7-29 市場 (zt)

U.S. Stocks Fluctuate on Earnings, Forecasts Before GDP Data

By Rita Nazareth - Jul 29, 2010

U.S. stocks fell, sending theStandard & Poor’s 500 Index lower for a third day, as earningsand forecasts that disappointed investors at technology andconsumer companies wiped out an early advance.

Symantec Corp. and Nvidia Corp. lost at least 9.9 percentafter reporting forecasts, while Akamai Technologies Inc. slid13 percent after saying its profit margin shrank. Colgate-Palmolive Co. sank 6.8 percent as sales trailed estimates.Goldman Sachs Group Inc. rose 3.7 percent after saying theindustry’s regulatory overhaul won’t cause “significant”reduction in revenue, according to Bank of America Corp.

The S&P 500 fell 0.4 percent to 1,101.53 at 4 p.m. in NewYork. The index was unable to remain above its average price ofthe last 200 days of about 1,114. The Dow Jones IndustrialAverage slipped 30.72 points, or 0.3 percent, to 10,467.16.

“The picture remains mixed,” said Keith Wirtz, whooversees $18 billion as chief investment officer at Fifth ThirdAsset Management Inc. in Cincinnati. “We’ll probably see thisgive and take during the summer because the liquidity is notnormal. The employment conditions remain challenging. Goodearnings results are not helping stock prices much. However,when you have bad numbers, stocks get killed.”

The S&P 500 fell the previous two days after consumerconfidence slumped more than forecast, orders for durable goodsunexpectedly decreased and the Federal Reserve said economicgrowth slowed in some areas. The gauge has climbed 6.9 percentin July, headed for its best monthly advance in a year, afterearnings topped estimates at about 77 percent of its companiesthat have reported second-quarter results so far.

Slower GDP Growth

A Commerce Department report tomorrow may show U.S. growthslowed to 2.6 percent in the second quarter, from 2.7 percent inthe first, based on the median forecast of economists in aBloomberg survey.

Akamai Technologies sank 13 percent to $38.35. The largestsupplier of software to make websites and digital media loadfaster said its profit margin shrank as it added business fromcustomers like Netflix Inc. at lower prices.

Symantec fell 11 percent to $13.03. The world’s largestmaker of computer security software forecast second-quartersales and profit that missed analysts’ estimates, citingweakness in the euro and “cautiousness” among customers.

Nvidia, LSI

Nvidia slumped 9.9 percent to $9.13. The second-largestmaker of graphics chips lowered its second-quarter salesforecast to a range between $800 million to $820 million. Thatcompares with a prediction of $950 million to $970 million givenMay 13. Analysts had projected sales of $944.7 million,according to the average from a Bloomberg survey.

LSI Corp. had the biggest decline in the S&P 500, falling14 percent to $4.08. The maker of chips used in computer diskdrives said third-quarter sales will be between $625 million and$655 million. That compares with the $694.9 million average ofestimates compiled by Bloomberg.

Oracle Corp. fell 2.4 percent to $23.70 as the U.S. filed acomplaint under the False Claims Act against the company andOracle America Inc., alleging that it defrauded the U.S. on aGeneral Services Administration software contract that was ineffect from 1998 to 2006 and involved hundreds of millions ofdollars in sales.

“Tech is not doing great and that’s enough to drag theindex,” said Michael Mullaney, who manages $9 billion atFiduciary Trust Co. in Boston. “We need to get a bettereconomic picture in order to get a sustainable stocks rally. Weneed to get job creation and the consumer back on board.”

Colgate

Colgate-Palmolive led a gauge of consumer-staples stocks tothe second-biggest decline among 10 industries in the S&P 500.The world’s largest toothpaste maker reported second-quartersales of $3.81 billion, missing the average analyst estimate ina Bloomberg survey of $3.94 billion. Colgate slumped 6.8 percentto $78.12.

Visa Inc. declined 4.3 percent to $71.98. The Department ofJustice has indicated that it is considering filing a civillawsuit over a policy that bars merchants from charging extra tocustomers who pay with credit cards.

“The department has indicated that it is considering filinga civil lawsuit," Chief Executive Officer Joseph W. Saunders saidyesterday in a conference call with analysts after Visa reportedfiscal third-quarter results.

Utility companies had the biggest decline in the S&P 500among 10 industry groups, falling 1.6 percent.

Constellation Energy Group Inc. fell 4.6 percent to $31.75.Jefferies & Co. lowered its 2010 earnings estimate for thesupplier of electricity and natural gas.

Rates

Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis President James Bullardsaid the central bank should resume purchases of Treasurysecurities if the economy slows and prices fall rather thanmaintain a pledge to keep rates near zero. Bullard, a votingmember of the Federal Open Market Committee this year, saidusing Fed communications to pledge rates will stay near zero mayprove to be detrimental.

U.S. and Japanese stocks were cut and European shares wereraised by UBS AG global strategists, who said there is less riskand economic data is more supportive in Europe. U.S. shares werecut to ‘‘neutral’’ and Japanese equities were lowered to‘‘underweight,’’ according to a report by strategist Jeffrey Palma to clients dated July 28. Both regions were previouslyrated ‘‘overweight.’’

Stocks rose earlier today, sending the S&P 500 up 0.9percent, after the Labor Department reported that the number of Americans filing first-time claims for unemployment insurance fell to 457,000 last week, less than the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists.

‘Very Slowly’

‘‘The economy is recovering very slowly even as profitsrebound very fast,’’ said David Kelly, who helps oversee $445billion as chief market strategist for JPMorgan Funds in NewYork. ‘‘Today’s jobless claims were slightly better-than-expected, but I don’t think it really changes the story. Theemployment rebound is still slow.”

Goldman Sachs rose 3.7 percent to $152.58. The impact ofthe financial reform will be minimal unless market-making rules“turn out to be draconian (which they believe is unlikely),”Bank of America Corp. analyst Guy Moszkowski wrote in a reportsent to clients today, citing a meeting with Goldman SachsPresident Gary Cohn and Chief Financial Officer David Viniar.The company “is not waiting for final rules to be formulated byregulators to decide where to invest and how to grow.”

Citrix Systems Inc. surged 20 percent, the biggest gain inthe S&P 500, to $56.67. The maker of networking software wasraised to “outperform” from “neutral” at Robert Baird & Co.and to “neutral” from “underperform” at Cowen & Co.

Cisco Systems Inc. stock was halted for five minutesfollowing a 100-share trade on NYSE Amex that drove the sharesup more than 10 percent, triggering a circuit breakerimplemented after the May 6 market crash. Cisco fell 0.8 percentto $23.21.