The euphoria in the rally is helped by the belief by investors that there are sufficient firewalls in place to protect the market against default events. Namely Greece. While it may be able to absorb Greece, one has to wonder about contagion spreading to other EU countries such as Span and Portugal.
The economic data calendar to end the week is fairly stacked. Both consumer sentiment and new home sales data are expected to be released at 10am EST.
Internationally, both Europe and Asia are riding higher on the backs of the US rally. The banking heavy Stoxx 600 Europe is currently up .20%.
Continued fears over Iran are sending oil higher this morning. Nymex crude futures are currently up 45 cents to $108.29. House Rep. Nancy Pelosi issued a scathing statement blaming speculators for the increase in oil prices. Of course this ignores her colleagues work to start the drumbeat to war. If you turn on any news channel you would think you are suffering deja vu. We have heard this song and dance before. Iraq.
Gold prices are retreating this morning, down $6.60 to $1,779 per ounce. The DXY index is also dropping against the Euro, down 11 ticks to 78.52.
Stocks to watch today include Chelsea Therapeutics International Ltd. (NASDAQ:CHTP), American International Group, Inc. (NYSE:AIG), Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK), DryShips Inc. (NASDAQ:DRYS), Deckers Outdoor Corp. (NASDAQ:DECK), Crocs, Inc. (NASDAQ:CROX) and Clearwire Corporation (NASDAQ:CLWR).
Chelsea Therapeutics International (NASDAQ:CHTP) is up 73.44% in pre market trading at $4.18. CHTP shares are up big this morning after a FDA advisory panel recommends its drug, Northera, for approval. Final FDA decision is due by March 28. The company has a market cap of 149.05 million.
American International Group (NYSE:AIG) is up 6.72% in pre market trading at $29.87. AIG shares are up this morning as the company reports fourth quarter results. AIG reported $19.8 billion in profits in the fourth quarter after an accounting change allowed the company to record a big one-time benefit. This change allows the company to not pay taxes on tens of billions of dollars in income due to benefits from its financial crisis losses. The company has a market cap of 53.16 billion.
Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK) is up 3.43% in pre market trading at $5.73. NOK shares are bouncing some this morning on news that the company will host a press conference on Monday to announce significant industry news. The company has a market cap of 20.55 billion.
DryShips Inc. (NASDAQ:DRYS) is up 3.61% in pre market trading at $3.74. DRYS shares continue to go higher this month and are already up $1.50 a share. DRYS shares fell yesterday at market open, but quickly popped right back up after announcing quarterly results. The company has a market cap of 1.47 billion.
Deckers Outdoor Corporation (NASDAQ:DECK) is down 11.02% in pre market trading at $80.27. DECK shares are tumbling on after their forecast for the first quarter came up short of Wall Street estimates. Deckers also reported fourth quarter results late yesterday and saw profit grow 40%. Net income rose to $3.18 per share, beating estimates of $3.13 per share. The company said that higher sheepskin prices and other costs to impact its first quarter earnings. The company has a market cap of 3.48 billion.
Crocs, Inc. (NASDAQ:CROX) is down 10.09% in pre market trading at $18.36. CROX shares are down as its outlook for the current quarter disappoints investors. For the fourth quarter, Crocs saw profits rise 18% thanks to increased sales. The company expects to earn between $0.24 and $0.26 per share in the first quarter, analysts are expecting $0.30 per share. The company has a market cap of 1.84 billion.
Clearwire Corporation (NASDAQ:CLWR) is down 6.40% in pre market trading at $2.12. CLWR shares are down some this morning after the stock bounced about $0.20 yesterday. CLWR trades about 14 million shares a day on average and has a market cap of 1.02 billion.
About Danny Fisher
