Market Levels
- US: Dow: 12822.60 (-0.93%), S&P 500: 1362.66 (-1.01%), NASDAQ: 2925.30 (-1.37%)
- Europe: CAC: 3193.89 (-2.18%), DAX: 6630.02 (-1.94%), FTSE: 5651.77 (-1.10%).
- Asia-Pacific: Australia: 4199.10 (-0.18%), China: 2168.64 (-0.75%), Hong Kong: 19640.80 (0.42%), India: 5205.10 (-0.72%), Japan: 8669.87 (-1.45%).
- Metals: Gold: 1582.80 (0.15%), Silver: 27.30 (0.31%), Copper: 3.45 (-2.45%)
- Energy: Crude Oil: 91.44 (-1.32%), Natural Gas: 3.08 (2.73%)
- Commodities: Corn: 7.95 (2.22%), Soya Bean: 16.86 (2.06%), Wheat: 9.48 (1.47%)
- Currency: Euro (€) / US Dollar ($) (EURUSD): 1.2158 (1.03%), British Pound Sterling (UK£) / US Dollar ($) (GBPUSD): 1.5620 (0.21%), US Dollar ($) / Japanese Yen (¥) (USDJPY): 78.5150 (-0.37%)
- 10 year US Treasury: 1.457% (-0.051)
Market and Economy News Update
U.S. markets slide: U.S. markets snapped a three-day winning streak and closed near the lows of the day after Spain said the recession will extend into next year. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:.DJI) tumbled 120.79 points, or 0.93 percent, to close at 12,822.57. The S&P 500 (INDEXSP:.INX) fell 13.85 points, or 1.01 percent, to end at 1,362.66, while the NASDAQ Composite (INDEXNASDAQ:.IXIC) dropped 40.60 points, or 1.37 percent, to finish at 2,925.30. The Dow rose 0.36 percent for the week, while the S&P 500 gained 0.43 percent, and the Nasdaq was up 0.58 percent.
Oil prices fall: Oil prices fell for the first time in a week amid investor concerns that Europe is not doing enough to stem the debt crisis. Crude oil for August delivery declined 1.3 percent, to settle at $91.44 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent oil for September settlement fell 0.9 percent to $106.83 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange.
Stocks in Focus
- Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) has agreed to buy Mac and iPhone e-mail client, Sparrow, for an undisclosed sum.
- Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) ended 1.6 percent lower after an analyst at Bernstein warned that the company was likely miss third quarter sales.
- Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) is in advanced talks with Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund, Qatar Investment Authority, to sell its commodities unit, in a deal worth around $1 billion.
- Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE:HPQ) declared its regular quarterly dividend of 13.2 cents per share, on Friday.
- John Swainson, Dell Inc. (NASDAQ:DELL)’s new software chief plans to increase the size of the business five-fold to around $5 billion. Dell currently generates about $1.2 billion from its software business.
- The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG), the world’s largest household products maker, will buy the remaining 50 percent stake in its joint venture with Spain’s Agrolimen Group for $1 billion.
- Ingersoll Rand PLC (NYSE:IR) reported second-quarter earnings excluding certain items of $1 a share, 9 cents above Wall Street estimates. Total sales declined 7 percent to $3.82 billion, trailing estimates of $3.88 billion.
- The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA) has filed a federal lawsuit alleging that the U.S. Defense Department reneged on assurances made to the company and falsely persuaded it to participate in a joint venture.
- EU antitrust regulators launched an in-depth investigation into United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)’s 5.2 billion euro ($6.4 billion) bid for TNT Express NV (AMS:TNTE).
- Celgene Corporation (NASDAQ:CELG) ended 3 percent lower after the European Medicines Agency decided not to recommend approval of its treatment for relapsed or refractory peripheral t-cell lymphoma.
- The US Food and Drug Administration approved Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ONXX)’ blood cancer drug, Kyprolis.
- Dole Food Company, Inc. (NYSE:DOLE) reported second quarter earnings that beat expectations, and said it is considering the sale and spin-off of its packaged foods business
- Freight management company, Hub Group Inc (NASDAQ:HUBG), ended 10 percent lower after reporting lower than expected quarterly earnings, and lowering its full-year forecast.
- A123 Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:AONE), a maker of lithium-ion batteries for electric cars, has been awarded a contract to supply a 2-megawatt grid energy storage system to China’s Ray Power Systems.
- Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NYSE:PANW) ended 27 percent higher in its market debut on Friday, while travel booking website operator, Kayak Software Corp (NASDAQ:KYAK) jumped almost 30 percent in its Wall Street debut.
Hedge Fund News Update
- Despite economic uncertainties in Europe, hedge funds managed to outperform the S&P 500 (INDEXSP:.INX) and the NASDAQ Composite (INDEXNASDAQ:.IXIC) indexes, according to the HFRI Fund Weighted Composite Index.
- The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has asked JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) to provide more information about the proposed copper exchange-traded fund, the JPM XF Physical Copper Trust, which is being bitterly opposed by the commodities hedge fund, RK Capital Management.
- Brevan Howard Asset Management, one of Europe’s largest hedge fund managers, has set up an investment company, the Brevan Howard US Investment Management, in New York.
- Forward redemptions fell in July, according to data from the GlobeOp Financial Forward Redemption Indicator.
- Swiss-listed fund of funds group, Gottex Fund Management, said that its flagship fund of hedge funds continued to outperform their benchmark and posted positive returns year-to-date.
- New York-based Van Eck Associates Corporation has agreed to acquire Lyster Watson’s hedge fund beta business for an undisclosed sum.
Brokerage Upgrades and Downgrades on Friday, July 20, 2012
- Agrium Inc. (USA) (NYSE:AGU) was raised to “outperform” from “sector perform” by analysts at RBC Capital.
- Citrix Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CTXS) was lifted to “outperform” from “neutral” by analysts at Zacks with a target price of $99.
- CVB Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:CVBF) was raised to “buy” from “neutral” by analysts at B. Riley.
- Diamond Offshore Drilling, Inc. (NYSE:DO) was upgraded to “buy” from “hold” by analysts at Williams Financial Group with a target price of $75. Diamond Offshore Drilling, Inc. (NYSE:DO) was also lifted to “buy” from” hold” at Williams Capital.
- Enbridge Inc (USA) (NYSE:ENB) was lifted to “outperform” from “neutral” by analysts at Credit Suisse.
- Guess?, Inc. (NYSE:GES) was raised to “neutral” from “underpeform” by analysts at Zacks.
- Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ONXX) was upgraded to “overweight” by analysts at Barclays Capital.
- PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG) was lifted to “buy” from “hold” by analysts at Deutsche Bank.
- Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:REGN) was raised to “outperform” from “neutral” by analysts at Zacks with a target price of $145.
- TransCanada Corporation (USA) (NYSE:TRP) was upgraded to “outperform” from “neutral” by analysts at Credit Suisse.
- Calix, Inc. (NYSE:CALX) was downgraded to “market perform” from “outperform” by analysts at Avondale Partners.
- Cepheid (NASDAQ:CPHD) was cut to “underweight” from “equal weight” by analysts at Stephens.
- Cypress Semiconductor Corporation (NASDAQ:CY) was downgraded to “neutral” from “buy” at Dougherty & Co.
- FLIR Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:FLIR) was lowered to “underperform” from “neutral” by analysts at Zacks with a target price of $17.
- MB Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:MBFI) was cut to “market perform” from “outperform” by analysts at FIG Partners.
- Meadowbrook Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:MIG) was downgraded to “hold” from “buy” by analysts at BGB Securities.
- Montpelier Re Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:MRH) was downgraded by analysts at Zacks from “outperform” to “neutral” with a target price of $22.
- Par Pharmaceutical Companies, Inc. (NYSE:PRX) was cut by analysts at ThinkEquity from “buy” to “hold.”
- United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) was lowered to “underperform” from “market perform” by analysts at Avondale Partners.
