Tag - Xltc

American CareSource Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq:XSI), CombiMatrix Corp. (Nasdaq:CBMX) and Excel Technology Inc. (Nasdaq:XLTC) are among the new 52-week highs in Wednesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.           
         
Here are the new 52-week highs among small caps:     

Small-cap stocks weathered several storms today to punch out a higher close as investors were able to look past a sudden reversal higher in crude oil futures, renewed credit crunch worries amid a collapse in mortgage finance stocks and safe-haven money flow into short-dated treasury products. Oversold conditions and bargain hunting spurred by merger activity were enough to pull small-cap stocks into the green. The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) rose 6.68, or 1.01%, to 670.44.

Heading through midday trading, the market tried to carve out a modest recovery rally in the wake of Wednesday’s big collapse, but a sudden afternoon surge in crude oil prices stomped out bullish sentiment in equities — at least for a while. Crude oil prices charged more than $5 a barrel higher, climbing back above $141 on supply concerns out of Africa and Brazil and amid ongoing tension in the Middle East.

Workers in Brazil threatened to initiate a five-day strike next week, while a ceasefire in Nigeria threatened supply from Africa. Meanwhile, Iran said it has been test-firing more missiles, as a “lesson for enemies;” U.S. officials warned Iran that it would defend its allies. The potential for supply disruption and geopolitical tension was enough to spark the sudden resurgence in crude oil prices, which had tumbled some $10 a barrel off recent record highs.

S&P 500 futures actually made their daily high this morning before the regular market even opened, rising to highs in conjunction with a better-than-expected headline figure on the weekly jobless claims report. The report showed a decline in claims to 346,000 which was much better than the 395,000 forecast and a big improvement on last week’s 404,000 figure. However, there were some “devils in the details” of the data, which hinted that all is not well in the labor market.

“Continuing claims, which lag initial claims by one week, rose 91,000 to 3.202 million. The insured unemployment rate moved up to 2.4% from 2.3% in the prior week. The insured unemployment rate has held at 2.4% in three out of the last five weeks. The noticeable decline in initial claims is a distortion and is not an indicator of a market improvement in labor market conditions,” Asha Bangalore, economist . . .

Excel Technology Inc (Nasdaq:XLTC), CAI International Inc (Nasdaq:CAP) and PC-Tel Inc (Nasdaq:PCTI) are among the new 52-week highs in Thursday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

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

Excel Technology Inc (Nasdaq:XLTC), Ruby Tuesday Inc (Nasdaq:RT) and First California Financial Group Inc (Nasdaq:FCAL) are among the biggest percentage gainers in Thursday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Cato Corp (Nasdaq:CTR), Fundtech Ltd (Nasdaq:FNDT), Duckwall Alco Stores Inc (Nasdaq:DUCK), Metabolix Inc (Nasdaq:MBLX), InterVoice Inc (Nasdaq:INTV) and Renaissance Learning Inc (Nasdaq:RLRN).

Here are the biggest percentage gainers among small caps:

Small-cap stocks pushed higher in morning trade, overcoming ongoing fears about the credit crunch, particularly as they relate to slumping home financing providers Fannie Mae (NYSE:FNM) and Freddie Mac (NYSE:FRE). At 10:02 a.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was up 4.84, or 0.70%, at 668.39. Shortly after the open, FNM shares collapsed 16%, while FRE was down 18%.

Buyers in the stock market seemed to gain some confidence on news that Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s congressional testimony today will show that the central bank remains focused on financial market turmoil. Wire service reports said that Bernanke would push to let the government “liquidate” any major firm on the cusp of bankruptcy.

The morning seemed full of promise just one hour before the regular opening, with stock index futures charging higher on M&A news, an improved outlook from consumer barometer Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT) and a bullish surprise on the headline weekly claims report. However, the market turned south about 30 minutes ahead of the open as the credit crunch jitters overtook investor psychology amid talk that FNM and FRE were approaching insolvency. Spreads traded on the firms in the debt market widened substantially after former Federal Reserve official William Poole said the firms may need to be bailed out.

Stock index futures made the overnight high when the weekly claims report came out at 346,000, which was much better than the forecast for 395,000, and which should have alleviated some of the recession fears fanned by last week’s stunning 404,000 claims report. However, continuing claims remained above 3 million, which underscores a difficult labor market picture.

Wal-Mart’s June same-store sales jumped 5.8%, which surpassed analyst expectations for a rise of 3.8%. The retailer followed up the strong sales news by raising their second-quarter outlook, which sparked a rally in overnight trading in WMT, but the stock was basically flat early on today after the open. There is some concern that the bump in WMT June sales may have been bolstered artificially by the fiscal . . .

Excel Technology Inc. (Nasdaq:XLTC) is up more than 34% in today’s pre-market trading after the company announced earlier this morning that GSI Group Inc. (Nasdaq:GSIG) would buy it for $32 per share or $360 million cash. Billerica, Mass.-based GSI Group develops and manufactures lasers and laser systems. East Setauket, N.Y-based Excel Technology produces photonics-based solutions, including lasers, for industrial and scientific applications. The offer is a more than 30% premium to the average Excel closing share price during the past 30 trading days, the companies said in a statement. The offer is expected to commence on or about July 23, they added.

Ahead of today’s opening, shares of Excel Technology are at $30.50, up $7.84 from Wednesday’s close. Shares of GSI Group are mostly unchanged in pre-market trading.