9:10am (EST)
Futures are pointing towards a lower open this morning and the bulls look tired as we wrap up the last trading day of the week. The Durable Goods Orders Report, which just came out at 8:30am, was awful as August orders decreased 2.4%. That was far below the 0.4% increase that was widely expected by economists and down sharply from the 4.8% increase that was got in July.
Dow futures are down 26, S&P 500 futures are lower by 4 while Nasdaq 100 futures are off by 8 points.
Other economic reports due out this morning include the University of Michigan Sentiment Index for Sept and New Home Sales for August. Wall Street expects a number of 70.5 for the first report and 441,000 for the other.
Shares of smartphone maker Research In Motion (RIMM, $83.06) are down 14% after reporting disappointing quarterly results. The company reported earnings of $1.03, ex-items, which was 3 cents better than what analysts had expected. Revenue for the quarter came in at $3.5 billion, up nearly 40% from the previous quarter but the Street was expecting $3.6 billion.
RIMM added 3.8 million new BlackBerry subscriber accounts and at the end of the quarter, the total account base stands at approximately 32 million users. Another reason the stock is breaking down like a rented mule is because Research In Motion offered lowered guidance that also missed expectations. The company said sales for the next quarter would be $3.6-$3.85 billion, versus the consensus of $3.90 billion, and earning should come in between $1.00-$1.08, versus Wall Street’s estimate of $1.04.
In any event, it should be another interesting day. Subscribers, check the Members Area for the trade updates.












Homes Sales Data Pulls Market Lower
Thursday, September 24th, 2009
1:10pm (EST)
The market got off to a good start after the Labor Department reported the number of newly laid off workers seeking unemployment benefits fell for a third week in a row. Initial claims for unemployment insurance fell by 21,000 last week to 530,000, which was better than the 550,000 Wall Street had expected.
The upward momentum was lost once the housing numbers came out at 10am. The National Association of Realtors spoiled the party when they reported existing home sales declined 2.7% in August compared to a 7.2% pop in July. That took the wind out of the bull’s sails as they had been expecting a fifth straight increase.
I had mentioned that yesterday’s afternoon sell-off wasn’t a good sign and we will have to watch for that today. With earnings season right around the corner, it seems we could have a battle for position as both the bulls and bears try and get an early jump.
The negative bias today has taken us out a few of our trades. But not before we booked our profits. There is one trade I like right now and I have been waiting for the breakdown in the stock before recommending a put option trade. Subscribers, check the Members Area for the update.
Rick@MomentumOptionsTrading.com
Tags: Homes Sales Data, options blog, options trade picks
Posted in Market Analysis, Market Commentary | Comments Off