FirstAlert: 10-5 A.M. Investrend / Bestcalls
Conference calls are often impacted by market trends, geopolitical conditions, news coming from conferences and economic releases.
A Fighting Chance (By Philip Holmes) -- On Wednesday, the Fed, for about the first time in 2009, did something that got an honest rise out of the Street. Call it Open Market Madness, with Ben and Co. looking to buy up $300 billion of government bonds over the next six months. As BusinessWeek's Jeanine Aversa reported, the buy should have the effect of lowering rates on other kinds of debt, a key goal in the quest to get the U.S. economy moving again. As Aversa points out, "The last time the Fed set out to influence long-term interest rates was during the 1960s." The Fed will also up its purchase of Fannie and Freddie mortgage-backed securities by $750 billion, meaning it will now buy a total of $1.25 trillion of GSE-backed MBS. The Fed will also boost its purchase of Fannie and Freddie debt, to $200 billion. Bernanke and Co. are also looking to keep the Fed Funds target rate somewhere between zero and 0.25%. Will it help ease mortgage interest rates? Aversa asked Bankrate.com's Greg McBride, who said, "The mere announcement may produce a honeymoon effect and bring mortgage rates down to even lower levels in the coming days." That would be welcome news. Recent data showing unexpectedly higher numbers of housing starts might bring some cheer, but the foreclosure and inventory numbers are the real killers. Unless they come down significantly, and soon, residential real estate markets will remain in the doldrums. And the engine of recession will chug on. Keeping interest rates low long-term will help give mortgage borrowers a fighting chance.
The Investrend Earnings Calendar features Alloy (NASDAQ: ALOY), expected at $0.03; Barnes & Noble (NYSE: BKS), expected at $1.48; Blockbuster (NYSE: BBI), expected at $0.25; FedEx (NYSE: FDX), expected at $0.46.
The Investrend Economics Calendar lists Weekly Initial Jobless Claims (8:30 a.m.), Leading Indicators for February (10 a.m.), Philadelphia Fed Index for March (10 a.m.), Treasury announces 2&5-year note auctions (11 a.m.).
The Investrend Events Calendar showcases ANR, JOYG, DUK at Platts Coal Properties & Investment Conference; APD at UBS Specialty Chemicals Conference; ARQL, AUXL, STJ, ELN at Cowen and Company Healthcare Conference; AZN at Cambridge Healthtech Institute The Challenge of Antibacterial Drug Development Conference; GE Capital Investor Meeting; HRS Analyst Meeting; HUM at Credit Suisse Investor Meetings; LCRY, UNTD, AVD, CTGX at B. Riley & Company Las Vegas Investor Conference; LMT at Jefferies & Co. Global Clean Technology Conference; MDU Resources Analyst Seminar Meeting; TS Investor Meeting.
The Investrend Money Index is an indicator of the depth of market direction or indirection. While not always including the same stocks, the NYSE/NASDAQ 50 Most Actives indicate the direction in which the mass of money is flowing. Last session's trading showed 44 advancers versus six decliners. Advancers were led by Sun Microsystems, Inc. (NASDAQ: JAVA) up 78.87%, Financial Bull 3x (NYSE: FAS) up 27.54%, Hartford Fin Svc (NYSE: HIG) up 24.26%, Citigroup Inc (NYSE: C) up 22.71%, Bk Of America Cp (NYSE: BAC) up 22.33%, Wells Fargo & Co New (NYSE: WFC) up 17.46%, Genworth Financial (NYSE: GNW) up 17.07%, Ultra Financials Pro (NYSE: UYG) up 16.47%, Huntington Bancshares Incorpora (NASDAQ: HBAN) up 16.09%, Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ: FITB) up 13.85%, Adobe Systems Incorporated (NASDAQ: ADBE) up 11.60%, Hudson City Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ: HCBK) up 11.40%, Us Bancorp (NYSE: USB) up 9.02%, Ford Motor Co (NYSE: F) up 8.33%, Netapp, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP) up 7.95%, Jp Morgan Chase Co (NYSE: JPM) up 7.84%, Marvell Technology Group, Ltd. (NASDAQ: MRVL) up 6.53%. Decliners followed Financial Bear 3x (NYSE: FAZ) down 25.96%.
Vote in the Investrend Poll Question of the Day at Investrend Information (http://www.investrendinformation.com).
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Quote of the Day: "Do not compute the totality of your poultry population until all the manifestations of incubation have been entirely completed." William Jennings Bryan
Today is: National Chocolate Caramel Day, Companies That Care Day.
Happy Birthday: Dr. David Livingstone, Wyatt Earp, William Jennings Bryan, Earl Warren, Moms Mabley, Patrick McGoohan, Ursula Andress, Joe Kapp, Glenn Close, Bruce Willis, Connor Trinneer.
Today in History: A Mongolian victory in the Battle of Yamen ended the Song Dynasty in China in 1279. The City Bank of New York became in 1831 the site of the first bank robbery in United States history ($245,000 taken). Pluto was photographed in 1915 for the first time but was not recognized as a planet. Eight American planes took off in pursuit of Pancho Villa in 1916, the first United States air-combat mission in history. The U.S. Congress established time zones and approved daylight saving time in 1918. Gambling was legalized in Nevada in 1931. The Thoroughbred Racing Association was established in 1942 in Chicago. Academy Awards were first televised in 1953.
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