The three major indices are edging higher this morning as investors wait for the release of the durable goods numbers. Investors also continue to digest Bernanke’s speech from earlier in the week in which he left the door wide open for future stimulus. Dow futures are currently up 25 points to 13,149. Nasdaq 100 and S&P 500 futures are adding 5 and 2 points respectively.
Durable goods orders came in with an increase of 2.2% for February. Expectations were for a 2.9% increase, but this is the 4th increase in 5 months.
Bernanke’s speech on Monday warned on labor markets. He cited weak demand as evidence of his belief that labor gains may not be sustainable. The Fed’s remedy to this would be further stimulus through monetary easing policies, or QE3.
Some analysts say that as we near the end of the quarter the trading can become erratic as major firms put window dressing on their portfolios. They want to be able to say they are holding the best performing stocks.
Commodities continue to be volatile this morning. Nymex crude futures are down $1.2 per barrel to $106.11. Gold futures are following suit, with gold prices down over $11 to $1,673.70.
The dollar index is trading slightly the lower this morning. The DXY is down .08% to 79.08.
Stocks to watch today include Zoltek Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZOLT), Frontline Ltd. (NYSE:FRO), Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK), Molycorp, Inc. (NYSE:MCP), Aeropostale, Inc. (NYSE:ARO), Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARNA) and DIRECTV (NASDAQ:DTV).
Zoltek Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZOLT) is up 14.62% in pre market trading at $11.68. ZOLT has traded 4 thousand shares so far this morning and trades 467 thousand shares a day on average. ZOLT shares have fallen about $4 a share since early February after the stock jumped from $9 to over $14. The company has a market cap of 350.06 million.
Frontline Ltd. (NYSE:FRO) is up 4.84% in pre market trading at $7.36. FRO has traded 42 thousand shares this morning and trades 2.5 million shares a day on average. FRO shares are up more than $2 a share in the past month and have been up as much as $3 a share. The company has a market cap of 546.56 million.
Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK) is up 3.35% in pre market trading at $5.55. NOK has traded 150 thousand shares already this morning and trades 31.4 million shares a day on average. Nokia launched its first smartphone for China today and is hoping China can drive its global turnaround. The company has a market cap of 19.92 billion.
Molycorp, Inc. (NYSE:MCP) is up 2.61% in pre market trading at $33.00. MCP has traded 7 thousand shares this morning and usually trades 4.3 million shares a day on average. MCP shares are up more than $3 a share in the past 2 days. The company has a market cap of 2.70 billion.
Aeropostale Inc. (NYSE:ARO) is up 2.33% in pre market trading at $22.03. ARO trades 2.1 million shares a day on average. ARO shares have jumped nearly $2 a share in the past week. The company has a market cap of 1.74 billion.
Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARNA) is down 4.60% in pre market trading at $3.11. ARNA has traded 301 thousand shares this morning and trades 6.5 million shares a day on average. ARNA shares have rallied more than $1 a share in the past week. The company has a market cap of 588.18 million.
DIRECTV (NASDAQ:DTV) is up 3.20% in pre market trading at $49.74. DTV has traded 7 thousand shares in pre market trading and trades 5.7 million shares a day on average. DirecTV shares were upgraded to buy from neutral by Citigroup today thanks to Latin American growth. The price target was raised from $48 to $59. The company has a market cap of 32.60 billion.
About Danny Fisher
