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Stocks Drift in August Dog Days By SCOTT PATTERSON
Traders Eye Indexes And Technical Levels August22,20059:08p.m.
Stocks drifted Monday in the doldrums of August, jumping in an early morning rally, spiraling lower midday and finishing the day a nose above water.
A shortage of economic and corporate news and listless oil prices left investors without a catalyst, leading to low volume of shares traded on Wall Street. "These are the dog days of summer, and the volume reflects that," said Jay Suskind, director of trading at Ryan Beck.
Traders said they were focusing on technical levels of the broader market indexes amid the dearth of news. "I've been watching important support levels" for stocks, said Bill Groenveld, head trader at vFinance Investments. Most of the broader moves on Wall Street "have been more technical-based" he said.
Marc Pado, U.S. market strategist at Cantor Fitzgerald, said the benchmark stock indexes were all hovering near their 10-week moving averages, and that any significant move off those averages would likely result in a violent move up or down for stocks. "Traders now are now keenly focused on those levels, and I'd say if crude hits $67 a barrel, the indexes will break those supports and we'll see a wave of selling come in."
The 10-week moving average for the Dow Jones Industrial Average is 10540, 1219 for the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index and 2131 for the Nasdaq Composite Index, said Mr. Pado.
Light, sweet crude, as aimless as stocks Monday, settled 10 cents higher at $65.65 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after reports of supply disruptions from Iraq.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average, up more than 80 points soon after the opening bell, then down nearly 25 points, finished 10.66 points higher at 10569.89. Procter & Gamble, a Dow component, rose 1.1% after an article in Barron's argued the stock was undervalued.
The Standard & Poor's 500-stock index rose two points to 1221.54 and the Nasdaq Composite Index added 5.85 points to 2141.41.
Earlier, stocks jumped higher amid enthusiasm over a wave of mergers, including a deal for OSI Pharmaceuticals to buy Eyetech Pharmaceuticals for $935 million. Investors had a mixed reaction to the offer. While shares of Eyetech jumped 30%, OSI's plunged 22%.
Other deals on the table Monday: German tourism and shipping company TUI will buy CP Ships, a container-shipping business with operations in Canada, in a $2 billion deal; China's CNPC International is offering $55 a share to acquire Canadian oil-and-gas company PetroKazakhstan; and private-equity firms Permira and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts agreed to buy SBS Broadcasting in a deal valuing the European broadcaster at about €2.09 billion, or $2.54 billion.
Meanwhile, the battle for Maytag is coming to an end. Whirlpool signed a definitive agreement to acquire the appliance maker for $21 share after rival Ripplewood Holdings decided against raising its bid. Shares of Maytag fell by a few cents to $18.66. Whirlpool's shares fell 0.43
........................
Stocks rose. On the Big Board, where 1.2 billion shares traded, 2,059 stocks rose and 1,246 fell. On the Nasdaq Stock Market, where 1.3 billion shares traded, 1,696 stocks advanced and 1,345 declined.
Bonds slid. The benchmark 10-year Treasury lost 1/32, or 31 cents per $1,000 invested, to yield 4.215% on Monday. The 30-year bond was off 6/32 to yield 4.432%. Yields move inversely to prices.
The dollar weakened. It traded at 109.65 yen, off from 110.40 yen late Friday, while the euro rose to $1.2231 from $1.2164.
Stocks Drift in August Dog Days By SCOTT PATTERSON
Traders Eye Indexes And Technical Levels August22,20059:08p.m.
Stocks drifted Monday in the doldrums of August, jumping in an early morning rally, spiraling lower midday and finishing the day a nose above water.
A shortage of economic and corporate news and listless oil prices left investors without a catalyst, leading to low volume of shares traded on Wall Street. "These are the dog days of summer, and the volume reflects that," said Jay Suskind, director of trading at Ryan Beck.
Traders said they were focusing on technical levels of the broader market indexes amid the dearth of news. "I've been watching important support levels" for stocks, said Bill Groenveld, head trader at vFinance Investments. Most of the broader moves on Wall Street "have been more technical-based" he said.
Marc Pado, U.S. market strategist at Cantor Fitzgerald, said the benchmark stock indexes were all hovering near their 10-week moving averages, and that any significant move off those averages would likely result in a violent move up or down for stocks. "Traders now are now keenly focused on those levels, and I'd say if crude hits $67 a barrel, the indexes will break those supports and we'll see a wave of selling come in."
The 10-week moving average for the Dow Jones Industrial Average is 10540, 1219 for the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index and 2131 for the Nasdaq Composite Index, said Mr. Pado.
Light, sweet crude, as aimless as stocks Monday, settled 10 cents higher at $65.65 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after reports of supply disruptions from Iraq.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average, up more than 80 points soon after the opening bell, then down nearly 25 points, finished 10.66 points higher at 10569.89. Procter & Gamble, a Dow component, rose 1.1% after an article in Barron's argued the stock was undervalued.
The Standard & Poor's 500-stock index rose two points to 1221.54 and the Nasdaq Composite Index added 5.85 points to 2141.41.
Earlier, stocks jumped higher amid enthusiasm over a wave of mergers, including a deal for OSI Pharmaceuticals to buy Eyetech Pharmaceuticals for $935 million. Investors had a mixed reaction to the offer. While shares of Eyetech jumped 30%, OSI's plunged 22%.
Other deals on the table Monday: German tourism and shipping company TUI will buy CP Ships, a container-shipping business with operations in Canada, in a $2 billion deal; China's CNPC International is offering $55 a share to acquire Canadian oil-and-gas company PetroKazakhstan; and private-equity firms Permira and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts agreed to buy SBS Broadcasting in a deal valuing the European broadcaster at about €2.09 billion, or $2.54 billion.
Meanwhile, the battle for Maytag is coming to an end. Whirlpool signed a definitive agreement to acquire the appliance maker for $21 share after rival Ripplewood Holdings decided against raising its bid. Shares of Maytag fell by a few cents to $18.66. Whirlpool's shares fell 0.43
........................
Stocks rose. On the Big Board, where 1.2 billion shares traded, 2,059 stocks rose and 1,246 fell. On the Nasdaq Stock Market, where 1.3 billion shares traded, 1,696 stocks advanced and 1,345 declined.
Bonds slid. The benchmark 10-year Treasury lost 1/32, or 31 cents per $1,000 invested, to yield 4.215% on Monday. The 30-year bond was off 6/32 to yield 4.432%. Yields move inversely to prices.
The dollar weakened. It traded at 109.65 yen, off from 110.40 yen late Friday, while the euro rose to $1.2231 from $1.2164.
