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Stock Market News for November 11, 2009 – Market News

Zacks Market Commentaries — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 13:47:40 +0000

A day after the triple-digit rally, Wall Street paused for a breather as investors decided to book profits on a light trading day. The markets opened lower and then swung between gains and losses amid prevailing caution after a series of disappointing results. The Dow, nevertheless, managed to tack on 20 points for its fifth straight session gain.

The Standard & Poor's 500 Index shed 0.01%, to 1,093.01 and the technology-laden Nasdaq Composite Index slipped 2.98 points, or 0.14%, to close at 2,151.08. On the New York Stock Exchange, three stocks declined in price for every two that rose. Volume was light as only 990 million shares exchanged hands.

Record low interest rates and a sliding dollar have helped stocks in recent months as investors have taken their focus away from some of the persistent worries of the economy. Also, with the Federal Reserve continuing its highly accommodative monetary stance and the G20 finance ministers pledging to keep economic stimulus in place, risk appetites have received a boost lately.

Of the $81 billion in Treasury auction scheduled for this week, yesterday’s $25 billion sale of 10-year notes witnessed decent demand, following robust demand for the $40 billion in 3-year notes on Monday. Bond markets are closed today for Veterans Day.

Shipping company FedEx Corp. (FDX) yesterday said it expects to ship more than 13 million packages on December 14, its busiest shipping day of the year. United Parcel Service Inc (NYSE:UPS) said it sees growth in its volumes next year as the global economy recovers. American Express (NYSE:AXP) said cardholder spending grew in October, with billing up 3%.

Meanwhile, Bank of America's (NYSE:BAC) Ken Lewis noted his firm is "keeping its head above water" this year. Bob Toll of Toll Brothers (NYSE:TOL) noted, "Home buyers began to emerge from their bunkers in late March 2009 and the market continued to gain momentum up to Labor Day. Since then demand has been volatile. This may be due in part to typical seasonality, but the more likely cause is concern about unemployment and the overall economy."

A number of Fed speakers yesterday sung the tone of caution, while mostly agreeing on the fragility of the economic recovery. Both Lockhart and Yellen warned unemployment rate may remain high for the next several years. Rosengren warned that with high unemployment levels, the US economy is not yet in a position to warrant exit strategies. This morning Treasury Secretary Geithner reiterated the importance of the dollar strength for the health of the US economy.

Zacks Investment Research

Margins Shrink at Supertex – Analyst Blog

Zacks Market Commentaries — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 16:46:51 +0000

Supertex Inc. (SUPX) recently reported revenues of $15.9 million in its fiscal second quarter, down 32% year over year but up 17% sequentially.

The sequential increase in revenues was driven by growth in LED driver products for lighting and backlighting, medical electronics products, and electroluminescent (EL) driver products. Orders for LED and EL driver products surged after Labor Day. The company had to rush these orders through its wafer fab and expedite them through backend assembly and test in order to meet customer demand schedules. Demand for medical ultrasound products is also beginning to rebound, as sales grew 17% sequentially.

Management added that its major customer has increased its LED TV sales estimates for 2009 and 2010 while other customers are also ramping up. Sales of LED driver products for general lighting applications have also increased. In anticipation of new cell phone launches, shipments of EL inverter products ramped up in the reported quarter.

Gross margin declined to 47% from 53% in the previous quarter due to the non-linear loading of its wafer facilities and backend operations. Net income declined to $1 million compared to $4.5 million in the year-ago quarter. Earnings per share came in at 15 cents easily beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 10 cents.

Based on booking, management expects revenues between $16.5 million and $17.5 million in its fiscal third quarter, driven by sequential growth in all end markets. However, customer demand in foundry service business is expected to be lower. During the December quarter, Supertex is planning a normal wafer fabrication facility shutdown for maintenance and hence expect gross margin to be flat in the third quarter.

The top-line has been shrinking from the past few quarters but the company expects demand to pick up in the back-end of 2009 as Supertex indicated that its LED driver business is expected to see substantial growth. Additionally, the Medical segment is anticipated to stabilize in the second half as new design wins ramp up. We await better visibility of these programs before turning positive on shares of Supertex.

Headquartered in California, Supertex designs and sells high-voltage analog and mixed signal integrated circuits. Competition remains intense in the analog sector where the gross margins are traditionally higher including products for the Medical Electronics, Imaging, Telecom, LED Lighting, and industrial/other markets. The company competes with several larger analog semiconductor companies with far greater resources, including Maxim Integrated Products Inc. (MXIM), Hitachi LTD (HIT) and Texas Instruments (TXN) for the Medical Electronic market.

Read the full analyst report on "SUPX"
Read the full analyst report on "MXIM"
Read the full analyst report on "HIT"
Read the full analyst report on "TXN"
Zacks Investment Research

Investing in ADRs: The Most Powerful Way to Reduce Market Risk

Contrarian Profits — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 20:39:44 +0000

pIt’s official: You can reduce your investment risk simply by chucking darts at a list of stocks, then buying them./p pThat’s if you believe a Nobel economist, of course. His crude “experiment” was the start of em“/ememmodern portfolio theory”/em decades ago. The downside, however, was that with a reduction of risk came a dampening of profits. So scratch that idea./p pHow about this? A startling study in the late 1970s showed that owning a portfolio of large U.S. companies with international divisions drops your risk 10% below a domestic stock portfolio. Much better. But that wasn’t the eye-popper…/p pThe study also found that owning stocks in international companies cuts your risk in half…/p pTake that, “efficiency” theorists! Yet the stuffy professors still tried to refute#8230;/p

What’s In The Pipeline: Fabulous or Folly?

IndexUniverse Staff — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 14:13:22 +0000

The Labor Day edition of the IndexUniverse.com podcast looks at some of the interesting—and ridiculous—ETFs we can look forward to in the coming months.

Global Investor: Gold Breaks $1,000/Ounce

Contrarian Profits — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 22:15:46 +0000

p style="margin-bottom: 1em;"Gold hit the big “quadruple digits” while we were all relaxing on Labor Day. To be sure, it was just the December contract, which has since pulled back to US$997. But we haven’t seen US$1,000 since February, back when we had an insolvent financial system and a meddling government printing trillions like toilet paper. /p p style="margin-bottom: 1em;"Nowadays, we’ve got an insolvent financial system and a meddling government…but we’ve also got a questionable stock market rally too (one driven by the unprecedented volume on bailout stocks, might I add). Throw in growing Chinese demand and jewelry-buying season in India, and you just might be looking at a foothold in the US$1,000/ounce range./p p“My forecast for gold in 2010 is $1,250 to $1,350 an ounce,”#8230;/p

Head for Cover

Bill Bonner — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 20:38:34 +0000

pClowns to the left of us#8230; Jokers to the right#8230; The Simpleton’s Analysis: Consumers cut back. The economy sank. br / strongNow, government must take action. It must help people out and take up the slack./strong/p pThe downturn took $12 trillion off Americans’ net worth. The feds have pledged about $12 trillion to fix the problem./p pBut wait, where does government get any money?/p pHey, they borrow it, just like consumers did. And besides, it’s ultimately the same money – taxpayers’ money. So what’s the big diff?/p pThe big diff is the subject of today’s a href="http://www.dailyreckoning.com" class="alinks_links"Daily Reckoning/a./p pThe first big diff is that the feds don’t spend your money the way you would. Private citizens spend money they don’t have on things they want but don’t need.#8230;/p

Weekend Recap – Post-Labor Day Catchup

Daniel Hung — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 14:28:59 +0000

Just catching up on the Weekend Recap after taking a weekend off for Labor day. Hope everyone had an enjoyable and restful weekend. Just to get the week kick started, here’s a rundown of some interesting posts that I came across in the past week. Market Commentary Bill Gross, bond-king at PIMCO, released his most recent commentary, [...]

Stock Market News for September 8, 2009 – Market News

Zacks Market Commentaries — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 14:14:36 +0000

A better-than-expected jobs report helped U.S. stocks rally ahead of the long weekend but the unemployment scenario continued to remain grim, signaling the much-expected economic recovery is not going to be smooth. Worries that the rally has gone ahead of any economic recovery continued to keep a check on sentiments and stocks declined during the first three sessions of last week. All major indexes started off on a dull note but posted strong gains in the afternoon.

Following advances in the overseas markets, US stocks are expected to gain at the opening. The DJIA futures added 79 points for a gain to 9496; the S&P500 increased 9.9 points heading toward a 1023.80 open. Markets were closed yesterday for the Labor Day holiday.

On Friday, the 30-stock Dow Jones industrial average rose 96.66 points, or 1.03%, to 9,441.27. The S&P 500 index rose 13.16 points, or 1.31%, to 1,016.40. The technology-laden NASDAQ advanced 35.58 points, or 1.79%, to 2,018.78. However, all three indexes ended the week lower. During the week, the DJIA retreated 1.1% and the S&P 500 was off 1.2%; NASDAQ was comparatively better, easing only 0.5%.

As stock prices gained, Treasury bonds lost ground. The yield on the benchmark 10-year note rose 0.09% to 3.44% and the 30-year bond yield rose 0.11 to 4.27%. On Tuesday $38 billion in 3-year notes is slated for auction, on Wednesday $20 billion of 10-years, and on Thursday $12 billion in 30-years.

Last week, Tax preparer (NYSE:HRB) saw its shares fall after the firm reported a wider-than-expected loss of 39 cents a share. Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) shares rose ahead of its media event next week where it is expected to introduce iPod Nano and Touch models that include digital cameras. Societe Generale sharply raised its price target on the iPhone maker.

Traders return to their desks in a holiday-shortened week with last September’s collapse of Lehman Brothers absorption of Merrill and a government bailout of AIG still fresh in their minds. Although a lot of water has passed under the bridge since then, traders still remain skeptical about the prospects of a full blown economic recovery.

This week, healthcare and insurance stocks may take a cue from President Obama's attempt to garner support for his much-talked-about healthcare initiative in a rare joint session of Congress Wednesday. Remarks from Saudi Arabia's oil minister that crude markets are "in good shape" indicate further production cuts are not expected at this week's OPEC meeting.

Moreover, a Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) report noting, "This is the ideal phase of the economic cycle...There is more of a positive growth surprise to come over the next three to six months," could be viewed in positive light. Credit Suisse projected a 13% gain in the S&P500 to 1150 by mid-2010.

Zacks Investment Research

Costco Sales Dip Marginally – Analyst Blog

Zacks Market Commentaries — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 16:03:58 +0000

Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST), the fifth largest general retailer in the U.S., has reported a better-than-expected performance in same-store sales in August with a marginal dip of 2% compared to an average analyst prediction of 5.7%.

Same-store sales measure sales at stores which have been open for at least a year, and are a widely used metric to gauge retailer performance as they measure growth at existing stores rather than at the newly opened ones. August same-store sales of Costco decreased 4% across the U.S. locations, while increasing 3% in the international division.

According to the company, the August results were negatively affected to some extent by the shift of the Labor Day holiday to one week later in the calendar. Costco further revealed that discretionary items such as food and sundries reported comparatively improved sales vis-à-vis non-food discretionary items in the month.

The recent figures are quite significant as they point to the gradual recovery of the economy. Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated (JLL), a leading real estate investment trust (REIT) in the U.S., had predicted in its recent survey that the retail market is likely to recover in 2010, with discount retailers benefiting the most from the recovery. In order to support its claim, the report had also cited the meteoric rise of Costco, and had pointed to the shift in balance from more premium-based shopping trends to value-for-money buys.

Costco operates an international chain of membership warehouses that feature branded merchandise at substantially lower prices than conventional wholesale or retail sources. The warehouses present a diverse range of product categories under a single roof, including groceries, candy, appliances, automotive supplies, toys, hardware, sporting goods, jewelry, watches, cameras, books, apparel, tobacco, furniture, office supplies and office equipment.
Read the full analyst report on "COST"
Read the full analyst report on "JLL"
Zacks Investment Research

Earnings Preview for Sep 8 – 11 – Earnings Preview

Tracey Ryniec — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 05:00:00 +0000

It's a relatively quiet week on the earnings front with only 50 companies scheduled to report, including a smattering of retailers and food companies. Only 2 S&P 500 members are on tap to report including Campbell Soup Co. (CPB) and National Semiconductor (NSM).

The economic calendar is also quiet to start the first "real" trading week in September, as Wall Street comes back from August vacations. It's a shortened trading week due to the Labor Day holiday on Monday.

Monday: Markets closed for Labor Day
Tuesday: ICSC-Goldman Store Sales, Redbook
Wednesday: Beige Book
Thursday: International trade, weekly jobless claims, weekly natural gas inventories, weekly crude inventories
Friday: Import and export prices, University of Michigan consumer sentiment survey for September, Treasury budget

Volume is likely to return to more "normal" levels to start the week. Despite recent weakness in the markets, the bulls remain in charge. Wall Street will also be watching trading in the commodities complex, especially gold and silver, as gold attempts to bust through the $1000 an ounce level for the third time in the last 2 years and silver trades at 13-month highs.

Companies That Could Issue Negative Earnings Surprises

Smithfield Foods (SFD), the largest hog and pork producer in the U.S., is struggling as pork demand falls due to the recession and worries about pork products somehow being connected to the swine flu. According to a Reuters report, the company has cut its hog breeding herd by 13% this year. Higher feed costs are also pressuring the food manufacturer.

While Smithfield has surprised on estimates 3 out of the last 4 quarters, covering analysts have been lowering the estimates going into the fiscal 2010 first quarter earnings release. In the last month, the Zacks Consensus Estimate has fallen 4 cents to a loss of 55 cents. It is scheduled to report before the market opens on Sep 8.

Keep an eye on the Aerovironment Inc. (AVAV), the maker of unmanned aircraft systems, as it reports its fiscal 2010 first quarter earnings. The Zacks Consensus Estimate has fallen by nearly 50% to 13 cents in the past 90 days. The most accurate estimate is even more bearish at 6 cents per share. The company is scheduled to report on Sep 8 after the market close.

Earnings Calendar

Here is a list of companies that we have confirmed will report during the week of Sep 8 - 11*. Prices are as of Thursday's, Sep 3, market close.

Company	Stock	Zacks Estimate	Year Ago EPS	Last Qtr Surprise	Date	Time	Price
Aceto Corp	ACET	0.11	0.32	-33.33%	9/11/2009	BTO	$6.56
Aerovironment	AVAV	0.13	0.22	3.85%	9/8/2009	AMC	$28.99
Brady Corp Cl A	BRC	0.41	0.64	12.12%	9/11/2009	BTO	$29.79
Caseys Gen Strs	CASY	0.6	0.6	-13.89%	9/8/2009	AMC	$28.26
C&D Tech Inc	CHP	-0.13	0.05	-146.67%	9/8/2009	BTO	$2.08
Campbell Soup	CPB	0.26	0.26	14.29%	9/11/2009	BTO	$30.88
Descartes Sys	DSGX	0.08	0.03	28.57%	9/10/2009	BTO	$4.27
Fuelcell Energy	FCEL	-0.25	-0.39	3.33%	9/8/2009	AMC	$3.43
Finisar Corp	FNSR	0	0.04	0.00%	9/10/2009	N/A	$0.86
Hooker Furnitur	HOFT	0.07	0.18	-100.00%	9/10/2009	N/A	$13.25
Harry Winston	HWD	-0.05	0.81	50.00%	9/10/2009	AMC	$6.82
Investors Rl Es	IRET	0.21	0.2	0.00%	9/9/2009	AMC	$9.07
Wiley (John) A	JW.A	0.38	0.5	-4.55%	9/9/2009	BTO	$31.51
Korn/Ferry Intl	KFY	-0.06	0.36	-83.33%	9/9/2009	BTO	$12.84
K12 Inc	LRN	-0.02	-0.01	9.09%	9/9/2009	BTO	$18.88
Lululemon Athlt	LULU	0.1	0.18	12.50%	9/10/2009	BTO	$19.79
Mds Inc	MDZ	0.01	0.06	-33.33%	9/10/2009	BTO	$7.51
Mitcham Inds	MIND	-0.09	0.16	-116.67%	9/8/2009	AMC	$5.39
Mens Wearhouse	MW	0.59	0.72	0.00%	9/9/2009	AMC	$25.25
Nci Bldg System	NCS	0.02	1.63	-164.29%	9/9/2009	AMC	$2.58
Natl Semicon	NSM	0.07	0.33	40.91%	9/10/2009	AMC	$15.39
Omega Navigat-A	ONAV	0.2	0.38	-5.88%	9/8/2009	AMC	$4.02
Ocean Power Tec	OPTT	-0.44	-0.38	33.96%	9/9/2009	N/A	$3.84
Pep Boys M M &J	PBY	0.15	0.11	50.00%	9/8/2009	AMC	$8.70
Piedmont Nat Ga	PNY	-0.11	-0.1	10.61%	9/9/2009	BTO	$24.24
Safe Bulkers	SB	0.61	0.82	75.38%	9/8/2009	AMC	$6.83
Smithfield Food	SFD	-0.55	-0.02	3.51%	9/8/2009	BTO	$12.73
Shuffle Master	SHFL	0.07	0.11	50.00%	9/9/2009	AMC	$7.25
Signet Grp Plc	SIG	0.21	0.24	34.78%	9/9/2009	N/A	$23.51
Stewart Entrp A	STEI	0.08	0.1	37.50%	9/10/2009	N/A	$5.12
Smith & Wesson	SWHC	0.09	0.05	190.00%	9/9/2009	AMC	$5.19
Titan Machinery	TITN	0.18	0.19	-23.08%	9/9/2009	BTO	$11.89
Talbots Inc	TLB	-0.52	-0.34	53.06%	9/9/2009	BTO	$6.42
Utd Natural Fds	UNFI	0.36	0.3	14.71%	9/9/2009	BTO	$27.43
Xinyuan Real Es	XIN	0.05	0.1	140.00%	9/8/2009	BTO	$4.76
Zale Corp New	ZLC	-0.77	-0.48	-57.41%	9/9/2009	BTO	$5.55
Ciena Corp	CIEN	($0.21)	$0.29	(137.5%)	9/3	BTO	$13.62
Cooper Cos	COO	$0.62	$0.67	27.1%	9/3	AMC	$27.87
Del Monte Foods	DLM	$0.03	($0.04)	34.6%	9/3	BTO	$10.50
Esterline	ESL	$0.90	$0.68	(9.6%)	9/3	AMC	$31.43
G-Iii Apparel	GIII	($0.26)	($0.23)	19.6%	9/3	AMC	$15.21
Jackson Hewitt	JTX	($0.69)	($0.69)	(0.6%)	9/3	BTO	$5.90
Krispy Kreme	KKD	N/A	($0.03)	(1000.0%)	9/3	N/A	$3.11
Layne Christens	LAYN	$0.12	$0.78	(135.3%)	9/3	BTO	$26.86
Methode Elect-A	MEI	($0.24)	$0.27	37.5%	9/3	BTO	$8.76
Movado Grp Inc	MOV	($0.23)	$0.39	22.9%	9/3	BTO	$13.27
Quiksilver Inc	ZQK	$0.04	$0.22	25.0%	9/3	AMC	$2.94
Shanda Interact	SNDA	$0.82	$0.56	8.3%	9/3	AMC	$51.16
Uti Worldwide	UTIW	$0.18	$0.28	(28.6%)	9/3	BTO	$13.15
Ata Inc-Adr	ATAI	$0.08	$0.08	57.1%	9/4	N/A	$7.31
Barry R G Corp	GCFB	$0.00	($0.01)	0.0%	9/4	BTO	$8.50

BTO = Before The Market Open, AMC = After The Market Close

*Some of the companies listed in the earnings calendar may not be in the Zacks Rank universe.

Zacks Investment Research

Stock Market News for September 3, 2009 – Market News

Zacks Market Commentaries — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 14:16:51 +0000

Lingering economic uncertainties kept stocks under pressure for the fourth straight day on Wednesday even as minutes from the Federal Reserve’s last policy meeting showed the economy is slowly turning a corner and inflation is likely to remain restrained. Trading was mostly rangebound as investors chose to remain on the sidelines. As investors went into risk-aversion mode, Treasuries jumped and corresponding yields declined, with the yield on the 10-year tanking to its lowest in more than seven weeks.

Trading may remain subdued as the Labor Day weekend approaches. Nevertheless, today’s trading could benefit from last afternoon’s optimistic FOMC minutes coupled with improved growth expectations from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and Chairman of China’s Securities Regulatory Commission advising regulators will promote stable markets. China’s Shanghai Composite Index jumped 4.8% in an otherwise normal day for Asian bourses. This morning’s stock futures are pointing to a higher opening on the Wall Street as investors turn their focus towards reports on jobs and consumer spending.

Yesterday, the 30-stock Dow Jones industrial average retreated 30 points, or 0.3% and the S&P 500 index slid 3 points, or 0.3%. The Nasdaq composite edged up a paltry 2 points, or 0.2%. During the last three sessions, the DJIA has lost almost 270 points. On the NYSE, volume slowed to 1.38 billion shares and declining stock beat those that advanced three to two. Gold prices jumped 2.3% to $978.50.

The decline was broad based as all but six DJIA components declined. Those leading the Dow lower were Merck & Co. (NYSE:MRK), which declined 3.1% to $30.81 and JP Morgan (NYSE:JPM), which closed down 1.9% to $40.86. Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) and Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) were the leading gainers, rising 2.62% and 1.8%, respectively. Alcoa (NYSE:AA) eased 0.4%. The company said it sees an 8% aluminum demand growth for the second half, due to China's stimulus measures.

The FOMC report released last afternoon showed the economic recovery will likely start gaining momentum in 2010, although there still remains "considerable uncertainty" about its pace. The report noted inflation is likely to stay subdued over the next few years, with some pointing to risks of "substantial disinflation."

Chain store comparable sales reports could be of importance in today's trading, especially considering the recent spike in shares of retailers. Early to report, Costco (NASDAQ:COST) announced a 2% drop in monthly sales. Wet Seal's (NASDAQ:WTSLA) same-store-sales fell 11.2% in August; Children's Place (NASDAQ:PLCE) sales dropped 8%; Limited Brands (NYSE:LTD) fell 4%.

Zacks Investment Research

PennyOmega.com Stocks Upgraded, Downgraded and Short Highlights Before the Bell Thursday September 3, 2009

PennyOmega.com — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 12:22:55 +0000

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Zacks Earnings Preview: Brown Foreman, Ciena, ADC Telecom and Zale Corporation – Press Releases

Charles Rotblut — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 13:00:19 +0000

For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – August 31, 2009 – Zacks.com releases the list of companies likely to issue earnings surprises. This week’s list includes Brown Foreman (BF.B), Ciena (CIEN), ADC Telecom (ADCT) and Zale Corporation (ZLC). To see more earnings analysis, visit http://at.zacks.com/?id=3207.

Every day, Zacks.com makes 4 stock picks available, free of charge. To see them, go to http://at.zacks.com/?id=5612.

This Week's Events

With just 51 companies scheduled to report, economic news will be at the forefront. The only S&P 500 members on the earnings calendar are Brown Foreman (BF.B) and Ciena (CIEN).

The economic calendar is pretty packed with the August ISM surveys, August employment data and minutes from the last Fed meeting all scheduled to be released. Adding to the potential volatility will be light volume, particularly on Friday afternoon as many traders leave early for the holiday.

Monday: August Chicago PMI
Tuesday: August ISM manufacturing index, August auto sales, July construction spending, July pending home sales
Wednesday: August ADP employment survey, August Fed minutes, July factory orders, revised Q2 productivity, weekly crude inventories, weekly mortgage applications
Thursday: August ISM services index, weekly initial jobless claims, weekly natural gas inventories
Friday: August unemployment rate and nonfarm payrolls

No Fed officials are scheduled to speak.

The U.S. financial markets will be closed on Monday, Sep 7 in observance of Labor Day.

Volume is likely to stay light throughout the week and get even lighter on Friday afternoon. Overall, the bullish trend is continuing, though given the Dow's recent winning streak, some profit-taking is likely to occur. Nonetheless, the fast money remains in charge.

Companies That Could Issue Positive Earnings Surprises

ADC Telecom (ADCT) recently raised its third-quarter guidance. The company now anticipates that non-GAAP profits totaled between 11 and 16 cents per share. Positive revisions by 8 covering analysts pushed the Zacks Consensus Estimate 5 cents higher to 13 cents per share. The most accurate estimate is a penny higher at 14 cents per share. ADCT has beat twice and matched expectations twice during the past 4 quarters. ADC Telecom is scheduled to report on Tuesday, Sep 1, after the close of trading.

Companies That Could Issue Negative Earnings Surprises

Zale Corporation (ZLC) has disappointed investors for 3 consecutive quarters with earnings missing expectations by an average margin of 39 cents share. Ahead of the company's fiscal fourth-quarter report, nearly all of the covering analysts have lowered their projections. The Zacks Consensus calls for a loss of 77 cents per share, 5 cents worse than the average forecast of a month ago. The most accurate estimate is more bearish at 87 cents per share. Zale is scheduled to report on Wednesday, Sep 2, before the start of trading.

Charles Rotblut, CFA, is the senior market analyst for Zacks.com.

About the Zacks Rank

Since 1988, the Zacks Rank has proven that "Earnings estimate revisions are the most powerful force impacting stock prices." Since inception in 1988, #1 Rank Stocks have generated an average annual return of +26%. During the 2000-2002 bear market, Zacks #1 Rank stocks gained +43.8%, while the S&P 500 tumbled -37.6%. Also note that the Zacks Rank system has just as many Strong Sell recommendations (Rank #5) as Strong Buy recommendations (Rank #1). Since 1988, Zacks Rank #5 stocks have underperformed the S&P 500 by 111% annually (-0.8% versus +8%). Thus, the Zacks Rank system allows investors to truly manage portfolio trading effectively.

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Zacks.com is a property of Zacks Investment Research, Inc., which was formed in 1978 by Leonard Zacks. As a PhD in mathematics Len knew he could find patterns in stock market data that would lead to superior investment results. Amongst his many accomplishments was the formation of his proprietary stock picking system; the Zacks Rank, which continues to outperform the market by nearly a 3 to 1 margin. The best way to unlock the profitable stock recommendations and market insights of Zacks Investment Research is through our free daily email newsletter; Profit from the Pros. In short, it's your steady flow of Profitable ideas GUARANTEED to be worth your time! Register for your free subscription to Profit from the Pros by going to http://at.zacks.com/?id=5615.

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Visit http://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.

Disclaimer: Past performance does not guarantee future results. Investors should always research companies and securities before making any investments. Nothing herein should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any security.

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Zacks Investment Research

Dollar Edges Up vs Euro ahead of U.S. Consumer Data

Contrarian Profits — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 17:00:07 +0000

pThe dollar edged up against the euro and yen on Monday in extremely thin trade as Wall Street surrendered earlier gains and traders repositioned themselves ahead of U.S. consumer and housing data due this week./p pSolid U.S. and euro zone data and an upbeat assessment on the economy from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke over the weekend earlier pushed investors to take on riskier investments at the expense of the the low-yielding yen and dollar./p p#8220;Conventional wisdom suggests that major currencies should trade within their recent ranges until liquidity improves after the Labor Day holiday,#8221; said Wells Fargo currency strategist Vassili Serebriakov. #8220;However, there is plenty of data in the U.S. and elsewhere to change that this week, with consumer-related numbers likely#8230;/p

Prieur’s readings (August 22, 2009)

Prieur du Plessis — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 06:25:43 +0000

This post provides links to a number of interesting articles I have read over the past few days that you may also enjoy. Please also add the links to any other thought-provoking articles you would like to share to the comments section.

German Investor Confidence Soars!

Contrarian Profits — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 14:00:39 +0000

pZEW says Germany is on the mend#8230; UK inflation remains higher than expected#8230; Safe Haven, what safe haven? Housing data remains soft#8230; And Now#8230; Today#8217;s Pfennig!br / Good day#8230; And a Terrific Tuesday to you! Well#8230; I received an injection of steroids into my left knee yesterday, and already today, I can tell that they are working their magic! I guess I#8217;ll have to give up my plans to try out for the Cardinals next year, now! HA! So, my knee is recovering from 3-weeks of agonizing pain and swelling#8230; I#8217;ve got that going for me!/p pAnd the currencies seem to be recovering this morning too, from the recent go around in the ring with the risk aversion campers. The currencies (except yen), were last seen yesterday#8230;/p

Prieur’s readings (August 17, 2009)

Prieur du Plessis — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 07:57:53 +0000

This post provides links to a number of thought-provoking articles I have read over the past few days that you may also find of interest. Please also add the links to any other thought-provoking articles you would like to share to the comments section.

Wednesday’s Market Recap (05/20/09)

Bullish Bankers — Wed, 20 May 2009 21:50:55 +0000

The markets ended the day down after some large gains earlier due to the banks who fell after key credit card legislation made it’s way through the House. The Dow down 0.6% while the S&P 500 and NASDAQ finished the day down 0.51% and 0.39% respectively. The 10 year finally saw its yields decrease to [...]

STOCK TRADING AHEAD OF MEMORIAL DAY: THE NUMBERS IN THE CROSSHAIRS

David Blair — Mon, 18 May 2009 23:56:56 +0000

The weekend before Memorial Day will mark the unofficial beginning of summer. The markets have historically been relatively flat going into the “summer doldrums.” However, the DOW has been up ~50% of the time in the weeks that follow the holiday while the S&P and NASDAQ have been up ~60% of the time. Let’s break [...]

Post from: The CrossHairs Trader

STOCK TRADING AHEAD OF MEMORIAL DAY: THE NUMBERS IN THE CROSSHAIRS

RA’s Daily Russian News Blast – May 1, 2009

Robert Amsterdam — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:03:12 +0000

TODAY: NATO-Russia contacts reach immediate hurdle; security pacts reignite tensions as do spying claims; attacked journalist in coma; labor day today - but is there much to celebrate? The security agreements Moscow has signed with South Ossetia and Abkhazia, which...

Getfugu, Inc. (GFGU.OB) Unveils Next Generation Mobile Search Tool

QualityStocks — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 15:19:37 +0000

Getfugu Incorporated is the first technology architect to provide a carrier agnostic, platform agnostic mobile search platform. The GetFugu platform will be available for 97% of the mobile phones available worldwide. Additionally, GetFugu includes the only global mobile ecommerce platform available today. Getfugu today unveiled its next generation search tool and new business model [...]

Black Swan Month?

Contrarian Profits — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 20:57:50 +0000

pI’m keeping an eye out for financial Black Swans this month — more than usual./p pIf none appears, it will finally scotch a stubborn Internet rumor that — at least in its early stages, and if you give the rumormongers benefit of the doubt — has proven startlingly prescient./p pOur story begins nearly a year ago when the House debated in a rare closed-door session on March 13, 2008. Ostensibly the a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/03/14/house-holds-closed-sessio_n_91490.html" target="_blank"purpose/a was to debate the warrantless-wiretapping amendment to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act — you know, the one that retroactively cleared the phone companies of breaking the law by indiscriminately scooping up millions of our phone calls for the feds to listen to if they so desired./p pBy March 25, rumors had spread#8230;/p

Roger Wiegand: Predicting a “Severe Bull Market” for Gold

The Gold Report — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 21:35:08 +0000

Seeing beyond the blind curves of bailouts and meltdowns takes the keen vision of a veteran market observer, Roger Wiegand, Editor of Trader Tracks. In this exclusive interview with The Gold Report, Wiegand predicts a “severe bull market” for gold that will include both juniors and seniors. He advises selective buying and names several of [...]

Top Performing Stocks for the Week Ended Sep 12 – Zacks #1 Rank Top Performers

James Giaquinto — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 00:00:00 +0000

The five best performing stocks on the Zacks #1 Rank List last week were: Cedar Fair Entertainment Company (FUN), True Religion Apparel, Inc. (TRLG), Fuel Systems Solutions, Inc. (FSYS), G-III Apparel Group, Ltd. (GIII) and ITT Educational Services, Inc. (ESI).

Cedar Fair Entertainment Company (FUN) announced last week that 2008 revenues through Labor Day were up 3% to $852 million. In addition, attendance was also up 3% to 547,000 visits. On a same-park basis, revenues through Labor Day advanced 5%. FUN said it is cautiously optimistic that momentum during the peak vacation months of July and August will continue into the Fall season. The company reaffirmed its full-year revenue outlook of $990 million to $1.02 billion.

Shares of the regional amusement and water parks company moved forward by 6.7% last week. Earnings estimates for this year and next have improved over the past 2 months by 8.2% and 11.4%, respectively.

True Religion Apparel, Inc. (TRLG) continues to perform well against a difficult economic backdrop. Shares of the premium jeans maker were up approximately 6.1% last week, which was enough to make it one of the top performing Zacks #1 Rank companies. Earnings estimates for this year and next have advanced 5.7% and 4.7%, respectively, over the past 2 months. In addition, analysts currently predict that next year's profit will advance almost 22% from this year.

True Religion Apparel's second-quarter performance demonstrated why this is one of the better-performing retailers at the moment. The company reported earnings per share of 39 cents early last month, marking a surprise of almost 18.2% over the consensus. Net sales jumped 79% to $64.2 million. Most encouraging in the quarter was its full-year earnings guidance, which was increased to a range between $1.61 and $1.65 from the previous guidance of $1.52 to $1.56. Net sales are now expected between $242 million and $247 million, accounting for a gain of 40% to 43% over that of 2007. TRLG also raised its targeted 2008 store count to 39 by the end of the year; up 4 stores from its previous target.

The price of oil may be well off its highs at the moment, but that hasn't dampened enthusiasm for Fuel Systems Solutions, Inc. (FSYS). Shares of the company moved forward by about 5.5% last week. Over the past 2 months, analysts have raised earnings estimates for this year by 27.5% and for next year by 31.5%. Underscoring the potential of alternative energy moving forward, analysts expect next year's profit to soar by more than 30% over this year.

In its second quarter, which was reported in early August, FSYS announced revenue of $98.3 million, marking a 50% jump from the previous year's $65.6 million. The company attributed this to the rapidly-expanding demand for alternatives to petroleum for fueling vehicles. Meanwhile, earnings per share topped both the consensus and year-ago result. The company also increased its 2008 consolidated revenue outlook to $350 million.

Earnings estimates for G-III Apparel Group, Ltd. (GIII) have moved higher recently after the clothing retailer announced fiscal second-quarter results on Sep 9. Analyst expectations for this fiscal year and next are up 1.5% and 1.3%, respectively, over the past week. Furthermore, estimates have also moved higher from 3 months ago by 8.6% and 6%. The company was a top-performing Zacks #1 Rank last week as shares gained 5.2%.

GIII lost 23 cents per share in its fiscal second quarter, which was steeper than the year-ago loss due to recent acquisitions. However, that result was narrower than the consensus' loss estimate by 2 cents. Net sales increased by 35% to $113.5 million from $83.9 million. The company believes it is well positioned for the second half, and expects full fiscal year net sales of approximately $730 million and earnings per share between $1.35 and $1.40.

ITT Educational Services, Inc. (ESI) was featured as an Aggressive Growth Stock of the Day at Zacks.com on Monday. The company made the Zacks #1 Rank Top Performers List for the week ended Sep 12 with shares that advanced 4.7% in a difficult week. Over the past 2 months, earnings estimates for this year are up 7.2%, while expectations for next year advanced 7.6%.

ESI reported that new student enrollment increased by 22.5% in the second quarter, while total student enrollment advanced 12.1%. These factors helped the company put together a strong performance, which included earnings per share of $1.20 that advanced year over year from 87 cents. That marked a surprise of 16.5% over the consensus. Sales improved by almost 14% to $246.4 million from $217 million. ESI also raised its EPS goal for the year. Analysts currently expect next year's EPS to increase almost 10% from this year.

"FUN1" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
"TRLG" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
"GIII" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
Zacks Investment Research

Hurricane Ike is the Latest Wild Card in the “Guess the Gasoline Price Game”

William Patalon lll — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 00:50:20 +0000

By William Patalon III Executive Editor Money Morning/The Money Map Report Last week’s crude and gasoline inventories dropped more than expected as the effects of Hurricane Gustav... Money Morning is here to help investors profit han...

With OPEC Meeting Looming, and Emerging Markets Growing, Oil Prices May Only be Temporary

William Patalon lll — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 10:48:43 +0000

By William Patalon III Executive Editor Money Morning/The Money Map Report Analysts are trumpeting the recent drop in oil prices as a step toward normalcy. But is this celebration... Money Morning is here to help investors profit handsomely ...

Isle of Capris Casinos, Inc. (ISLE) Comments on First Quarter Earnings and Property Closure Due to Hurricane

QualityStocks — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 12:02:06 +0000

Isle of Capris Casinos, Inc. (NASD: ISLE), a gaming and entertainment company that operates 18 casino properties, recently reported its financial results for the first quarter of fiscal year 2009 ended July 27, 2008. The company’s first quarter net revenues increased by $3.8 million, a 1.4 percent year-over-year gain, which improved the quarterly net loss [...]

Stocks are Rolling over; Volume Picking on the Downside

Market Speculator — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 10:31:39 +0000

At the moment, this confirmed market rally starting in late in the summer is fading very quickly. For the second day following labor day stocks ended the day in red and in higher volume. This is a troubling sign for stocks, indexes can stack up distribution days very quickly and can roll over just as [...]

The Morning Edge – September, 2 2008

QualityStocks — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 13:44:56 +0000

The major theme of todayâ€™s trading will be the response of the energy sector in the aftermath of Hurricane Gustav. Index futures point to strong openings as crude oil and natural gas continue to sell off after posting losses during special trading sessions over the weekend and Labor Day holiday. The storm, which [...]

Monday Morning ARGH!

Sean Brodrick — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 13:18:31 +0000

Commodities are getting clocked this morning. The catalyst is that Hurricane Gustav didn't harm the energy infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico, but really, you have to give credit to a strong, resurgent US dollar.

A HUGE pullback in oil today. It started in electronic trading in a week that is known for light trading volume, but you can't argue with this chart.

Gold is following oil lower today, even though India, the world's biggest buyer of bullion, increased its August gold imports by 56%. What's the driver, then? The rising dollar! You can’t argue against the bullish action in the dollar.

Here is other news you can use ...

ENERGY

Oil falls as global demand concerns re-emerge

SINGAPORE (AP) -- Oil prices fell below $106 a barrel Tuesday in Asia -- $10 below its close Friday before the Labor Day weekend -- as investors shifted their focus to slowing global demand after worries about Hurricane Gustav subsided.

Wind, solar energy built on temporary tax breaks
Congress is putting the short-term future of renewable energy companies in jeopardy even as the presidential candidates and most lawmakers hail windmills, solar panels and biofuels as long-term solutions to high gasoline prices and global warming.

Russian gas oil, gasoline exports fall in Aug

Russian exports of gas oil and gasoline fell in August. Russian oil companies exported 86,219 tonnes per day of gas oil in the first 27 days of August, down by 5.7% from 91,390 tonnes per day in the first 30 days of July. Exports of gasoline, which usually amount to just around 10% of total sales of the fuel, fell by 14.7% to 9,167 tonnes per day from 10,740 tonnes per day in July.

MISC Says It's Halting Ships Travel to Gulf of Aden After Vessels Hijacked MISC Bhd., the world's biggest owner of liquefied natural gas tankers, halted its vessels from entering the Gulf of Aden until more security measures are in place after pirate attacks off the coast of Somalia.

AGRICULTURE

Corn, Soybeans Tumble as Oil Declines on Reduced Hurricane Damage Concern Corn plunged by the trading limit and soybeans tumbled as oil fell after Hurricane Gustav passed the U.S. Gulf Coast without causing major damage, driving the dollar up and reducing demand for the crops as an alternative investment.

GOLD

Gold Declines for Third Day as Crude Oil Slips, Dollar Rallies

Gold fell for a third day in London as the dollar strengthened and crude oil slid, reducing demand for the metal as an alternative investment and inflation hedge. Platinum also dropped.

US DOLLAR

Dollar Bears' Mea Culpa Makes Ben Bernanke No Liability in Global Slowdown Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke has gone from a dollar liability to an asset, sparking a rally that even bears say shows few signs of ending

CANADA

Canada's Harper Seeks National Election, Opposition Leader Dion Says Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper will likely call national elections after failing to find common ground with rival parties for the agenda of the next session of Parliament, opposition Liberal Leader Stephane Dion said.

GLOBAL ECONOMY

China's Spending May Thwart Olympic Curse, Buoy Asia

After four straight quarters of decelerating gross domestic product growth, the government is considering a fiscal stimulus of as much as 400 billion yuan ($58 billion), according to economists and reports in domestic news media.

A plan awaiting approval from the State Council and the National People's Congress includes 220 billion yuan of spending and 150 billion yuan of tax cuts, the Beijing-based Economic Observer newspaper reported last week.

China has tripled railway spending this year to 300 billion yuan. The current five-year plan, which runs through 2010, calls for investing almost 4.8 trillion yuan on power stations, waterways, roads and other infrastructure projects -- more than the combined output of Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. Reconstruction after May's Sichuan earthquake could cost another 1 trillion yuan, the government says.

As global economy slows, visions of $80 oil grow

Economist Glen Langan told BloggingStocks a further decline in oil to below $100 is consistent with the recent slowdown in global economic growth, but he'll await further international GDP data before arguing for an oil dip to the $80 range.

"The key here, again, as with the uptrend in the previous four years, is China. If oil consumption growth slows in China, oil will experience a large sell-off, as institutional investors and traders sense that the great bull run in commodities is at least pausing," Langan said. "China is likely to register GDP growth of about 10% in Q3, and if it's below 9% or 8.5%, investors will take that as a sign that a slowdown is ahead, which is bearish for commodity prices." China's economy grew 10.2% in Q2 and 10.4% in 1H 2008.

Australia Cuts Key Interest Rate for First Time Since 2001 as Growth Slows Australia's central bank cut its benchmark interest rate for the first time in seven years amid signs the nation's $1 trillion economy is slowing.

Monday Morning ARGH!

Sean Brodrick — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 13:18:31 +0000

ENERGY

Oil falls as global demand concerns re-emerge

Russian gas oil, gasoline exports fall in Aug

AGRICULTURE

GOLD

Gold Declines for Third Day as Crude Oil Slips, Dollar Rallies

Gold fell for a third day in London as the dollar strengthened and crude oil slid, reducing demand for the metal as an alternative investment and inflation hedge. Platinum also dropped.

US DOLLAR

CANADA

GLOBAL ECONOMY

China's Spending May Thwart Olympic Curse, Buoy Asia

As global economy slows, visions of $80 oil grow

Lower Oil was not Enough to Push Stocks Higher – Closing Market Commentary

Alex Kolb — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Stocks opened September in a bullish mood after Hurricane Gustav did not cause as much damage as feared over the Labor Day weekend in the Gulf of Mexico. Crude sold off hard to open the session which buoyed stock investors but the rally couldn't hold.

The Dow, after surging over 200 points in the morning session, finished the day down 26.63 points, or 0.2% to 11516. The Dow was dragged down by Exxon (XOM) and Chevron (CVX), both which lost over 3% during the session. The S&P 500 Index fell 5.3 points, or 0.4%, to 1277. The Nasdaq Composite Index also couldn't hold onto big early gains, losing 18.28 points, or 0.8%, to 2349.

Crude was the big story after Gustav weakened by the time he hit the Louisiana coast. Crude fell as much as 8.7% during today's session before rallying a bit to close down only $5.75, or 5.0%, to $109.71 a barrel. The last time crude was at this level was in early April.

Natural gas also fell sharply, declining 68.2 cents, or 8.6%, to $7.261 per million Btu.

The Gulf coast energy facilities remain shut but early reports indicate that the damage has not been as extensive as feared several days ago. However, it will take anywhere from 5 to 10 days for refineries to resume operation given the power outages in the region. Platforms and pipelines are currently being inspected for damage.

The strengthening dollar also contributed to oil's slide, as it continued its recent rally, closing up 0.8% to $1.4508 per euro. It touched as high as $1.4467, the strongest since early February.

The tropics continue to be active, with three named storms, Hanna, Ike and Josephine, in the Atlantic. Currently, none of the three is expected to threaten any energy rich area but traders continue to eye the tropical activity.

The Focus List

A few of the commodities related holdings took a hit today on oils drop, resulting in a 2.32% decline for the Focus List.

Stocks such as Fluor Corporation (FLR) and CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (CF) fell today on no news by 8% and 9%, respectively. These, and other Focus List names from the energy arena, exhibited a short- term reaction Tuesdays crude sell off but remain sound fundamentally. While energy holdings are tough to watch on a day like today, having them still translates into well diversified portfolio, especially on days that oil moves up.

On the up side, GameStop Corp. (GME) jumped 3.4% in todays down market. There were no major developments on GME.
"J" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
"FLR2" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
"CF" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
"GME3" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
"SD" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
Zacks Investment Research

Gustav’s impact to the Market this Week: Airlines and more

Stockmasters Staff — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 23:33:03 +0000

The market knows from experience that infrastructure problems can emerge long after a hurricane strikes; early reports following Katrina's landfall in 2005 erroneously said the flooding in New Orleans was not going to be problematic. Stocks fell in overseas trading Monday after crude fell below $111 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, and their declines will weigh on the Dow Jones industrials and other indexes.

Contradictory Economic Reports Whipsaw Investor Expectations

William Patalon lll — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 22:01:46 +0000

By William Patalon III Executive Editor Money Morning/The Money Map Report No wonder this economy is so hard to figure out: The economic reports are as volatile as the economy... Money Morning is here to help investors profit handsomely...

Labor Day

Brian Shannon — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 10:14:00 +0000

Without labor nothing prospers.
~Sophocles

News About Warren Buffett, Jim Rogers and the Presidential Elections are Money Morning Highlights; More to Come This Week

William Patalon lll — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 09:59:19 +0000

By William Patalon III Executive Editor Money Morning/The Money Map Report Although the Money Morning staff was off enjoying the Labor Day holiday today (Monday) - meaning that we... Money Morning is here to help investors profit handsome...

Stocks Slip as Traders Limped into the Holiday Weekend

Market Speculator — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 11:07:30 +0000

After a dismal report out of DELL Thursday night technology stocks took the que and sold off. AAPL and GOOG both slid dragging down the NASDAQ 100 with them. Once again crude oil continue to fail to hold onto its day high. As crude pulled back from its highs it eased the pain for stocks [...]

Dead cat bounce — what to do …

Martin D. Weiss, Ph.D. — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 14:00:00 +0000

Don't let yesterday's rally in the Dow fool you. There are two crucial reasons why I'm convinced it was nothing more than a dead-cat bounce: First, it was on extremely light volume. With ...

Stocks Get Bullish Action, but Volume Remains Below Average

Market Speculator — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 11:14:16 +0000

Stocks stage a bullish rally on Thursday as volume crept higher than the previous day. The NYSE was finally able to retake its 50dma on higher volume. However, volume across the board was lower than its 50dma suggesting that large institutional support was absent from Thursday’s action. A bigger story on the [...]

Market was Down on Consumer Spending and Personal Incomes Data – Closing Market Commentary

Alex Kolb — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Stocks closed in the red going into the holiday weekend as investors received news of slower consumer spending and personal incomes falling by the biggest amount in almost three years. Tech stocks saw some of the largest dips today as indicated by the tech-laden Nasdaq, which experienced the widest percentage loss in comparison with the Dow and S&P 500. Much of the tech bearishness was a response to Dells (DELL) disappointing second-quarter report.

Fridays Dow Jones industrial average lost 171.22 points, or 1.46%, ending the week at 11,543.96. The Standard & Poor's 500 index declined by 17.85 points, or 1.37%, to 1,282.83. The Nasdaq slipped by 44.12 points, or 1.83%, closing at 2,367.52.

Todays declines are not extremely shocking, considering that substantial gains were made during this week of light trading before the Labor Day weekend.

It didnt help, however, that the Commerce Department announced a slide of 0.7% in personal incomes for July. Analysts were calling for a dip of 0.1%.

More discouraging news hit the Street when the government stated that consumer spending increased by a tepid 0.2%, below Junes increase of 0.6%. If prices would not have jumped due to inflation, the consumer spending result would have been a negative 0.4%.

Light, sweet crude decreased 13 cents, settling at $115.46 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. While todays oil trading did not seem to reflect major concerns over Hurricane Gustav, the commodity did see spikes this week due to the Gustav news, and investors continue to watch its path.

Natural gas was down 10.7 cents, settling at $7.943 per million British thermal units on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Focus List

Our Focus List dipped as well on this down day. However, its loss of 1.19% for the day was narrower than that of the broader market.

No one stock turned in an excessive decline, and some of the holdings, such as CF Industries Holdings (CF), Kansas City Southern (KSU), Snap-on (SNA) and Tele Norte Leste Participacoes S.A. (TNE), helped prevent further losses by ending todays session on the up side.

Please note that the market will be closed on Monday due to Labor Day. The next closing commentary and Focus List update will be provided on Tuesday.
"SNO" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
"TNE" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
Zacks Investment Research

Stocks Jumped Higher but Volume was Mixed

Market Speculator — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 10:32:20 +0000

The low volume theme continued on Wednesday as stocks got a mild boost but volume ended mixed. NYSE volume fell while the NASDAQ saw increased trade. However, volume again was under the 50dma signaling the lack of interest in the market. At the end of August we can not expect volume to [...]

Stock Indexes Put In Some Decent Gains But Do You Notice The Weakness Intraday And Inability To Close At Or Near The HOD?

Joshua Hayes — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 02:18:04 +0000

Stocks put in a good day due to good Durable Goods numbers but I want to bring to the attention of newer investors something that is happening recently on the up days. Do you notice that a lot not (not a ton) of days where the indexes go higher it does not close at or near [...]

MARKET COMMENT August 26, 2008 Investors were nervous today by the prospect of a hurricane to close out the month.

David Fry — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 21:48:11 +0000

MARKET COMMENT August 26, 2008 Investors were nervous today by the prospect of a hurricane to close out the month. That sent energy prices higher and forced end-of-month tape painters to slowdown long enough to tape their windows while still managing a “stick save” into the close. And, it doesn’t take much to push prices around with volume and stock supportive news light. That’s enough for a slow day.

Monday Charts on Gold, Oil & The Dollar — and Plenty of News You Can Use

Sean Brodrick — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 14:08:08 +0000

Labor Day is around the corner, so we can expect low volume. That should lead to more volatility this week -- up, down or both -- but it may not count for much in the long term. This is a good week for watching and waiting.

News of Interest

ECONOMY

U.S. and Global Economies Slipping in Unison

Only a few months ago, some economists still offered hope that robust expansion could continue in much of the world even as the United States slowed. Foreign investment was expected to keep replenishing American banks still bleeding from their disastrous bets on real estate and to provide money for companies looking to expand. Overseas demand for American goods and services was supposed to continue compensating for waning demand in the States. Now, high energy prices, financial systems crippled by fear, and the decline of trading partners have combined to choke growth in many major economies. The International Monetary Fund expects global growth to slow significantly through the end of this year, dipping to 4.1 percent from 5 percent in 2007.

How to stop the next bubble

"The financial crisis has shown that markets are bubble-prone and that laissez-faire regulation doesn’t work. The authorities need to get a grip if we are to avoid a mega-bubble. But we may need an even deeper crisis for that to happen."

BANKS

Columbian Bank and Trust Company, of Topeka, Kansas, is the latest bank to fail. Can things get worse? Heck, yeah! Check out the following chart from Calculated Risk …

From Calculated Risk: even with the failure of almost 3,000 banks and thrifts during the S&L crisis, the overall economy stayed fairly healthy with only a mild-to-moderate recession starting in July 1990.

Libor Signals Credit Seizing Up as Banks Balk at Lending in Money Markets Most of the bond strategists and salesmen that Resolution Investment Management Ltd.'s Stuart Thomson talked to last August expected the credit crunch to be long over by now. Instead, money markets show there's no end in sight, and it may even worsen.

CURRENCIES

Organized Crime Groups Dump Weak US Dollar For Euro

The weakened US dollar has fallen out of favor with organized crime groups to pay for drug shipments or to settle scores, a Canadian government report said Friday.

PAKISTAN -- THE NEXT CRISIS?

Pakistani Government On Brink Of Collapse

Pakistan's ruling coalition was at risk of collapsing Monday if its junior partner carries out a threat to quit unless judges ousted by ex-President Pervez Musharraf are restored immediately.

Taleban winning war (in Pakistan), says Zardari

The Pakistani Taleban have "the upper hand" and should be put on the list of banned organisations in Pakistan, Benazir Bhutto's widower has said.

CHINA

Olympics disappoint China business owners

Many owners of small restaurants, hotels and shops in Beijing are wearing long faces this summer, especially those who poured their life savings into buying businesses or sprucing up their shops ahead of the Games. About half a million foreign visitors were expected in Beijing this month. But many businesspeople think that because of stricter visa rules and other hassles, there are no more here now than there were last August, when 420,000 visitors from abroad came to the capital. In July, Air China, the nation's flagship carrier, saw its international passenger traffic fall by 19% from a year earlier.

China's Economic Gains Give Way to Hazy Future

In the next few years, China will cross the threshold to a majority-urban society. China's urbanization rate is about 40% to 45% now, well below levels of about 75% in most of Western Europe and Latin America, but statistics show that growth in China's urban population is already slowing.

China's 1.3 billion people each consumed the equivalent of 1.4 tons of oil in energy last year, a relatively low figure. If each Chinese was to consume the same amount of energy as each person in the U.S. does -- the equivalent of 7.82 tons of oil -- then China alone would consume nearly as much energy as the entire world does now.

So far, China's government is falling behind in its drive to cut the amount of energy required to produce each yuan of economic output. It managed a reduction of just 2.9% in the first half, less than last year's 3.7%

MINING & RESOURCES

Mining Industry Shifts on Bad News

Weaker commodity prices and higher costs are starting to take a toll on the global mining industry as the billions of dollars being spent on new projects could take years to recoup.

…

Demand for resources by China and other emerging markets still is expected to soar in the years ahead.

Some analysts view the recent mine closures as bullish for commodity prices in the long run, because the moves suggest companies are imposing more financial discipline than in past booms. As miners curb output, it could help prop up prices.

Still, the economics of mining have shifted drastically in recent years. The cost of energy to run mining trucks and other equipment has skyrocketed, while steel and other building materials also are more expensive.

Commodities Hint of Bottom as Mines Close, Crop Supplies at Five-Year Lows Corn and soybeans have rebounded as reduced crop yields push U.S. stockpiles to near five-year lows. Oil has reversed on U.S.-Russian tensions. Nickel has turned after Xstrata Plc closed a Dominican Republic plant.

Corn, Soybeans Jump as Midwest Crop Tour Forecasts Smaller U.S. Harvests Corn and soybeans gained after Professional Farmers of America said harvests in the U.S. will be smaller than forecast by the government as dry weather in August hurt Midwest crops already stunted by flooding in June.

Auto industry looking for a bailout, too

Mike Larson — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 17:30:15 +0000

Some interesting news worth mentioning: It looks like the AUTOMAKERS are now joining the list of companies shopping for bailout money in Washington -- perhaps $25 billion in subsidized, low-interest federal loans. From a Reuters story this afternoon:

"The Big 3 Detroit-based automakers are seeking about $25 billion in federal loans as they struggle to ride out a steep downturn in U.S. auto sales, The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.

"Lobbyists for the U.S. automakers -- General Motors Corp, Ford Motor Co and Chrysler LLC -- briefed White House officials, as well as U.S. Rep. John Dingell and other Michigan Democrats, on a possible bailout and plan to unveil the proposal after Labor Day, according to the report.

"The plan is for the government to lend some $25 billion to the automakers in the first year at an interest rate of 4.5 percent, or about one-third what the companies are currently paying to borrow, the report said.

"Under the proposal, the government would have the option of deferring any payment at all for up to five years, the article said."

A separate Bloomberg story says GM, Ford, and Chrysler want even more - $50 billion -- with 25 up front and 25 in subsequent years.

This is the problem with bailouts. You do it for someone, you have to do it for everyone.

Think back to when the Fed started its whole TAF and TSLF programs. Originally, they were largely designed to support the residential mortgage market. But then the financial industry whined and complained about how commercial mortgage backed securities markets had tightened up. So CMBS were added to the Fed's mix of eligible TSLF securities. Then, the student loan lenders joined in the chorus, asking the Fed to accept asset-backed securities packed with student loans. The Fed obliged.

Of course, the Fed had to follow up with the PDCF once it became clear that non-bank primary dealers might at some point need to tap into the Fed's largesse. And all of these facilities show no sign of being cut off any time soon, a point made clear today when Bernanke said the following:

"Briefly, these programs are intended to mitigate what have been, at times, very severe strains in short-term funding markets and, by providing an additional source of financing, to allow banks and other financial institutions to deleverage in a more orderly manner. We have recently extended our special programs for primary dealers beyond the end of the year, based on our assessment that financial conditions remain unusual and exigent. We will continue to review all of our liquidity facilities to determine if they are having their intended effects or require modification."

Of course, you don't need me to tell you the mother of all bailouts could also be in the works for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. This all begs the question: When is enough, enough?

Earnings Preview for Aug 25 – 29

Charles Rotblut — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 00:00:00 +0000

The final week of August will feature earnings reports from S&P 500 members Big Lots (BIG), Dell (DELL), Novell (NOVL), Sears Holding (SHLD) and Tiffany (TIF). Overall, it will be a quiet week for earnings with 77 companies confirmed to report.

The economic schedule is pretty full, led by the minutes from the August Fed meeting. I don't anticipate any surprises from the notes. Other key data will include:

Monday: July existing home sales
Tuesday: July new home sales, August Conference Board consumer confidence index, August Fed minutes
Wednesday: July durable goods orders, weekly crude inventories
Thursday: Preliminary second-quarter GDP, weekly initial jobless claims
Thursday: July personal income and spending, August Chicago PMI, revised August University of Michigan consumer confidence

The Federal Reserve's web site does not list any upcoming speeches.

The U.S. financial markets will be closed on Monday, Sep 1, in observance of Labor Day. Ahead of the holiday, I expect volume to remain modest, at best.

Don't use the quiet markets as an excuse to stop researching new investment ideas. The most successful investors look for new ideas everyday and so should you.

Companies That Could Issue Positive Earnings Surprises during the Week of Aug 25 - 29

A trend towards thriftiness has helped Big Lots (BIG). The closeout retailer preannounced a 1.9% increase in sales to $1.096 billion. Same-store sales rose 2.8%. Nearly all of the covering brokerage analysts raised their second-quarter forecasts in response, pushing the consensus earnings estimate four cents higher to 27 cents per share. BIG has topped expectations for 9 consecutive quarters. Big Lots is scheduled to report on Tuesday, Aug 26, before the start of trading.

Dollar Tree (DLTR) preannounced second-quarter sales of $1.09 billion, a 12.5% increase over a year prior. Same-store sales rose 6.5%. The majority of the 9 covering brokerage analysts responded with revised profit projections. These revisions led to a 4-cent increase in the consensus earnings estimate to 40 cents. DLTR has exceeded expectations for 3 consecutive quarters. Dollar Tree is scheduled to report on Wednesday, Aug 27, before the start of trading.

Companies That Could Issue Negative Earnings Surprises during the Week of Aug 25 - 29

Last quarter, Omnivision Technologies (OVTI) missed earnings expectations by 3 cents with profits of 17 cents per share. Brokerage analysts are bracing for another disappointing earnings report. During the past 30 days, 5 of the 9 covering analysts cut their fiscal first-quarter projections. These cuts have led to a 3-cent drop in the consensus earnings estimate to 16 cents per share. The most accurate estimate is more bearish at 15 cents per share. Omnivision Technologies is scheduled to report on Thursday, Aug 28, after the close of trading.

Charles Rotblut, CFA is the senior market analyst for Zacks.com. He can be reached at crotblut@zacks.com.

Surprise Trader can help you turn earnings surprises into quick profits. Learn how.

Earnings Calendar

Here is a list of companies that we have confirmed will report during the week of Aug 25 - 29¹.

Company	Ticker	Zacks Consensus Estimate	Year Ago Actual	Last Qtr Surprise	Report Date	Report Time
Appld Signal	APSG	$0.15	$0.08	6.7%	8/26/2008	AMC
Bank Montreal	BMO	$1.22	$1.22	(4.6%)	8/26/2008	N/A
Bank Of Nova Sc	BNS	$0.97	$0.97	(3.0%)	8/26/2008	N/A
Big Lots Inc	BIG	$0.27	$0.21	13.5%	8/26/2008	BTO
Borders Group	BGP	($0.28)	($0.26)	(17.8%)	8/26/2008	AMC
Chicos Fas Inc	CHS	$0.05	$0.22	16.7%	8/26/2008	BTO
Corinthian Col	COCO	$0.09	$0.04	6.7%	8/26/2008	BTO
Daktronics Inc	DAKT	$0.18	$0.17	75.0%	8/26/2008	BTO
Dycom Inds	DY	$0.21	$0.35	16.7%	8/26/2008	AMC
Hain Celestial	HAIN	$0.32	$0.30	0.0%	8/26/2008	AMC
J Crew Group	JCG	$0.33	$0.32	2.1%	8/26/2008	AMC
Ltx Corp	LTXX	$0.03	($0.07)	200.0%	8/26/2008	AMC
Rio Tinto-Adr	RTP	$15.70	$999.00	N/A	8/26/2008	N/A
Sanderson Farms	SAFM	$0.00	$1.51	528.6%	8/26/2008	BTO
Smithfield Food	SFD	($0.07)	$0.47	(85.7%)	8/26/2008	BTO
Tuesday Morning	TUES	($0.07)	$0.05	(10.0%)	8/26/2008	BTO
Amer Eagle Outf	AEO	$0.28	$0.37	10.5%	8/27/2008	BTO
Brown Shoe Co	BWS	$0.06	$0.30	(44.4%)	8/27/2008	BTO
Cdn Impl Bk	CM	$1.68	$2.19	(8.1%)	8/27/2008	N/A
Charming Shoppe	CHRS	$0.00	$0.14	183.3%	8/27/2008	BTO
Coldwater Creek	CWTR	$0.01	$0.09	33.3%	8/27/2008	AMC
Dollar Tree Inc	DLTR	$0.40	$0.33	17.1%	8/27/2008	BTO
Elong Inc-Adr	LONG	($0.06)	($0.01)	(800.0%)	8/27/2008	N/A
Finlay Entrprse	FNLY	($1.19)	($0.93)	2.5%	8/27/2008	BTO
Fuelcell Energy	FCEL	($0.26)	($0.24)	(40.7%)	8/27/2008	AMC
Giant Interactv	GA	$0.19	$999.00	25.0%	8/27/2008	AMC
Greif Bros-Cl A	GEF	$1.11	$0.90	5.8%	8/27/2008	AMC
Heico Corp	HEI	$0.46	$0.40	2.3%	8/27/2008	AMC
Jo-Ann Stores A	JAS	($0.66)	($0.76)	1100.0%	8/27/2008	AMC
Mens Wearhouse	MW	$0.70	$1.00	(9.1%)	8/27/2008	AMC
Osi Systems Inc	OSIS	$0.38	$0.24	17.6%	8/27/2008	BTO
Sigma Designs	SIGM	$0.28	$0.32	(46.0%)	8/27/2008	N/A
Solarfun Power	SOLF	$0.22	$0.05	128.6%	8/27/2008	BTO
Solera Holdings	SLH	$0.29	$0.23	10.7%	8/27/2008	AMC
Sport Supply Gp	RBI	$0.15	($0.03)	13.6%	8/27/2008	BTO
Sws Group Inc	SWS	$0.28	$0.25	33.3%	8/27/2008	AMC
Synovis Lif Tec	SYNO	$0.11	$0.10	11.1%	8/27/2008	BTO
Talbots Inc	TLB	($0.33)	($0.25)	75.0%	8/27/2008	BTO
Tivo Inc	TIVO	($0.02)	($0.11)	500.0%	8/27/2008	AMC
Valuevision Cla	VVTV	($0.27)	($0.11)	(28.1%)	8/27/2008	AMC
Xeta Tech Inc	XETA	$0.05	$0.04	0.0%	8/27/2008	AMC
Aruba Networks	ARUN	($0.06)	($0.04)	(16.7%)	8/28/2008	AMC
Ata Inc-Adr	ATAI	$0.06	$999.00	N/A	8/28/2008	N/A
China Fin Onlin	JRJC	$0.14	$0.08	25.0%	8/28/2008	AMC
Conns Inc	CONN	$0.38	$0.40	19.1%	8/28/2008	BTO
Credence Sys Cp	CMOS	($0.05)	$0.09	(25.0%)	8/28/2008	N/A
Del Monte Foods	DLM	($0.05)	$0.03	11.5%	8/28/2008	BTO
Delias Inc	DLIA	($0.17)	($0.16)	(62.5%)	8/28/2008	AMC
Dell Inc	DELL	$0.36	$0.34	11.8%	8/28/2008	AMC
Dollar Finl Cp	DLLR	$0.59	$0.48	(1.8%)	8/28/2008	AMC
Energy Conv Dev	ENER	$0.20	($0.16)	725.0%	8/28/2008	BTO
Esterline Tech	ESL	$0.64	$0.61	9.1%	8/28/2008	AMC
Fleetwood Entrp	FLE	($0.18)	($0.03)	46.2%	8/28/2008	BTO
Freds Inc	FRED	$0.10	$0.08	12.5%	8/28/2008	BTO
Genesco Inc	GCO	$0.04	$0.00	55.6%	8/28/2008	BTO
Jamba Inc	JMBA	$0.02	$0.04	(55.6%)	8/28/2008	AMC
Kirklands Inc	KIRK	($0.12)	($0.29)	63.3%	8/28/2008	BTO
La Barge	LB	$0.27	$0.18	0.0%	8/28/2008	BTO
Layne Christens	LAYN	$0.62	$0.60	0.0%	8/28/2008	BTO
Magma Design	LAVA	$0.00	($0.03)	(11.1%)	8/28/2008	AMC
Marvell Tech Gp	MRVL	$0.13	($0.04)	266.7%	8/28/2008	AMC
Micros Sys	MCRS	$0.33	$0.33	3.5%	8/28/2008	AMC
Net 1 Ueps Tech	UEPS	$0.38	$0.31	23.7%	8/28/2008	AMC
Netezza Corp	NZ	$0.03	($0.19)	0.0%	8/28/2008	BTO
Novell Inc	NOVL	$0.03	$0.01	25.0%	8/28/2008	AMC
Omnivision Tech	OVTI	$0.16	$0.15	(15.0%)	8/28/2008	AMC
Petsmart Inc	PETM	$0.28	$0.36	3.2%	8/28/2008	AMC
Royal Bank Cda	RY	$1.05	$1.03	(32.0%)	8/28/2008	N/A
Sears Hldg Cp	SHLD	$0.36	$1.17	(394.4%)	8/28/2008	BTO
Sourceforge Inc	LNUX	($0.01)	$0.01	0.0%	8/28/2008	AMC
Telvent Git Sa	TLVT	$0.28	$0.19	19.4%	8/28/2008	BTO
Tiffany & Co	TIF	$0.55	$0.45	22.0%	8/28/2008	BTO
Toronto Dom Bnk	TD	$1.40	$1.18	(7.0%)	8/28/2008	BTO
Williams-Sonoma	WSM	$0.08	$0.24	400.0%	8/28/2008	N/A
Wind River Sys	WIND	$0.02	$0.05	144.4%	8/28/2008	AMC
Zale Corp New	ZLC	($0.55)	$0.00	2.33%	8/28/2008	N/A
Knightsbridge	VLCCF	$0.54	$0.42	(20.9%)	8/29/2008	N/A

BMO = Before The Market Open, AMC = After Market Close

¹Some of the companies listed in the earnings calendar may not be in the Zacks Rank universe.

"TIFF" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
"NOVL" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
"DLTR" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
"CNS" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
"DELL" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
"KMRT" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
"OVTI" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
Zacks Investment Research

Late-Summer Trading

Charles Rotblut — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Headline: Late-Summer Trading

Despite all of the news flow, the major indexes aren't moving much. Rather, stocks are stuck in a typical late-summer environment.

Volume has been unimpressive at best. I saw some stocks trade at less than half of the average daily volume this week. It's neither good nor bad, but rather just what often happens this time of year.

Late-summer vacations and the end of earnings season are both big reasons why many traders are sitting out. The uncertainty about the economic environment is also playing a role. Then there is Russia, which has become more militarily aggressive.

In environments like this, I feel sorry for people like Jim Cramer who feel obligated to make something out of nothing. This is a quiet market environment and nothing else. My advice is let events unravel and see what trends develop after Labor Day.

The markets will change from day-to-day; your investing strategies shouldn't.

And part of your strategy should be to always maintain some exposure to stocks. Those who try to time the markets are often the ones who take large losses and miss out on the big gains. Conversely, the most successful investors never stop researching stocks.

Financial Stocks

As I have previously stated, we have intentionally kept financial stocks out of the Focus List. Earnings estimates continue to be cut for both 2008 and 2009 as the credit crisis continues. Banks still don't know what is on their balance sheets, making it impossible for brokerage analysts to do little more than guess what future earnings will be.

The other big problem, that is not getting as much press, is the damage being done to shareholders. The actions taken by many financial companies to stay afloat are dilutive, at best, to existing shareholders. Unfortunately, many firms have gotten themselves into such a large mess that they don't have much choice.

Lehman Brothers (LEH) is talking to Korea Development Bank because it can't find other suitors. Fannie Mae (FNM) and Freddie Mac (FRE) are in need of massive taxpayer help because they have been so mismanaged. These are the type of situations that investors should avoid rather than using the latest rumor of salvation to pick up shares at discounted prices.

Always remember that just because something is cheap doesn't mean it is a bargain.

The Markets

The late-summer environment is evident in the charts of the major U.S. indexes, which show trading ranges.

Focus List Updates

Parker Hannifin (PH) was sold because of a drop in profit projections for fiscal 2009. The company remains fundamentally strong, but we are concerned that there could be additional short-term weakness in the stock.

We are watching shares of Central European Distributors (CEDC). Our presumption is that the recent weakness in the stock is being caused by the military situation in Georgia. Earnings estimates are up during the past 30 days and CEDC is a Zacks #2 Rank ("buy") stock.

We are looking for new additions, as we would like to increase the number of stocks within the portfolio to about 35.

Charles Rotblut, CFA is the Senior Market Analyst for Zacks.com. He can be reached at crotblut@zacks.com. Charles owns shares of CEDC.
"PH" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
"FREP" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
"CED2" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
"LEHH" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
Zacks Investment Research

Earnings Preview for Aug 18 – 22

Charles Rotblut — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Dow components Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) and Home Depot (HD) headline the last official week of second-quarter earnings season. Joining them will be S&P 500 members Gap (GPS), Lowe's (LOW), Limited (LTD) and Target (TGT).

Overall, we have confirmed reports from 106 companies, 13 of which are in the S&P 500. Retailers will again be prominent, with 40 listed to release results.

There is not much on the economic calendar, though we will get inflation numbers on Tuesday. Key data will include:

Tuesday: July producer prices (PPI), July housing starts, July building permits
Wednesday: Weekly crude inventories
Thursday: July Leading Indicators, August Phili Fed survey, weekly initial jobless claims

The Kansas City Fed will hold its economic symposium at Jackson Hole, WY. Fed Chairman Fed Ben Bernanke will speak about financial stability on Friday.

Volume could be modest through Labor Day as traders try to get in late summer vacations. Late August can be tricky for the markets, so be prudent. Oil remains a wildcard and it is hurricane season.

Companies That Could Issue Positive Earnings Surprises during the Week of Aug 18 - 22

Aeropostale (ARO) enjoyed a 13% increase in August same-stores sales, at a time when many other retailers were struggling. The strong performance led the teen apparel chain to raise its second-quarter EPS guidance by 5 cents to between 30 and 31 cents per share. Brokerage analysts believe the company will report 31 cents per share. ARO has surprised to the upside for 3 consecutive quarters, so current projections may prove to be conservative. Aeropostale is scheduled to report on Thursday, Aug 21, after the close of trading.

Discount retailer Ross Stores (ROST) credited bargain-hunting consumers, the stimulus checks and favorable weather for driving July same-store sales 4% higher. Given last month's good performance, the company believes quarterly profits will total between 53 and 54 cents per share, a slight increase over previous guidance. Revisions by 5 brokerage analysts pushed the consensus earnings estimate 2 cents higher to 54 cents per share. ROST has topped expectations for 3 consecutive quarters. Ross Stores is scheduled to report on Wednesday, Aug 20, before the start of trading.

Companies That Could Issue Negative Earnings Surprises during the Week of Aug 18 - 22

Trends were not favorable for Saks (SKS), which experienced a 5.3% drop in August same-store sales. The company observed that business trends worsened as the second quarter progressed and, as a result, brokerage analysts have been steadily lowering their projections. The second-quarter consensus estimate calls for a loss of 18 cents per share, reflecting cuts from a majority of the 7 covering analysts. SKS missed expectations last quarter by a margin of 4 cents per share. Saks is scheduled to report on Tuesday, Aug 19, before the start of trading.

Charles Rotblut, CFA is the senior market analyst for Zacks.com. He can be reached at crotblut@zacks.com.

Surprise Trader can help you turn earnings surprises into quick profits. Learn how.

Earnings Calendar

Here is a list of companies that we have confirmed will report during the week of Aug 18 - 22¹.

Company	Ticker	Zacks Consensus Estimate	Year Ago Actual	Last Qtr Surprise	Report Date	Report Time
Analog Devices	ADI	$0.45	$0.38	7.3%	8/19/2008	AMC
Amer Woodmark	AMWD	$0.11	$0.34	(100.0%)	8/20/2008	BTO
Anntaylor Stres	ANN	$0.47	$0.50	4.4%	8/22/2008	BTO
Accuray Inc	ARAY	$0.03	$0.01	(80.0%)	8/19/2008	AMC
Aeropostale Inc	ARO	$0.31	$0.19	4.0%	8/21/2008	AMC
Acorn Intl-Adr	ATV	$0.08	$0.09	(55.6%)	8/20/2008	N/A
Avanex Corp	AVNXD	$0.06	$0.00	100.0%	8/21/2008	AMC
Blue Coat Sys	BCSI	$0.11	$0.22	(33.3%)	8/21/2008	AMC
Bebe Stores Inc	BEBE	$0.17	$0.21	0.0%	8/21/2008	AMC
Bj'S Wholesale	BJ	$0.57	$0.46	7.4%	8/20/2008	BTO
Burger King Hld	BKC	$0.34	$0.29	11.1%	8/21/2008	BTO
Buckle Inc	BKE	$0.60	$0.38	7.0%	8/21/2008	BTO
Barnes & Noble	BKS	$0.09	$0.12	0.0%	8/21/2008	BTO
Bon-Ton Stores	BONT	($1.43)	($0.91)	14.0%	8/21/2008	BTO
Bally Tech Inc	BYI	$0.54	$0.33	10.6%	8/20/2008	AMC
Concurrent New	CCUR	$0.09	($0.10)	0.0%	8/19/2008	BTO
Charming Shoppe	CHRS	$0.00	$0.14	183.3%	8/20/2008	N/A
Candela Corp	CLZR	($0.09)	($0.03)	(28.6%)	8/20/2008	AMC
Casual Male Ret	CMRG	$0.05	$0.07	(100.0%)	8/21/2008	BTO
China Techfaith	CNTF	$0.08	($0.09)	(12.5%)	8/18/2008	AMC
Cost Plus Inc	CPWM	($0.92)	($0.64)	(3.1%)	8/21/2008	AMC
Salesforce.Com	CRM	$0.08	$0.04	50.0%	8/20/2008	AMC
China Sunergy	CSUN	$0.03	($0.14)	125.0%	8/22/2008	BTO
Cato Corp A	CTR	$0.42	$0.39	5.4%	8/21/2008	BTO
Citi Trends Inc	CTRN	$0.17	$0.07	5.9%	8/20/2008	AMC
Cyberonics Inc	CYBX	$0.03	($0.31)	300.0%	8/21/2008	BTO
Ditech Networks	DITC	($0.24)	($0.02)	(182.4%)	8/21/2008	AMC
Dicks Sprtg Gds	DKS	$0.36	$0.41	(5.6%)	8/21/2008	N/A
Edap Tms Sa-Adr	EDAP	($0.21)	($0.11)	(75.0%)	8/21/2008	BTO
E-House China	EJ	$0.13	$0.09	10.0%	8/20/2008	BTO
Eaton Vance	EV	$0.47	$0.48	0.0%	8/20/2008	BTO
Foot Locker Inc	FL	$0.01	($0.12)	(6.7%)	8/21/2008	AMC
Focus Media Hld	FMCN	$0.35	$0.32	7.1%	8/17/2008	AMC
Frontline Ltd	FRO	$2.38	$1.65	(2.4%)	8/21/2008	N/A
Stealthgas Inc	GASS	$0.34	$0.37	6.3%	8/19/2008	BTO
Gamestop Corp	GME	$0.28	$0.14	11.8%	8/21/2008	BTO
Gap Inc	GPS	$0.31	$0.21	9.7%	8/21/2008	AMC
Gymboree Corp	GYMB	$0.23	$0.19	1.2%	8/20/2008	AMC
Hasting Entmt	HAST	$0.13	$0.09	21.7%	8/18/2008	BTO
Home Depot	HD	$0.60	$0.77	10.8%	8/19/2008	BTO
Hibbet Sports	HIBB	$0.15	$0.15	14.3%	8/21/2008	AMC
Heinz (Hj) Co	HNZ	$0.66	$0.63	0.0%	8/21/2008	BTO
Hot Topic Inc	HOTT	($0.01)	($0.04)	0.0%	8/20/2008	AMC
Harris Interact	HPOL	($0.01)	$0.06	(500.0%)	8/22/2008	BTO
Hewlett Packard	HPQ	$0.83	$0.71	2.3%	8/19/2008	AMC
Hurray Hldg-Adr	HRAY	$0.00	$0.01	333.3%	8/21/2008	AMC
Hormel Foods Cp	HRL	$0.38	$0.41	1.8%	8/21/2008	BTO
Chipmos Tec Ltd	IMOS	$0.01	$0.13	(300.0%)	8/20/2008	AMC
Intuit Inc	INTU	($0.12)	($0.06)	3.1%	8/21/2008	AMC
Isoray Inc	ISR	($0.07)	N/A	(33.3%)	8/20/2008	BTO
Jds Uniphase Cp	JDSU	$0.04	$0.06	11.1%	8/20/2008	AMC
Jack Henry Assc	JKHY	$0.32	$0.32	(11.8%)	8/19/2008	AMC
Jamba Inc	JMBA	$0.02	$0.04	(55.6%)	8/21/2008	AMC
Kensey Nash Cp	KNSY	$0.32	$0.11	12.0%	8/21/2008	BTO
Key Tronic	KTCC	$0.13	$0.17	57.1%	8/19/2008	AMC
Lancaster Colon	LANC	$0.32	$0.54	(31.8%)	8/21/2008	BTO
Lowes Cos	LOW	$0.56	$0.67	2.5%	8/18/2008	BTO
Limited Inc	LTD	$0.20	$0.20	42.9%	8/20/2008	AMC
Lsi Industries	LYTS	$0.07	$0.32	(44.4%)	8/21/2008	BTO
La-Z-Boy Inc	LZB	($0.06)	($0.13)	0.0%	8/19/2008	AMC
Medtronic	MDT	$0.69	$0.62	6.8%	8/19/2008	BTO
Mentor Graphics	MENT	($0.17)	$0.09	(40.0%)	8/20/2008	BTO
Met-Pro Corp	MPR	$0.18	$0.17	0.0%	8/21/2008	BTO
Myriad Genetics	MYGN	($0.23)	($0.18)	0.0%	8/19/2008	BTO
Noah Education	NED	$0.05	N/A	53.8%	8/21/2008	AMC
Novatel Wireles	NVTL	$0.12	$0.25	7.7%	8/19/2008	AMC
Open Text Corp	OTEX	$0.53	$0.52	6.8%	8/19/2008	AMC
Patterson Cos	PDCO	$0.39	$0.35	0.0%	8/21/2008	BTO
Peoples Educatn	PEDH	$0.06	$0.01	5.0%	8/21/2008	AMC
Childrens Place	PLCE	($0.45)	($0.97)	37.5%	8/21/2008	BTO
Perrigo Company	PRGO	$0.40	$0.24	4.8%	8/18/2008	BTO
Pac Sunwear Cal	PSUN	$0.06	$0.07	(88.9%)	8/21/2008	AMC
Phillips Van He	PVH	$0.65	$0.68	3.5%	8/20/2008	AMC
Perfect World	PWRD	$0.38	N/A	22.6%	8/18/2008	BTO
Qad Inc	QADI	$0.00	$0.02	(100.0%)	8/21/2008	AMC
Raven Inds Inc	RAVN	$0.31	$0.32	20.0%	8/19/2008	BTO
Regis Corp/Mn	RGS	$0.58	$0.53	0.0%	8/20/2008	BTO
Rosetta Genomic	ROSG	($0.34)	($0.19)	(3.1%)	8/19/2008	BTO
Ross Stores	ROST	$0.54	$0.37	3.5%	8/20/2008	BTO
Intl Royalty Cp	ROY	$0.04	$0.03	(66.7%)	8/18/2008	N/A
School Specialt	SCHS	$1.97	$1.87	(1.5%)	8/21/2008	BTO
Scansource Inc	SCSC	$0.47	$0.48	(12.5%)	8/21/2008	AMC
Shoe Carnival	SCVL	$0.00	$0.01	(2.6%)	8/21/2008	BTO
Schawk Inc-Cl A	SGK	$0.20	$0.36	0.0%	8/18/2008	AMC
Shamir Optical	SHMR	$0.11	$0.12	30.8%	8/21/2008	BTO
Shoretel Inc	SHOR	($0.07)	$0.05	0.0%	8/21/2008	AMC
Saks Inc	SKS	($0.18)	($0.14)	(23.5%)	8/19/2008	BTO
Stein Mart Inc	SMRT	($0.13)	$0.05	383.3%	8/21/2008	BTO
Semtech Corp	SMTC	$0.17	$0.14	21.4%	8/20/2008	AMC
Synopsys Inc	SNPS	$0.31	$0.23	6.9%	8/20/2008	AMC
Renesola Lt-Adr	SOL	$0.31	N/A	16.7%	8/19/2008	BTO
Stage Stores	SSI	$0.23	$0.23	(14.3%)	8/21/2008	N/A
Suntech Pwr Hld	STP	$0.33	$0.25	25.0%	8/20/2008	BTO
Symmetricom Inc	SYMM	$0.05	$0.04	(133.3%)	8/20/2008	AMC
Tech Data Corp	TECD	$0.46	$0.50	0.0%	8/21/2008	BTO
Target Corp	TGT	$0.77	$0.80	2.8%	8/19/2008	BTO
Aktieselskabet	TRMD	$1.29	$1.00	(28.6%)	8/20/2008	N/A
Tower Semicond	TSEM	($0.22)	($0.28)	(20.0%)	8/20/2008	BTO
Trina Solar Ltd	TSL	$0.78	$0.32	6.3%	8/18/2008	BTO
Toro Co	TTC	$0.97	$1.02	0.0%	8/21/2008	BTO
Verigy Ltd	VRGY	$0.28	$0.50	27.8%	8/21/2008	AMC
Valuevision Cla	VVTV	($0.21)	($0.11)	(28.1%)	8/20/2008	N/A
Wet Seal Inc -A	WTSLA	$0.10	$0.07	12.5%	8/21/2008	AMC
Xinhua Finance	XFML	$0.05	N/A	0.0%	8/18/2008	AMC
Yucheng Technol	YTEC	$0.10	$0.17	(16.7%)	8/18/2008	BTO
Zumiez Inc	ZUMZ	$0.07	$0.11	66.67%	8/21/2008	AMC

BMO = Before The Market Open, AMC = After Market Close

¹Some of the companies listed in the earnings calendar may not be in the Zacks Rank universe.

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Zacks Investment Research

Fundamentals and the Market

Jeffrey Miller — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 19:49:21 +0000

Regular readers of “A Dash” understand our definition of the fundamentals. Whatever happens is eventually translated into forward earnings expectations and interest rates. Mr. Market offers the investor a daily choice between bonds and stocks. This concept is a strong fundamental approach which is widely shared among savvy market professionals. While most dodge arguments by avoiding [...]