Among the stocks featured in the July 7 edition of Schaeffer's S&P 500 Index Hot Stocks are RadioShack (NYSE:RSH), Ford Motor (NYSE:F), General Motors (NYSE:GM), PMC-Sierra (NASDAQ:PMCS), and Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX). Schaeffer's S&P 500 Index Hot Stocks is just one of the many free market commentaries written every day at www.SchaeffersResearch.com - the home of Bernie Schaeffer and Schaeffer's Investment Research. For additional information about this report or to have it delivered to you free via email every day click on the following link. http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/redirect.aspx?CODE=PRSHS12M&PAGE=1
Schaeffer's S&P 500 Index Hot Stocks for Friday, July 7, 2006:
A daily feature available on SchaeffersResearch.com is the "SPX Hot Stocks" column. Each afternoon, we will provide a list of the day's top-20 performing stocks in the S&P 500 Index (SPX - 1,264.84) as well as the bottom-20 names. Featured along with this table will be news that is moving some of the securities.
NOTE: Stocks trading under $5 per share have been eliminated from this listing of the top-20 and bottom-20 performing stocks.
The major market averages are in the red today due, in part, to this morning's lower-than-expected, nonfarm-payroll numbers. Nonfarm payrolls increased by 121,000 during the month, well below the 174,000 that the Street expected. Furthermore, an eruption of selling pressure hit right around midday as lackluster fundamental news continued to pour in from the likes of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Starbucks, and 3M Company (MMM). As I pen this article, 58 percent of the SPX is in negative territory.
Far and away, RadioShack (NYSE:RSH) is leading the SPX. The troubled electronics retailer is more than 20 percent higher this afternoon after announcing that Julian Day will be the company's chairman and CEO. Day has played major roles in turnarounds at Safeway, Sears, and Kmart. This news gave Stifel Nicolaus reason to upgrade the company to "hold" from "sell," noting that "a dramatic change in strategy and culture was needed most."
Among the other newsmakers on the plus side of the SPX this afternoon are Ford Motor (NYSE:F) and General Motors (NYSE:GM). Let's deal with the news from F first. Early this morning, the company announced that it doubled its vehicle sales in China to 74,395 units in the first half of the year when compared to last year. F China's January-to-June sales were a half-yearly record for the company. The average growth rate for the industry was 36.2 percent in the first half of the year, according to the National Passenger Cars Association. F is more than two percent higher this afternoon.
GM is in the news as well, as its officials stated that they would conduct "exploratory discussions" with the existing Renault/Nissan Motor alliance. This news gave Deutsche Bank reason to upgrade the automaker to "hold" from "sell," noting that the partnership could have "significant strategic implications" for GM. The stock is currently more than 1.5 percent higher.
Let's now look at stocks on the slide. At the bottom of the SPX this afternoon is PMC-Sierra (NASDAQ:PMCS), which has lost more than 14 percent today. The company dropped after a couple of announcements. The first is that it sees its second-quarter revenue hitting the mid-point of its prior outlook for $108 million to $112 million. This figure excludes the acquisition of Passave Inc. The other news is that its Chief Financial Officer Alan Krock is leaving the company for personal reasons.
Finally, we have Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX), which has lost nearly five percent today. The king of caffeine reported that June same-store sales increased by six percent, missing the consensus estimate by a percentage point. UBS cited slowing sales momentum as a reason for its downgrade to "neutral," and lowered its same-store sales forecast, and lowered earnings estimate. The brokerage also cited a lower-than-expected boos from new Frappuccino introductions for the downgrade. If you would like a technical analysis of the coffee company, or for 3M Company (which is also on our hot stocks list), check out Jocelynn Drake's Upon Further Review.
Click the following link to see a Chart of the SPX 500 Index's Top-20 Percentage Gainers: http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/wire?ID=16382
Click the following link to see a Chart of the SPX 500 Index's Top-20 Percentage Losers: http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/wire?ID=16382
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Schaeffer's Investment Research, founded by Bernie Schaeffer in 1981, is a financial information and trading resources company. It publishes Bernie Schaeffer's Option Advisor, the nation's leading options subscription newsletter. The firm's contrarian approach focuses on stocks with technical and fundamental trends that run counter to investor expectations. The firm's website, http://www.SchaeffersResearch.com, is recognized as one of the leading information sources for stock and options traders and was cited as the top options website by both Forbes and Barron's. Click here for more details about Schaeffer's trading methodology: http://www.SchaeffersResearch.com/method.