Latest News In Stock Market Investment Research – October 23, 2009

Please note it is your responsibility to evaluate the accuracy, completeness and usefulness of any information, opinion or advice contained in the content below.

U.S. stocks mostly down after home sales data

23 Oct 2009 at 7:11am

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — U.S. stocks on Friday turned mostly lower after a brief burst up that came after a trade group reported sales of existing homes climbed 9.4% in September. The rise proved more robust than analysts had expected. Energy shares paced the decline, which was partially offset by a Microsoft Corp. -inspired rally among technology shares. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 35.75 points to 10,045.56. The S&P 500 Index fell 3.87 points to 1,089.04. The Nasdaq Composite stayed up 10.24 points at 2,175.53.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


ACS first-quarter profit falls to $68.8 million

23 Oct 2009 at 7:07am

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Affiliated Computer Services said late Thursday it earned $68.8 million, or 70 cents a share, in its fiscal first quarter, down from $83.6 million, or 85 cents a share in the year-ago period. Excluding one-time items, the company would have reported earnings of 95 cents a share in the latest quarter. Analysts were expecting 94 cents on average, according to FactSet. Revenue in the three months ended Sept. 30 rose to $1.68 billion from $1.6 billion in the year-ago period. Analysts anticipated $1.69 billion. The provider of business outservicing services recently agreed to a $6.4 billion takeover by Xerox Corp. (Corrects by referencing fiscal first quarter.)

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Dollar adds to gains after housing data

23 Oct 2009 at 7:05am

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — The dollar extended gains versus the British pound and other major currencies on Friday after a report said existing-home sales rose 9.4% to a 5.57 million pace in September, stronger than analysts’ expected. The dollar index , a measure of the U.S. currency against a trade-weighted basket of rivals, rose to 75.379 from 75.047 in North American activity late Thursday. The euro traded at $1.5015 from $1.5023 Thursday. The dollar bought 91.89 Japanese yen from 91.36 yen on Thursday. The pound dropped 1.5% versus the dollar after an unexpected drop in gross domestic product raised concerns of further quantitative easing from U.K. officials.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Treasurys stay down after housing data

23 Oct 2009 at 7:03am

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Treasury prices remained lower after a report said existing-home sales rose 9.4% to a 5.57 million pace in September, stronger than analysts’ expected. Two-year note yields , which move inversely to prices, rose 9 basis points to 1.01%, rising above 1% for the first time this month. Treasurys were under pressure before the data after a media report revived concerns about when the Federal Reserve may have to raise interest rates.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


U.S. existing-home sales rise 9.4% to 5.57 million

23 Oct 2009 at 7:01am

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) – Resales of U.S. houses jumped 9.4% in September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.57 million, the highest in more than two years, the National Association of Realtors estimated Friday. Sales as tracked by the NAR are up 24% from January’s bottom, and are up 9.2% compared with a year ago. The median forecast by economists surveyed by MarketWatch looked for a smaller gain to a 5.38 million annual rate from a downwardly revised 5.09 million in August. “Sales surged” in September, said Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the real estate trade group, who gave much of the credit for the increase to the federal government’s soon-to-expire $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Biogen, Elan lead drug stocks lower

23 Oct 2009 at 6:53am

BOSTON (MarketWatch) — Partners Biogen Idec and Elan Corp. led drug stocks lower early Friday as shares of the companies fell on news that European regulators were reviewing the safety of their multiple sclerosis drug Tysabri. The NYSE Arca Pharmaceutical Index declined 0.6% to 293.92 and the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index fell 1% to 889.92. Biogen shares were off 5% at $44.80, while Elan shares tumbled 16% to $5.41.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


U.S. stocks start near flat; tech shares rally

23 Oct 2009 at 6:42am

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — U.S. stocks sputtered in indecisive trade shortly after Friday’s opening bell, with only the technology-laden Nasdaq Composite retaining strong gains after Microsoft Corp. earnings topped expectations. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was near flat at 10,081.54. The S&P 500 was up about 1 point at 1,093.88. The Nasdaq rose 17.56 points to 2,182.85.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Frank: No chance of consolidated bank regulator

23 Oct 2009 at 6:41am

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — There was “no reasonable chance” that legislators would create a consolidated super bank regulator, House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank told reporters Friday. The Massachusetts Democrat reiterated his support for combining the Office of Thrift Supervision and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, but he opposed a proposal introduced by Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., which would create a consolidated regulator made up of all bank regulators.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Intuitive Surgical names chief executive officer

23 Oct 2009 at 6:40am

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Intuitive Surgical Inc. said Friday that it has named Gary Guthart, its current president and chief operating officer, to the posts of president and chief executive officer, effective Jan. 1. The current CEO, Lonnie Smith, will remain chairman of the Sunnyvale, Calif.-based provider of surgical technologies.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Energy stocks post slim gains in early action

23 Oct 2009 at 6:39am

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Energy stocks edged up on Friday. The NYSE Arca Oil Index rose fractionally to 1,121. The NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index rose 0.2% to 536. The Philadelphia Oil Service Index rose 0.2% to 211.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Airline stocks mixed as oil tops $81 a barrel

23 Oct 2009 at 6:37am

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Airline stocks were mixed Friday morning with higher benchmark oil prices. At last check, the NYSE Arca Airline Index was up a fraction at 26.54 points with just four of its 13 components in the green. Shares of Delta , US Airways , Southwest , and Skywest added less than 1%. Shares of American parent AMR Corp. fell 1.6% to $6.70, United parent UAL Corp. shed a fraction at $7.20 and Ryanair fell less than 1% at $28.86. Crude for December delivery gained 5 cents to $81.24 a barrel in electronic trading.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Tech stocks jump as Amazon, Microsoft soar

23 Oct 2009 at 6:37am

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) – Technology stocks jumped early Friday, powered by gains in shares of Microsoft Corp. and Amazon.com after the two giants posted better-than-expected results. Amazon soared more than 19%, while Microsoft gained more than 10%. The Nasdaq Composite Index rose 1.1% to 2,189 in the opening minutes of trading, while the Morgan Stanley High Tech 35 Index added 1.1%. However, the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index lost 0.8%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Microsoft profit declines 18% but tops estimates

23 Oct 2009 at 5:47am

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) – Software giant Microsoft Corp. on Friday reported an 18% drop in fiscal first-quarter earnings, but results easily beat Wall Street’s forecast and the company’s stock surged in premarket action. The Redmond, Wash.-based company said net income slipped to $3.57 billion, or 40 cents a share, from $4.37 billion, or 48 cents a share, in the year-earlier quarter. Revenue fell 14% to $12.92 billion, though the decline was smaller 4% adjusted for the deferral of sales of Microsoft’s new Windows 7 software. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had estimated Microsoft would post earnings of 32 cents a share and $12.4 billion in revenue. Tight cost controls contributed to better-than-expected profit, the company said. Shares of Microsoft, which closed Thursday at $26.59, jumped to $28.68 in preopen trades.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Soleil assigns buy ratings to Exxon, Chevron

23 Oct 2009 at 5:40am

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Soleil Securities on Friday initiated coverage of oil giants Exxon Mobil and Chevron with buy ratings. Analyst Jacques Rousseau set a $90 a share price target for Exxon, which drew praise for its sizeable capital spending budget of more than $20 billion a year and its prospects for future production growth. Chevron’s price target was set at $105 a share. Rousseau praised the company’s improved upstream portfolio. “We expect rising crude oil and natural gas production volumes and higher commodity prices to significantly increase Chevron’s earnings and return on capital employed,” he said in a note to clients.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


T. Rowe Price profit falls

23 Oct 2009 at 5:35am

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — T. Rowe Price said on Friday that its third-quarter net income fell to $132.9 million, or 50 cents a share, from $152.8 million, or 56 cents a share a year ago. Net revenues at the Baltimore-based asset manager fell to $498.1 million, from $554.8 million last year. Analysts polled by FactSet Research had, on average, expected the company to earn 46 cents a share on revenues of $488.5 million. (Corrects to fix transposed figures.)

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

Related Articles on Stock Market Investments.com

Latest News (external links)

Recent Articles on this site

Free Newsletter

Sign up for the free Daily newsletter, filled with tips and advice on Stock Market Investing, Stock Market Fundamentals, Day Trading, Online Trading, Commodities, Mutual Funds, Foreign Exchange and Options. Your email address will be kept confidential and won't be shared. Easily unsubscribe at any time.

If you enjoy the free information available on this site, you're sure to enjoy the free newsletter as well:

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

Site Search Tags:

Share and Enjoy:

October 23 2009 07:27 am | Stock Market News

Trackback URI | Comments RSS

Leave a Reply

Related Posts from the Past: