Stocks are moving into positive territory in midday trading as banks push the overall market higher. Many analysts are starting to wonder if a pull back is imminent. The Dow has jumped close to 2,000 points since late November and has yet to see a meaningful pull back. We have seen some speed bumps along the way, the most recent being a 200 point drop in early March.
As long as economic data stays positive, we should see the current rally continue. If a negative jobs report comes out or some other troubling economic data though, a market pull back could occur.
Taking a peek at the stock indexes at midday show the Dow up 23 points, the Nasdaq up 24 points and the S&P 500 up 7 points.
Hot Stocks
Joe’s Jeans Inc. (NASDAQ:JOEZ) is up 7.41% today at $1.1699. JOEZ is trading 3 times its average volume right now with 903 thousand shares traded. JOEZ shares have climbed about $0.30 over the past few days. The company has a market cap of 75.68 million.
Celsion Corporation (NASDAQ:CLSN) is up 12.78% in midday trading at $1.9060. CLSN has traded 437 thousand shares so far today and trades 509 thousand shares a day on average. CLSN have recovered close to $0.30 a share after hitting a low of $1.63 on March 13. The company has a market cap of 49.91 million.
Avalon Rare Metals, Inc. (AMEX:AVL) has rallied 9.10% in midday trading at $3.0440. AVL has traded 4.2 million shares so far today, well above its daily average of 1.2 million shares. Avalon’s CEO said in an interview with CNBC that he sees opportunity for company in ‘heavy’ rare earths. The company has a market cap of 314.72 million.
Transcept Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSPT) is up 9.27% today at $10.02. TSPT shares have jumped more than $2 a share over the three days. Transcept stock has traded 470 thousand shares so far today, well above its daily average of 122 thousand shares. The company has a market cap of 136.87 million.
Radian Group Inc. (NYSE:RDN) is up 5.76% in midday trading at $4.41. RDN has traded 5 million shares so far today and trades 6.5 million shares a day on average. Radian shares are bouncing back today after falling on Friday from $4.40 to $4.20. The company has a market cap of 587.14 million.
Gastar Exploration Ltd. (AMEX:GST) is up 12.34% today at $3.3140. GST has traded over a million shares so far today, 5 times its average volume. GST shares are heading up today after being in a downtrend in late February and early March where it fell $0.50. The company has a market cap of 207.64 million.
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