{"id":6903,"date":"2013-08-09T07:33:22","date_gmt":"2013-08-09T12:33:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/leavittbrothers.com\/blog\/?p=6903"},"modified":"2013-08-09T07:33:22","modified_gmt":"2013-08-09T12:33:22","slug":"before-the-open-aug-9-4","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.leavittbrothers.com\/?p=6903","title":{"rendered":"Before the Open (Aug 9)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Good morning. Happy Friday.<\/span>
\nThe Asian\/Pacific markets closed mixed. Only Taiwan posted a sizable loss (down 0.7%) while Hong Kong and India posted decent gains. Europe is currently trading mixed. Greece and Italy are down the most; Amsterdam, Stockholm and London are up the most. Futures here in the States point towards a gap down open for the cash market.
\n<\/span>
\nThe dollar is up slightly. Oil and copper are up. Gold is up, silver down.<\/span>
\nBarring a decent gain today, the market will post its biggest weekly loss in eight weeks. But the market isn’t trending down. Here’s the 60-min SPX chart. A steep slope has flattened out, but the overall trend is still up. <\/span>
\n\"\"
\nI don’t see an obvious near term trade. The overall trend is still solidly up, but there are many indicators which need to cycle down and reverse. One is the NYSE AD line shown below. <\/span>
\n\"\"
\nDon’t force trades right now. There are conflicting forces that need to work themselves out, and the market is in consolidation mode anyways. <\/span>
\nStock stories<\/strong> from barcharts.com…<\/span>
\nDeere (DE +1.64%) was downgraded to “Sell” from “Neutral” at UBS who also lowered their price target on the stock to $72 from $96.<\/span>
\nFoot Locker (FL -0.47%) was downgraded to “Neutral” from “Buy” at Goldman who also lowered their price target on the stock to $37 from $41.<\/span>
\nCisco (CSCO +0.54%) was upgraded to “Neutral” from “Underweight” at JPMorgan who also raised their price target on the shares to $26 from $18.<\/span>
\nNRG Energy (NRGP) reported Q2 EPS of 32 cents, double expectations of 16 cents.<\/span>
\nGreat Plains Energy (GXP -0.67%) reported Q2 EPS of 41 cents, better than consensus of 40 cents.<\/span>
\nLarry Feinberg reported a 19.99% stake in Hansen Medical (HNSN -2.31%) .<\/span>
\nLehigh Gas (LGP +0.19%) reported Q2 EPS of 36 cents, below consensus of 37 cents.<\/span>
\nGabelli reported a 5.11% stake in Keynote Systems (KEYN -0.05%) .<\/span>
\nNVIDIA (NVDA +0.68%) reported Q2 EPS of 23 cents, well ahead of consensus of 13 cents.<\/span>
\nMonster Beverage (MNST +1.62%) fell nearly 5% in after-hours trading after it reported Q2 EPS of 62 cents, weaker than consensus of 64 cents.<\/span>
\nFiserv (FISV +0.19%) announced that it will buy back an additional 10 million shares, or 8% its outstanding shares, as part of its stock repurchase program.<\/span>
\nAllscripts (MDRX +1.00%) reported Q2 EPS of 5 cents, well below consensus of 10 cents.<\/span>
\npriceline.com (PCLN +0.67%) climbed over 5% in after-hours trading after it reported Q2 EPS of $9.70, well ahead of consensus of $9.36.<\/span>
\nRoundy’s (RNDY -2.83%) reported Q2 EPS of 30 cents, lower than consensus of 33 cents, and cut its guidance on fiscal 2013 EPS to 77 cents-83 cents, weaker than consensus of 92 cents.<\/span>
\nThe Gap (GPS +1.38%) raised guidance on Q2 EPS to 62 cents-64 cents, better than consensus of 59 cents, and said Q2 same-store-sales were up 5%, although July same-store-sales were up only +1.0%, below expectations of +1.6%.<\/span>
\nEarnings<\/strong> from seekingalpha.com…<\/span>
\nNotable earnings before today’s open: ABFS, DRH, EBIX, EGY, EVEP, HNR, JRCC, MEA, MGA, MHR, NRG, PGNX, TPC, VTG, WWAV<\/span>
\nNotable earnings after today’s close: ZOLT<\/span>
\nthis week’s Earnings<\/a><\/span>
\nthis week’s Economic Numbers<\/a><\/span>
\ntoday’s upgrades\/downgrades<\/a><\/span>
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