Paul Shread

Better than expected manufacturing data helped stocks end a down week on an up note on Friday. The ISDEX http://www.wsrn.com/apps/ISDEX/ rose 1 to 159, and the Nasdaq recovered 13 to 1805. The S&P 500 added 4 to 1133, and the Dow rose 30 to 9,949. Volume shrank to 918 million shares on the NYSE, and […]

Despite its troubles, Excite@Home will survive. The question is in what form. That doesn’t mean you should rush out and buy the stock at 52 cents a share. Bankruptcy court may be the best place for someone to purchase the company’s assets. Why pay $200 million or more for the assets, when you could get […]

An earnings warning from Sun Microsystems and evidence that consumers are reigning in their spending sent stocks sharply lower on Thursday. The ISDEX http://www.wsrn.com/apps/ISDEX/ fell 5 to a new low of 157, and the Nasdaq dropped 51 to 1791. The S&P 500 declined 19 to 1129, and the Dow lost 171 to 9,919. Volume surged […]

Another day, another round of earnings warnings from leading technology companies. Sun Microsystems issued a dismal outlook last night, and analysts are slashing estimates on the company by almost 50% this morning. SUNW is down more than 10% in pre-market trading to a new 52-week low. And Corning is also down in the pre-market after […]

Second quarter GDP came in better than expected on Wednesday, but it only served to remind investors that economic growth has skidded to a halt. Sun Microsystems warned after the bell. The ISDEX http://www.wsrn.com/apps/ISDEX/ fell 4 to 163, and the Nasdaq dropped 21 to 1843. The S&P 500 declined 12 to 1148, and the Dow […]

The all-important revision to second-quarter GDP came in better than expected this morning, giving stocks a psychological boost. But make no mistake about it: the revision from 0.7% growth to 0.2% growth means the U.S. economy was very weak in the second quarter, and the third quarter has also started on a weak note. The […]

An unexpected decline in consumer confidence sent stocks sharply lower on Tuesday, and negative analyst comments ahead of Sun Microsystems’ mid-quarter update on Wednesday didn’t help. Tomorrow morning at 8:30 is the all-important revision to second-quarter GDP. Analysts expect the number to be revised to zero; a negative number could be a significant negative. The […]

Signaling software firm Ulticom is holding up fairly well. And in this environment for technology stocks, that borders on high praise. Ulticom reported earnings last night – real earnings – of 10 cents a share, meeting estimates. Revenues of $17.9 million came in a hair shy of $18 million estimates. The company guided third quarter […]

Is the U.S. about to experience its first decline in GDP in more than 8 years? Investors won’t have long to wait. Revised second quarter GDP will be released Wednesday morning, and the consensus is that it will be revised from 0.7% to 0.0% – a stagnant quarter for the economy. Since the initial GDP […]

Stocks soared Friday after Cisco Systems said business is stabilizing and reaffirmed its outlook. The ISDEX http://www.wsrn.com/apps/ISDEX/ surged 9 to 175, and the Nasdaq soared 73 to 1916. The S&P 500 gained 22 to 1184, and the Dow rose 194 to 10,423. Volume rose to 1.06 billion shares on the NYSE, and 1.49 billion on […]

Was there any “news” in Cisco’s news last night? We’ll let you decide. Here’s the quote from Cisco CEO John Chambers that appeared in a press release last night that sent telecom equipment stocks surging after hours: “… we are beginning to see signs that our business is stabilizing. Although we can’t predict the future, […]

Cisco surged after hours after saying that its business is stabilizing. Stocks slipped during the day on news that Fed rate cuts may be nearing an end. The ISDEX http://www.wsrn.com/apps/ISDEX/ slipped 1 to 166, and the Nasdaq declined 17 to 1842. The S&P 500 lost 3 to 1162, and the Dow fell 47 to 10,229. […]