Daily Wrap
DJIA +27.57 (+0.20%) to 13,534.89; S&P 500 +1.66 (+0.11%) to 1,472.34; NASDAQ -6.72 (-0.22%) to 3,110.78
A gap down in the morning set the lows on the S&P 500 for the day as we then steadily rose the rest of the day making highs near the close. Overall the data released today was mixed with Retail Sales beating very low expectations, PPI slightly lower than expected and January Empire State Manufacturing better than the previous month but well below expectations. The Nasdaq was the only major down and with AAPL losing another 2.3% along with the $500’s it is not surprising.
Moving higher today to the tune of 25% was Express (EXPR) after raising Q4 and forward year 2012 estimates both to above analysts expectations. Interesting that I have not yet seen any analysts come into the name after news like this. EXPR has an upside gap around $22 which it could ultimately look to fill but I expect that name to start and see some short term exhaustion soon and then depending on how it pulls back we might have a better idea if the name has legs. Initial thoughts are that the name can see higher levels and will be watching the MACD on the Daily to see how it acts as it looks like it can recycle.
Another retail name in the news but in this case gaping lower was lululemon (LULU) after reporting their Q4 guidance. While the numbers seemed toward the high end of analysts expectations, it seems like a beat was expected and thus the name started lower while it did close off the lows. Unlike EXPR, many analysts made comments on LULU and while I saw a few price target adjustments lower, it seemed the vast majority were reiterating a positive stance on the name and a few said to use the weakness to Buy. The most positive analyst was Canaccord which reiterated their Buy and $91 price target while the most negative was Buckingham which downgraded LULU to Underperform and a $51 price target.
Santarus (SNTS) moved up over 11% today after receiving FDA approval on a drug and also guiding above Wall Street estimates for revenue. SNTS looks very extended with some negative MACD divergence in place. I would be very cautious with new long positions and would be looking to personally lighten up on any longs if I had them.
Israeli medical device and software manufacturer Given Imagining (GIVN) dropped over 11% today after reviewing a possible merger or acquisition and deciding to take themselves off the sale block. The company plans to move forward with their own operational plans. The largest shareholder who likely was pushing for the company to review strategic alternatives/opportunities informed the company that they will look to sell their shares. Reports stated the company also stated they will sell them in one block which I assume is to keep the market from fearing a rush of shares are about to make their way into the market. The issue would still remain what if they cannot find a buyer or only at even lower prices so while it is a good try I imagine there will be some uncertainty around the name especially since the shareholder reportedly owns roughly 45.5%.
As always you can visit the Event’s Calendar for the release of economic data, scheduled meetings and other news that could move the market.
According to Briefing.com, the following noteworthy companies are scheduled to report earnings before tomorrow’s open: BK, CMA, CTBI, FRC, GS, JPM, MTB, NTRS, USB
The market continues to fight any downward move but also seems to be waiting for a catalyst to start another move, up or down. The bias is currently to the upside but possibly tomorrow will start to shed more light as the first strong group of earnings come out with many financial names set to release. The 60 minute SPY MACD looks like it can be recycling but as I mentioned before I would like a better pullback, maybe to the 20 Day SMA.
