highlights included:

• Energy and commodity stocks have been a big drag on the market in recent weeks, but are oversold.
• Crude oil prices rallied back into positive territory after being down about $1 a barrel earlier this morning.  
• Stock index futures bounced off the lows right before the opening when the industrial production report came in at plus 1.3%.  
• Small caps opened higher, briefly slipped into negative territory, then climbed back to flat levels in the first 30 minutes of trading.  
• The chart retains a bearish slant, is now trading on intraday charts between a double bottom off the recent lows, double top on highs.  

Small Cap Gainers:

• China Southern Airlines Co. Ltd. is up 12% on news that Chinese airlines were asking the government for aid to deal with rising costs and sinking demand. See (NYSE:ZNH).  
• Level 3 plans to raise up to $400M from offering; shares pop 9.2% in pre-market. See (Nasdaq:LVLT).
• General Motors to sell 3% stake in Suzuki for $230 Million, Financial Times Reports. GM Up 6% in pre-market. See (NYSE:GM).
• Vimicro International up 3% in pre-market after reporting Q3 results on Friday. See (Nasdaq:VIMC).  

Small Cap Losers:

• Dryships Inc. treads 2.85% lower in pre-market; shares have dropped about 90% within the last 52 weeks. See (Nasdaq:DRYS).
• United Therapeutics down 30% in pre-market after oral PAH drug fails trial. See (Nasdaq:UTHR).  
• Retalix Ltd. tumbled 28% as the retail software distributor reported earnings. See (Nasdaq:RLTX).  
• A-Power Energy Generation Systems down 12% in pre-market on very light volume. See (Nasdaq:APWR).
• Canadian Solar down nearly 7% in pre-market after Collins Stewart downgraded the solar cell manufacturer to "hold" on Friday. See (Nasdaq:CSIQ).  

Chinese semiconductor maker Vimicro International Corp. (Nasdaq: VIMC) reported fourth-quarter revenue of $1.6 million, compared with $2.5 million in fourth-quarter 2006.

These are the biggest percentage losers in Friday’s trading among companies with market capitalizations under $500 million:

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) is down but the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) is up as stocks are mixed on news of a decline in June retail sales and conflicting economic data.

At 10:25 a.m. ET the Russell 2000 had lost 3.68 points, or 0.43 percent, to 851.50. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 10.81 points, or 0.08 percent, to 13,872.54.

June retail sales fell 0.9%, the most in almost two years, the U.S. Commerce Department reported before the opening bell. Economists were forecasting a drop of 0.1%. On Thursday, retailers surprised many by announcing generally positive same-store sales in June, leading to a rally.

Elsewhere, the higher price of oil contributed to a 1% rise in June import prices, according to the Labor Department before the start of trading. Wall Street was calling for a rise of 0.6%.

The news this morning was not all bad. The monthly University of Michigan said that its consumer sentiment index rose to 92.4 in July, exceeding the projected rise to 86. The index was at 85.3 in June.

The following were the most actively traded companies in Friday’s trading among those with market capitalizations under $500 million:

Idenix Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: IDIX) said the FDA has essentially rejected its hepatitis C drug. Idenix is “not optimistic” about the drug’s future prospects, CEO Jean-Pierre Sommadossi said.

The following are the most actively traded companies in Friday pre-market trading among those with market capitalizations under $500 million:

Shares of Vimicro International Corp. (Nasdaq: VIMC) tumbled 12.14%, or $0.85, to $6.15 in after-hours trading Thursday, after the fabless semiconductor company reported a loss for the first quarter of 2007 after the close.

 For the three months ended March 31, 2007, the Chinese company recorded a Non-GAAP loss of $0.07 per ADS compared with earnings per ADS of $0.12 in the first quarter of 2006. Non-GAAP net income in the first quarter was a loss of $2.5 million compared with net income of $4.5 million in the first quarter of 2006.   

According to Reuters, analysts on average were expecting earnings of $0.01 per ADS for the first quarter.

“There is no doubt that Vimicro has experienced its share of challenges over the past quarter,” said Dr. John Deng, Chairman and CEO of Vimicro. “

The company cited a number of factors that impacted its first quarter results including a longer than expected delay in the release of Microsoft's Vista Operating System, the seasonality resulting from an overall business slowdown associated with the Chinese New Year Holiday as well as pricing pressure within some of its product lines.

The Russell 2000 small-cap index and the Dow are in positive territory this afternoon. At 2:26 p.m. ET the Russell 2000 was up 2.37 points, or 0.28%, to 852.50. The Dow Jones Industrial Average had gained 38.36 points, or 0.28%, to 13,604.20.

Shares of Epoch Holding Corp. (Nasdaq: EPHC) are appreciating following news the provider of investment advisory services has increased its assets. As of June 30, the assets under management were $6.0 billion, a rise of 12%, compared with assets of $5.4 billion as of March 31, the New York-based company said after Thursday’s close. Shares are up $0.67, or 5%, to $13.69.

AeroCentury Corp. (AMEX: ACY) shares are down after two of the company’s directors reported in SEC filings today and Wednesday that they disposed of 770 shares.

Arrowhead Research Corp. (Nasdaq: ARWR) shares are down more than 5% after the biotech company announced Friday morning that interim Phase I data had been published on its anti-cancer drug IT-101. The data was published in the 2007 American Society for Clinical Oncology Proceedings. In the article, the authors wrote that “the stable disease rate, although not yet conclusive, is consistent with promising efficacy.”

These are the biggest percentage losers in Friday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $500 million:

Shares of Solarfun Power Holdings Co., Ltd. (Nasdaq: SOLF), a Chinese solar cell manufacturer, are down over 17% after the company before the start of trading today announced a plunge in quarterly revenue. The Shanghai-based company swung to a loss for the first quarter ended March 31 of $0.3 million, down from a $4.3 million profit in the same period of 2006. The company’s revenue nearly doubled to $24 million from $13.3 million a year earlier, but operating expenses soared to $3.7 million, up from $0.4 million in the 2006 period. Solarfun also announced it is lowering its 2007 revenue prediction to between $250 million and $279 million, down from its earlier forecast of $265 million to $285 million.

In midday trading, Powell Industries, Inc. (Nasdaq: POWL) shares are trading lower on the announcement before Wednesday’s opening that the electricity equipment company’s second-quarter revenue was $1.5 million lower than a year earlier. The Houston-based company announced a profit of $2.3 million, or $0.20 a share, for the second quarter ended April 30, down from $3.8 million, or $0.34 a share, in the year-ago period. The company also announced it is lowering its fiscal year earnings outlook to between $0.75 and $0.85 a share, down from earlier guidance of between $1.20 and $1.45 a share. CEO Thomas Powell attributed the lowered guidance to acquisition costs and the lowered earnings.

These are the biggest percentage losers in Wednesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $500 million:

The Russell 2000 is in positive territory while the Dow has slipped into the red as the price of oil takes a tumble.  At 14:39 p.m. ET the Russell 2000 had gained 3.76 points, or 0.45%, to 833.69.  The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 28.93 points, or 0.21%, to 13,478.35.

Shares of TAT Technologies Ltd. (Nasdaq: TATTF) are rising after news the manufacturer of heat transfer equipment reported a doubling of its quarterly profit.  The net income for the quarter ended March 31 was $2.59 million, an increase of 106% compared with a net income of $1.25 million in the first quarter of 2006.