Russell creeps higher during morning opening; SAIA, CYBS, and DRIV lead gainers
Small-cap stocks edged higher on the opening, underpinned by a GDP report that wasn’t as bad as feared and by a smattering of decent earnings reports on the small-cap front that lifted the Russell relative to the large-cap indices. But those early gains were trimmed as the market remains concerned about the economy and corporate profits. Some of today’s small-cap gainers were Saia Inc. (Nasdaq:SAIA), CyberSource Corp. (Nasdaq:CYBS) and Digital River (Nasdaq:DRIV).
Other Market Watch highlights today included:
• In Asian trading, bank and tech stocks paced the declines, although shares in Hong Kong were up modestly hoping for rate cuts out of China.
• In overseas trading last night, Asian stocks took a hit, breaking a string of four consecutive winning days.
• The Goldman Sachs Analyst Index, a survey of Goldman’s equity analysts across a range of sectors, fell to an all-time low in January.
• The Chicago headline figure came in at 33.3, which was below the forecast of 34.9.
Small Cap Gainers:
• Saia Inc. gapped higher after reporting quarterly profits, with the trucking firm climbing 18%. See (Nasdaq:SAIA).
• CyberSource Corp. gapped higher and jumped 20% as the electronic payment provider posted solid earnings results. See (Nasdaq:CYBS).
• Digital River announces Q4 and full-year 2008 financial results; shares pop 16%. See (Nasdaq:DRIV).
• Overstock.com got an earnings lift today, with the online retailer climbing 15%. See (Nasdaq:OSTK).
Small Cap Losers
• Data Domain tops Q4 EPS by $0.06, issues mixed guidance; shares fall 16% in pre-market. See (DDUP).
