Small caps moving sideways
The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) is seesawing up and down as the small-cap index continues to trade with no clear direction.
At 10:56 a.m. ET, the small-cap index had added 3.68 points, or 0.52%, to 706.46. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) had gained 10.25 points, or 0.08%, to 12,257.25.
Trading is volatile as investors are looking for direction on a day with no major economic news. The mood in pre-market trading was slightly bearish following news that an official from the U.S. Federal Reserve said that the economy is headed for a slowdown.
“I consider it most probable that the U.S. economy will experience slow growth, and not outright recession, in coming quarters,” said Janet Yellen, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, in a speech in Honolulu.
Elsewhere, the U.S. Congress approved a $152 billion economic stimulus package that consists of tax rebates and business incentives that will hopefully prevent a recession.
The small-cap index has been swinging up and down since opening in negative territory, but shares of Coinstar, Inc. (Nasdaq: CSTR) established a clearly upward trajectory.
The Bellevue, Wash.-based company, which claims that it invented self-service coin counting, is rising high on news that fourth-quarter adjusted earnings beat Wall Street’s projections.
Shares of Photon Dynamics, Inc. (Nasdaq: PHTN) are also rising following news that the maker of technology facilitating the production of flat panel displays reported a first-quarter loss that was not as bad as analysts had projected.
On the other hand, Aruba Networks, Inc. (Nasdaq: ARUN) said that it will miss second-quarter estimates.
