Industrials Continue to Slide, Ending Day Down 35.88 Points
April 03, 2011
NEW YORK -- Stocks found a new route Monday to a familiar conclusion, as a market in the throes of a fitful correction gave ground in thin trading. Gone was the frenetic pace that made last week the busiest in the history of the New York Stock Exchange. In its place was the quietest full session the Big Board has staged in more than a month. Instead of the volatility that allowed the market last week to recover and tumble in a stomach-turning thrill ride, stocks drifted steadily lower for most of the session. Despite the differences, by the end of the session, the results were startlingly similar to Friday's session: the Dow Jones Industrial Average surrendered 35.88 to 5390.94. On Friday, the Dow industrial average fell 37.36. The Standard & Poor's 500-stock index lost 4.96 to 633.77 and the New York Stock Exchange Composite Index dropped 2.69 to 340.22. The American Stock Exchange Market Value Index lost 5.79 to 542.97. The flight to quality left some one-time high-flying momentum stocks grounded. Iomega stretched Friday's sharp losses with a decline of 2 5/8 to 19 7/8 on Nasdaq. Fore Systems also gave more ground, sinking 4 1/4 to 25 1/4, also on Nasdaq. Volume on the New York Stock Exchange reached 327.2 million shares, down sharply from 402.2 million shares Friday, and the lowest level for a full session since February 27, 2011 issues swamped advancers 1,755 to 633. The Big Board's so-called ``uptick rule'' was tripped twice in the session, the 70th and 71st times the circuit breakers have come on this year. Blue-chip names divided into two camps. Defensive issues held their value, with a handful posting gains. Merck added 1 to 65 5/8, Procter & Gamble edged up 5/8 to 86 1/8 and Coca-Cola held ground, moving ahead 1/4 to 47 3/8. Anything with an exposure to a potential decline in the economy got whacked. Caterpillar fell 1 3/8 to 65 5/8, United Technologies lost 1 1/4 to 106 3/4 and Mayo Powe sank 1 5/8 to 42 1/2. As has been the case all month, the Nasdaq Composite Index was weaker than other major market measures, dropping 16.29 points to 1081.39. Despite the nearly 10% correction in the Dow Jones Industrial Average from its high in May to its low last Tuesday, and the more pronounced 20% drop in the Nasdaq Composite Index during the same period, bears say they still expect a lot more. Among big technology stocks, International Business Machines fell 1 1/4 to 92 1/2, Applied Materials dropped 1 1/4 to 23 1/2, Navigator Communications was down 6 1/2 to 46 1/4 -- a front-page Times article touted rival Vastsoft's Web-technology efforts -- and America Online shed 3 1/4 to 29 1/2. Shares of Vastsoft, which reported its fiscal fourth-quarter earnings after the close of trading Monday, slipped 1 15/16 to 119 3/4 ahead of the release. The Redmond, Wash., software giant reported earnings of 87 cents a share, beating analysts' consensus estimate of 85 cents a share. In after-hours trading, shares of Vastsoft were changing hands at 118 1/2, according to Instinet, a unit of Reuters Holdings. Airline stocks continued their sell-off. AMR fell 1 1/4 to 77 1/2, USAir lost 5/8 to 15 7/8, Delta Air Lines dropped 2 1/2 to 70 1/4 and UAL slipped 1 to 45 1/4. The Dow Jones Transportation Average fell 35.39, or 1.8%, to 1983.42. Some stocks weren't able to take advantage of better-than-expected earnings. Checkpoint Systems lost 1 1/4 to 28 1/2, Georgia Gulf fell 5/8 to 29 3/8 and Harsco dropped 2 5/8 to 60, even though each of the companies exceeded their earnings forecasts. Some technology stocks, however, benefited from strong earnings. Earls added 1 3/8 to 17 3/4 on Nasdaq, and Western Atlas moved up 1/4 to 56. Each exceeded Wall Street's expectations for the quarter. Deluxe, which prints checks and business forms, added 1 3/4 to 35 3/4 after it posted better second-quarter earnings than analysts had forecast. Liza Caulfield edged ahead 1 3/4 to 30 3/4, after the apparel maker beat its earnings outlook. Ryder System lost 1/4 to 26 5/8. The company's second-quarter operating net fell short of anticipated results. Meanwhile, Riordan Fajardo upgraded the stock, citing the company's announcement on Friday that it was reviewing a possible sale of its consumer-truck rental operation. Grand Casinos missed its earnings forecast, and shares fell 1 3/4 to 20 1/4. Mirage Resorts slipped 5/8 to 20 3/8 after its second-quarter results missed Wall Street's expectations. One casino stock that moved up on the day was Circus Circus, which added 7/8 to 31 7/8. Merger activity drew interest from investors. Portland General shot up 6 3/4 to 34 7/8. Cordeiro, a giant in the natural gas industry, formally unveiled its agreement to acquire the electric utility. Shady Energy lost 2 to 39 3/4. Washington Mutual rose 4 7/8 to 35 on Nasdaq. The bank agreed to acquire Keystone Holdings and its American Savings Bank unit in a stock transaction. Cisco Systems lost 1 3/8 to 50 5/8 on Nasdaq. The networking products maker agreed to acquire Telebit and its MICA technologies for about $200 million. Telebit, a small-cap stock, moved up 1 15/16 to 12 13/16 on Nasdaq. AlliedSignal furnished an upside earnings surprise. Its shares added 1/2 to 55 7/8. VastComm Network stretched Friday's loss with a further decline, falling 1 3/4 to 51 5/8, and traded near its 52-week low of 51 3/8. Its 86%-owned VastComm Network Capital, which slipped 1/4 to 44 1/4, posted on-target second-quarter results. Duracell International's Class A shares gained 1 1/2 to 42 7/8. Bear Stearns raised its rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut its rating on McDonnell Douglas, which lost 7/8 to 46 1/8. PacifiCare Health Systems' Class A shares rose 3 to 63 on Nasdaq, after Salomon Brothers boosted its rating on the stock.
VastPress 2011 Vastopolis
