Today was another yawner in the market place as the three major market indexes straddled around the unchanged mark.
This morning the jobless claims data did little to impact the markets. Earnings however, are selctively rewarding or tearing apart various stocks.
The tech sector came under pressure as Advanced Micro Devices missed earnings. Shraes of AMD fell -$3.22 to close at $21.01. Hewlett-Packard passed Dell in the number one spot for shippers of PCs, and Honeywell issued a disappointing outlook.
Crude oil prices jumped after Saudi Arabia said they were going to join OPEC's call for production cuts. All of our favorite oil stocks rose on the news (MRO +$1.73, CHK +.48, VLO +.76, SUN +.58, BRG +$2.03)
In economic news, the Initial weekly jobless claims fell 10,000 to 299,000. Original estimates were for 310,000. The Philly Fed Index of Business Activity feloow below zero for the second straight month. A number below zero suggests that the economy is contracting. In September the index came in at -0.4, and for October the number dropped to -0.7.
All in all the day was uneventful. for you value players out there, keep an eye on Hershey's (HSY-$2.32@ $50.38) The stock dropped befiefly below $50, at what point I would call a screaming buy. You may get another chance to buy the stock in the days ahead. If not, try selling the puts at a strike price of $50. If the stock is put to you, you'll get in at a lower price, if not, just keep the cash.
I'm going to take a nap. Yawn.
