NYSE:RENN

Stocks Fall as Market Lacks Direction, Stocks to Watch: RENN, QPSA, SINA, BGCP, MOTR, DEXO

NYSE StocksStocks are down in early trading as the market lacks direction. A slow day with no major news has investors mostly taking a break and getting ready for the weekend. Friday’s are notoriously down days as many investors don’t like holding positions over the weekend.

Oil prices are also falling today after they saw a spike yesterday on reports of a Saudi pipeline explosion. These reports were later said to be false according to a Saudi oil minister. Oil prices are still high though and are trading above $107/barrel.

Yelp! Inc. (NYSE:YELP) had its IPO this morning and shares soared 60%. Shares of YELP are currently trading at $24.77. [Read more...]

Stocks to Watch as Consumer Data Sends Market Higher: TBET, ODP, SINA, DPZ, MU, RENN

Wall Street

Consumer Confidence Data

Consumer confidence in the U.S. rose to a one-year high in February thanks to optimism on the labor market offset soaring oil prices. The consumer confidence index rose to 70.8 this month from a revised reading of 61.5 in January. This is the highest it has been since last February. Economists who were polled by Reuters were estimating a reading of 63.0. “Consumers are considerably less pessimistic about current business and labor market conditions than they were in January,” said Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center, said in a statement. “And, despite further increases in gas prices, they are more optimistic about the short-term outlook for the economy, job prospects, and their financial situation.” The market is trending higher after a choppy morning with the Dow up 11 points, the Nasdaq up 14 points and the S&P 500 up 2 points.

Stocks to Watch

Tibet Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:TBET) is up 30% this morning at $1.95. TBET is up on heavy volume with 2.3 million shares traded so far today, well above its daily average of 106 thousand shares. Tibet shares are rallying today after the company announces intent to go private. CEO Hong Yu, “I hereby make an offer to purchase TBET stocks not owned by me for $3.00 per share in cash.” The company has a market cap of 30.14 million. [Read more...]

Futures Whipsaw on Chinese Comments And Murky Greek Deal. Stocks to Watch: ZNGA, RENN, BCRX, CLWR, LGF, AAPL, CMCSA

Another day, more ‘soothing’ comments from China regarding the EU crisis. If you are thinking you have seen this movie before, you have. And yet here we sit, still in the midst of the crisis. Overnight, Chinese officials announced they have confidence that the EU can resolve the crisis. Judging by the canceled finance ministers meeting, I think they need to borrow some of China’s mojo. After they completely sell-out their continent.

Reports are out now that the the Greek deal will possibly placed on hold. Greek politicians have been trying to stake out positions in the run-up to elections. Come to find out austerity induces Great Depression symptoms among your populace. Who would have guessed wiping out a chunk of your workforce would cause a rise in joblessness? Then that would lead to a rise in poverty and social unrest? I mean the IMF is only stacked with PhDs. Can’t expect them to know everything I guess. [Read more...]

Futures Propped Up By Greek Optimism. Stocks to Watch: KOG, AVID, S, CEDC, RENN, AMZN, VMED

In the long-running Greek saga it seems we are back to optimism today. Investors are hopeful that Greece will strike a deal over its debt today. This would give the country access to the second round of bailout funds. Dow futures are up 21 points to 12,852. The Nasdaq 100 futures are adding 4.25 points, and the S&P 500 is rounding out the positive moves, up one point to 1,345.

The Greek Prime Minister is schedule to meet with coalition leaders on Wednesday. It is hoped that this will clear the way for passage of new measures to secure bailout funds. Without the bailout funds, Greece is almost certainly heading for default in March. The ECB gave ground earlier, agreeing to swap its Greek holding s for less than face value.

At this point, market moves are being dictated by Greece. Any deal should continue the market rally in the short-term. A default would increase the worry about contagion. Of course the bailout does create a sense of moral hazard, because there are other countries that will be in line to get bailed out next. See Portugal.

Prospects for a Greek bailout and a temporary resolution to the crisis is sending both the Asian and European markets higher.

Domestically, earnings season continues today. Shares of Time Warner Inc are up over 3% in pre-market trading after the company topped expectations. They also announced a stock buy-back program and increased their dividend by 11%.

Shares of Walt Disney Co. are down slightly this morning after the company had a slight miss in their first quarter. Revenues came in at 10.78 billion versus expectations 11.19 billion.

Stocks to watch today include Kodiak Oil & Gas Corp (NYSE:KOG), Avid Technology Inc. (NASDAQ:AVID), Sprint Nextel Corporation (NYSE:S), Central European Distribution Corp. (NASDAQ:CEDC), Renren Inc. (NYSE:RENN), Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Virgin Media Inc. (NASDAQ:VMED)

Kodiak Oil & Gas Corp (NYSE:KOG) is up 1.78% in pre market trading at $9.13. KOG typically trades 6.5 million shares a day on average. Kodiak reported yesterday that they assumed its sixth operated rig and all of KOG’s rigs are drilling on wells in North Dakota. The company has a market cap of 1.88 billion.

Avid Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVID) is up 16.63% in pre market trading at $11.64. AVID shares are jumping this morning after the company reported good quarterly results yesterday. Avid Technology beat EPS estimates by $0.23 a share and also beat revenue estimates. The company has a market cap of 385.28 million.

Sprint Nextel Corporation (NYSE:S) is up 2.86% in pre market trading at $2.52. Sprint posted a net loss this morning for the previous quarter, but saw revenue gain from the iPhone. The CEO also said he sees the iPhone bring significant value over the long term. The company has a market cap of 7.34 billion.

Central European Distribution Corp. (NASDAQ:CEDC) is up 7.91% in pre market trading at $6.00. CEDC shares are up 50% in the past week following news that Russian Standard will increase stake in the company. The company has a market cap of 403.06 million.

Renren Inc. (NYSE:RENN) is up 3.63% in pre market trading at $5.23. RENN shares have seen a lot of volatility lately due to the Facebook IPO news. RENN jumped more than 50% last month, but has since fallen some and has been whipsawing between $5 and $5.50 every day. The company has a market cap of 2.05 billion.

Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) is up 0.48% in pre market trading at $185.07. AMZN shares are up about $15 a share since last Wednesday. Amazon and Viacom are close to a web video deal according to reports yesterday. The company has a market cap of 83.82 billion.

Virgin Media Inc. (NASDAQ:VMED) is up 3.83% in pre market trading at $25.21. VMED shares are up after the company reported fourth quarter results. TiVo and broadband helped boost Virgin Media in the fourth quarter. The company also saw a rise in customers. The company has a market cap of 7.31 billion.

Futures Red as Greek Worries Return. Stocks to Watch: THLD, TIVO, NFLX, BAC, AMZN, RENN, C

With no economic data on the docket, worries over Greece are expected to return in full-force today. Currently Dow futures are down 26 points to 12,767. Nasdaq 100 futures are also trending lower, down 7.25 points to 2,516. The S&P 500 is rounding out the decline, off 4.25 to 1,334.75.

The Euro and European stocks are trending lower this morning as Greece struggles to find a path towards their second bailout. The country is already suffering through a severe recession and any new austerity measures will only sharpen the popular backlash. Also ignored by the EU and IMF is if they continue to shed jobs through cuts it will only increase future bailouts. It will only generate a feedback loop where new measures hammer away at the Greek budgetary situation.

The uncertainty over Greece is sending most indexes lower across the continent. The Stoxx 600 Europe is down .32% in intra-day trading. The EUR/USD pair is also lower, off another .5% to the $1.30 level.

Overnight the IMF released their growth projections for China. One of the highlights was the fact if the EU experienced a sharp downturn, future growth in China would be severely limited. They also cut their 2012 GDP forecast from 9% to 8.25%.

Stocks to watch today include Threshold Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:THLD), TiVo Inc. (NASDAQ:TIVO), Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX), Bank of America Corp. (NYSE:BAC), Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), Renren Inc. (NYSE:RENN) and Citigroup, Inc. (NYSE:C)

Threshold Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:THLD) is up 10.70% in pre market trading at $3.31. THLD shares continue to rise following news of a global agreement between Threshold Pharma and Merck KGaA for TH-302. THLD has jumped from less than $1.50 to well over $3 since Friday. The company has a market cap of 146.89 million.

TiVo Inc. (NASDAQ:TIVO) is up 6.86% in pre market trading at $12.00. Barron’s is reporting that TiVo may go up as high as $18 as patent-lawsuit settlements boost income and its digital recording technology attract buyers. TIVO shares are up about $1.50 since last Wednesday. The company has a market cap of 1.36 billion.

Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) is down 0.34% in pre market trading at $126.00. Neflix competitor Coinstar (NASDAQ:CSTR), which owns Redbox, will release fourth quarter earnings after the closing bell today. NFLX shares are trading relatively flat over the past week or so after the stock rose about $30 following great earnings. The company has a market cap of 7 billion.

Bank of America Corp. (NYSE:BAC) is down 1.02% in pre market trading at $7.76. BAC shares are down this morning as the overall market is set to open lower. Bank of America announced Barbara Desoer, the company’s mortgage chief, will retire. The company has a market cap of 82.60 billion.

Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) is down 0.78% in pre market trading at $186.22. AMZN shares took a hit last week after announcing their quarterly results. The stock fell from $195 to under $175. Since then though, it has clawed its way back up and is nearly where it was before it fell. The company has a market cap of 85.39 billion.

Renren Inc. (NYSE:RENN) is down 1.92% in pre market trading at $5.12. It looks like the Facebook hype has finally dropped a bit for these other social media companies. RENN shares jumped more than 50% over the past week or so, but has fallen back a bit for now. The company has a market cap of 2.05 billion.

Citigroup, Inc. (NYSE:C) is down 0.83% in pre market trading at $33.26. C shares are down with market futures this morning. Citigroup will be the first western bank to issue credit cards in China under its own brand. The bank won approval to launch the business from the China Banking Regulatory Commission. The company has a market cap of 98.07 billion.

Futures Look Toward Bernanke. Stocks to Watch: GMCR, ZNGA, QCOM, RENN, VIAB, EA, AOL

The market is in a wait and see mode this morning as investors wait for Bernanke’s testimony on the Hill. Currently Dow futures are down 9 points to 12,644. Nasdaq 100 futures are following that lead, down 2.75 points to 2,485. S&P 500 futures are rounding out the decline, off 1.50 points to 1,318.25.

Bernanke’s testimony to the House Budget Committee is expected to be the highlight of the day. With the election cycle almost in full swing, it is almost guaranteed to contain a few fireworks. His comments on the economy will be carefully watched. Anything outside of his normally measured tone can move the market violently in either direction. So expect the market pundits to be parsing what exactly he means by ‘is’.

Jobless claims that just released were slightly better than expected. Weekly claims fell 12,000 to 367,000.

Earnings season continues to be in full swing. Dow Chemical (NYSE:DOW) reported a net loss and that sent shares tumbling in pre-market by nearly 4%.

Drug maker AstraZeneca PLC (NYSE:AZN) is off over 3% this morning after they announced a round of job cuts in order to trim costs. The company is expecting a dip in earnings this year due to patent expirations.

In Europe the markets gyrated between small gains and losses as investors still wait for a resolution to the Greece crisis. There is a possible big merger in the works that is helping boost the market. Xstrata PLC is in talks with Glencore International about a merger of equals.

In Span the government conducted a bond auction that saw yields fall as compared to previous auctions. A French bond auction was also successful, selling 7.96 billion in government bonds.

A bigger-than-expected rise in inventories is sending oil lower on the day. Nymex crude futures are currently down 66 cents to $96.95 per barrel.

Stocks to watch today include Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. (NASDAQ:GMCR), Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ:ZNGA), Qualcomm Inc. (NASDAQ:QCOM), Renren Inc. (NYSE:RENN), Viacom, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIAB), Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) and AOL, Inc. (NYSE:AOL)

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc. (NASDAQ:GMCR) is up 21.57% in pre market trading at $65.26. GMCR shares are rallying big after the company announced fiscal first quarter results yesterday. Green Mountain had an adjusted EPS of $0.60 for its first quarter, way above analysts consensus of $0.36. Sales were at $1.16 billion, beating estimates of $1.06 billion. For its second quarter, Green Mountain is expecting adjusted profit of $0.60 to $0.65 per share, lower than analyst estimates of $0.73 a share. GMRC will likely trade above its average volume of 7.2 million shares today on this news. The company has a market cap of 8.29 billion.

Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ:ZNGA) is up 3.77% in pre market trading at $11.00. ZNGA has been trending higher this month as news of a Facebook IPO has sent companies related to the social media sector higher. ZNGA typically trades about 10 million shares a day on average and has a market cap of 7.41 billion.

Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM) is up 4.16% in pre market trading at $62.04. QCOM shares are rising this morning after the company’s first quarter net income beat expectations. Adjusted net income was $0.97 for the first quarter, higher than estimates of $0.90. Revenue for the quarter was $4.68 billion. The company forecasted revenue for the current quarter to be between $4.6 billion and $5 billion with adjusted net income between $0.91 and $0.97 per share. Analysts were expecting $0.89 per share with $4.49 billion in revenue. The company has a market cap of 100.12 billion.

Renren Inc. (NYSE:RENN) is up 3.79% in pre market trading at $5.20. RENN along with many companies dealing in the social media space have been rallying over the past week now has Facebook IPO fever has swept Wall Street. RENN shares have seen a pull back in the past two days after rallying more than 50% earlier in the week. The company has a market cap of 1.96 billion.

Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ:VIAB) is down 6.86% in pre market trading at $46.97. VIAB shares are down after the company announced first quarter results. Profit for the quarter fell to $212 million or $0.39 a share, down from $610 million, or $1.01 a share a year ago. Viacom did beat on adjusted profit with $1.06 for the quarter, beating estimates by $0.01. VIAB trades 4.4 million shares a day on average.

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) is up 5.75% in pre market trading at $19.50. EA shares are higher following yesterday’s earnings. Its third quarter earnings were strong thanks to its holiday game releases “Batlefield 3” and “Star Wars: The Old Republic.” EA said it sold 2 million units of Star Wars and has 1.7 million daily active subscribers. The company has a market cap of 6.11 billion.

AOL Inc. (NYSE:AOL) is trading down 2.70% in pre market trading at $17.28. AOL released its fourth quarter earnings late yesterday. While its net income fell 66%, the results still beat estimates. Total revenue for the quarter came in at $576.8 million while net income was $22.8 million. AOL trades 1.5 million shares a day on average and has a market cap of 1.73 billion.

Stocks In Positive Territory As Market Falters: GTXI, PBY, RENN, MOBI, CIGX, DAL

The stock market is faltering this morning as Europe grabs investors’ attention again. Greece is the focal point this morning as they have still not completed a deal with their creditors. All last week everyone heard how close they were and that it would be done by the end of the week and yet here we are with no deal done. Greece and Germany have been arguing recently over Greece’s bailout with one German official saying a Greek bailout is not guaranteed. The major indices are all down more than 0.5% with the Dow down 94 points, the Nasdaq off 18 points and the S&P 500 down 11 points.

GTx, Inc. (NASDAQ:GTXI) is up 35.08% this morning at $5.33. GTXI has traded 2 million shares so far today, 20 times the stock’s daily average. GTXI shares are rising today after Citi raised price target on stock to $19. The company has a market cap of 330.28 million. Check out one of the best swing traders on the street.

Pep Boys (NYSE:PBY) is up 22.97% today at $14.85. PBY has traded 10 million shares so far today, way above its daily average of 504 thousand shares. PBY shares are jumping after private equity firm Gores Group said it would acquire Pep Boys for $1 billion. The company has a market cap of 782.89 million.

Renren Inc. (NYSE:RENN) is up 9.33% in early trading at $5.73. RENN has traded 19.5 million shares this morning, nearly 5 times its daily average volume. RENN shares have rallied nearly 50% in the past two days as news of a Facebook IPO has sent the stock higher. The company has a market cap of 2.29 billion.

Sky-mobi Limited (NASDAQ:MOBI) is up 11.59% today at $4.14. MOBI has traded 623 thousand shares so far today, more than 3 times its daily average. MOBI shares are up more than $0.60 in the past few days as the stock is bouncing back after seeing a slight pull back earlier this month. The company has a market cap of 130.64 million. Check out one of the best swing traders on the street.

Star Scientific, Inc. (NASDAQ:CIGX) is up 2.30% this morning at $2.8950. CIGX has traded 1.5 million shares so far today, 300 thousand more shares than it trades on average. CIGX shares are slightly higher today after its subsidiary reported positive results from clinical trial. The company has a market cap of 394.36 million.

Delta Air Lines Inc. (NYSE:DAL) is up 2.41% today at $10.65. DAL has traded 5.1 million shares so far today and trades 12 million shares a day on average. DAL shares are up today on news that the company may bid for US Airways. The company has a market cap of 8.91 billion.

Stocks Heading Higher In Midday Trading: MOSY, LEAP, VOG, ZAGG, RAM, PCS, RENN

MoSys, Inc. (NASDAQ:MOSY) is up 42.76% in midday trading at $4.24. MOSY has traded 1.4 million shares so far today, way above its daily average of 88 thousand shares. MOSY shares are up today after patent sale to Tessera for $35 million. The company has a market cap of 161.43 million. Maximize Your Trades With Profitly

Leap Wireless International Inc. (NASDAQ:LEAP) is up 16.14% today at $9.85. LEAP has traded 2.5 million shares so far today, 600 thousand shares more than its daily average. LEAP is up today after rumors it may be acquired by AT&T. The company has a market cap of 761.93 million.

Voyager Oil & Gas, Inc. (AMEX:VOG) is up 13.24% in midday trading at $2.48. VOG has traded 212 thousand shares so far today and 234 thousand shares. The company has a market cap of 143.46 million.

ZAGG Inc. (NASDAQ:ZAGG) is up 9.32% at $7.27 today. ZAGG has traded 1.4 million shares so far today, well above its daily average of 987 thousand shares. ZAGG is bouncing back some today after falling more than $2 a share since last Friday. The company has a market cap of 213.67 million.

RAM Energy Resources, Inc. (NASDAQ:RAM) is up 6.69% in midday trading at $3.03. RAM has traded 3.3 million shares so far today, more than three times its daily average. The company has a market cap of 241.16 million. Maximize Your Trades With Profitly

Metro PCS Communications, Inc. (NYSE:PCS) is up 4.25% at $8.59 today. PCS has traded 1.7 million shares today and trades 4.7 million shares. PCS is up today on rumors of AT&T acquiring them. The company has a market cap of 3.13 billion.

Renren Inc. (NYSE:RENN) is up 3.94% in midday trading at $3.43. RENN has traded 3.3 million shares so far today and trades 3.6 million shares a day on average. RENN has fallen more than 50% since the beginning of November. The company has a market cap of 1.34 billion.

Biggest Losers In Early Trading: JAKK, TSRX, EGO, RGC, RENN, P

Stocks are turning negative in late morning trading as investors continue to worry about Europe. The stock market was in the green just a half hour, but has since dropped as financials are getting hit hard. As of 11:18 am EST the Dow is down 37 points, the Nasdaq is down 9 points and the S&P is down 5 points. Let’s take a look at which stocks are getting hit hardest today.

Jakks Pacific, Inc. (NASDAQ:JAKK) is down 21.44% at $13.63 this morning. JAKK has traded 975 thousand shares so far today, well above its daily average of 271 thousand shares. JAKK is down today after the company cut its full-year outlook on Friday citing disappointing holiday sales. Jakks Pacific has a market cap of 355.09 million.

Trius Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSRX) is down 9.22% today at $6.20. TSRX has traded 197 thousand shares so far today, more than double its daily average. Trius reported positive results from first phase 3 trial of Tedizolid in acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections. The company has a market cap of 178.75 million.

Eldorado Gold Corp. (NYSE:EGO) is down 10.35% this morning at $13.43. EGO has traded 4.8 million shares so far today, well above its daily average of 3.5 million shares. Eldorado announced today they will buy European Goldfields for $2.4 billion. The company has a market cap of 7.36 billion.

Regal Entertainment Group (NYSE:RGC) is down 6.56% this morning at $12.40. RGC has traded 2.1 million shares so far today and averages 1.8 million shares daily. The company has a market cap of 1.92 billion.

Renren Inc. (NYSE:RENN) is down 5.51% today at $3.26. RENN has traded 1.1 million shares a day and averages 3.7 million shares daily. Renren has a market cap of 1.27 billion.

Pandora Media, Inc. (NYSE:P) is down 5.12% today at $10.01. P has traded 794 thousand shares so far today and trades 934 thousand shares a day on average. Pandora has dropped about $0.80 a share over the past five trading sessions. The company has a market cap of 1.62 billion.

NYSE Stocks Losing Ground In Midday Trading: PAY, HL, PVA, WFR, HMY, RENN

VeriFone Systems, Inc. (NYSE:PAY) is down 6.83% at $37.78 in midday trading. PAY has traded 3.7 million shares so far today, well above its daily average of 1.8 million shares. VeriFone announced their fourth quarter earnings yesterday. The company saw revenue jump nearly 49%. The stock is down today though after VeriFone said it expected first quarter profit of $0.50-$0.52 per share. Analysts were expecting $0.53 per share. Verifone has a market cap of 3.99 billion.

Hecla Mining Co. (NYSE:HL) is down 5.41% today at $5.42. HL has traded 6.9 million shares so far today and trades 8.4 million shares a day on average. HL stock fell today after news of an incident at an Idaho mine. All of their workers are safe after a rock burst at the mine. The company has a market cap of 1.51 billion.

Penn Virginia Corporation (NYSE:PVA) is down 7.01% today at $4.51. PVA has traded 850 thousand shares so far today and trades 1.2 million shares a day on average. PVA stock has been trending downward since Monday and is down about $1.50 since then. Penn Virginia has a market cap of 207.52 million.

MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. (NYSE:WFR) is down 4.91% at $3.68 in midday trading. WFR has traded 3.7 million shares so far today and trades 7.9 million shares a day on average. WFR has been trending lower this week, falling from $4.40 last Friday. The company has a market cap of 846.06 million.

Harmony Gold Mining Co. (NYSE:HMY) is down 5.36% today at $11.84. HMY has traded 1.8 million shares so far today and trades 2.5 million shares a day on averarge. HMY stock has fallen nearly $2 a share since last Friday. Harmony Gold has a market cap of 5.11 billion.

Renren Inc. (NYSE:RENN) is down 4.44% at $3.44 in midday trading. RENN has traded 1.2 million shares today and averages 3.7 million shares daily. RENN is down today on news that China’s internet population is starting to stagnate. The company has a market cap of 1.35 billion.

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