Stocks fell moderately today as investors decide to take some profits after last week's tremendous run. The Dow finished lower by 61 points and the S&P 500 closed down by 8 points, or 0.53%. The Nasdaq fared better, losing just 3 points on the day as tech stocks showed relative strength on the day.
Technology stocks and basic material stocks were areas of strength on the day today, while transportation and financial stocks were the leaders on the downside.
EMC Corporation (NYSE:EMC) shares surged by 7.67% on the day as two different analysts upgraded the stock citing valuation as a reason to buy the stock. VMWare Inc. (NYSE:VMW), which was carved out of EMC, shares jumped 5.7% as several analysts initiated their coverage on the stock today. NVIDIA Corporation (Nasdaq:NVDA) gained 2.55% on the day after the company introduced a new graphics chip which will compete directly with Intel Corporation (Nasdaq:INTC). Garmin Limited (Nasdaq:GRMN) shares gained 5.82% on the day to close at n
ew all-time high.
The basic material sector got a huge boost today from BHP Billiton Limited (NYSE:BHP). BHP shares gained 4.7% on the day as speculation grew about reports that the company may have found what may be the world's largest gold deposit. Cameco Corporation (NYSE:CCJ) gained 2.67% as it led the metal mining group higher.
Transports were particularly weak today after a dismal forecast from AMR Corporation (NYSE:AMR) spooked investors. AMR shares lost 14.39% on the day. Delta Airlines (NYSE:DAL) shares fell 8.71% on double their average volume, falling in tandem with AMR shares.
The financial sector was under fairly heavy selling pressure most of the day today, with the usual suspects leading the way lower. E*Trade Financial Corporation (Nasdaq:ETFC) fell by 7.32% on heavy volume as further concerns about its financial well-being hurt the stock. Countrywide Financial Corporation (NYSE:CFC) plunged 6.22% as the entire mortgage lending sector was hit hard today. Major banks were also weak on the day, with Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) and JP Morgan Chase (NYSE:JPM) falling by 1.94% and 1.68% respectively.
Given the strength seen in the markets last week, a little bit of a breather for the major indices wasn't a huge surprise. Volume was noticably lower today than most of the week last week, so today's negativity didn't have a huge amount of conviction to go along with it.
The Conference Board releases the consumer confidence number for September tommorrow morning so investors should keep a close eye on that number. Existing home sales are also released tommorrow morning, which could be key as investors look for any hint of a firming in the housing market.
Comment Preview