Russell drops third straight
The Russell 2000 led the descent as U.S. indices fell for the third consecutive day on news of higher yields on government bonds. The Russell 2000 shed 15.89 points, or 1.89%, to finish at 825.32. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 198.94 points, or 1.48%, to 13,266.73.
The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury rose to 5.13%, while the 2-year note climbed to 5.03%. The increase, the first time the 10-year note has passed $5 in almost a year, makes government bonds more attractive relative to stocks.
In business news, same-store sales at U.S. retailers improved in May, following a sharp contraction in April, when cold weather and an early Easter holiday kept shoppers away.
Elsewhere, jobless claims fell 1,000 to a seasonally adjusted rate of 309,000, suggesting that slow U.S. economic growth is not having much of an impact on labor markets.
Among specific small-cap companies:
Shares of female fashion retailer The Wet Seal, Inc. (Nasdaq: WTSLA) ended the day in the losers’ column following news that same-store sales declined 1.9% for the four-week period ended June 2, compared with the four-week period ended June 3, 2006. Net sales for the four-week period ended June 2 were $42.6 million, compared with net sales of $37.3 million a year earlier, the Foothill Ranch, Calif.-based company announced before the opening bell. “Our sales for May were at the mid-point of our guidance and we expect another low single digit increase in comparable store sales for the month of June,” CEO Joel Waller said. Shares fell $0.08, or 1%, to $5.98.
Specialty leather outerwear retailer Wilsons The Leather Experts Inc. (Nasdaq: WLSN) saw its same-store sales decline 25% for the four weeks ended June 2. That compares to a decrease of 9.1% in comparable store sales for the four weeks ended May 27, 2006, the Minneapolis-based company said before the opening bell. Year-to-date comparable store sales fell 21.5% compared to a decrease of 10.5% for the same period of 2006. Wilsons Leather operates 414 stores in 45 states. The stock shed $0.08, or 5%, to close at $1.38.
Shares of Intelli-Check, Inc. (AMEX: IDN) fell $0.27, or 4%, to $7.03, following news of the unexpected death of its Chairman and CEO. Frank Mandelbaum, 72, joined the maker of technology that verifies the authenticity of driver licenses in 1996 and was responsible for taking it public in 1999, the Woodbury, N.Y.-based company said after the start of trading.
