Yesterday’s huge move took the S&P 500 above 1,105 to close right at 1,115. TradeMaster Daily Stock Alerts’ Jason Cimpl told his readers he’s bullish going into next week. And yesterday’s close at 1,115 will keep him from selling his latest round of upside trades.

That’s good news for TradeMaster readers, because one stock they bought on Friday made a 50% move in just two days. Jason’s bullish stance suggests there are more gains ahead for this little beauty.

Jason is looking for a move above the next resistance of 1,120 sometime in the next few days.

Gehl Co. (Nasdaq:GEHL), Nevada Chemicals Inc. (Nasdaq:NCEM) and Champion Enterprises Inc. (Nasdaq:CHB) are among the biggest percentage gainers in Monday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: PHH Corp. (Nasdaq:PHH), Drew Industries Inc. (Nasdaq:DW), Anworth Mortgage Asset Corp. (Nasdaq:ANH), SI Financial Group Inc. (Nasdaq:SIFI), Meritage Homes Corp. (Nasdaq:MTH) and Heritage Oaks Bancorp (Nasdaq:HEOP).

Here are the biggest percentage gainers among small caps:

The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) closed with a remarkable gain following news that the U.S. Federal Reserve has lowered its target interest rate. The small-cap index rose 31.45 points, or 4.83%, to 681.93. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) advanced 420.41 points, or 3.51%, to 12,392.66.

On a year-to-date basis, the Russell 2000 has retreated 10.98%, while the Dow is down 6.57% and the S&P 500 has let go 9.37%.

Small-cap stocks soared higher than their larger counterparts and added to their earlier gains on news after the start of trading that the U.S. Federal Reserve has decided to lower its target interest rate 0.75% to 2.25%.

“Recent information indicates that the outlook for economic activity has weakened further,” the Fed said in a statement. “Growth in consumer spending has slowed and labor markets have softened.”

The market had priced a full 1% of the federal funds rate, the rate at which commercial banks make overnight loans to each other, but policymakers expressed concern about inflation.

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) posted a stunning rise on news the U.S. Federal Reserve has moved to increase liquidity. The small-cap index jumped 29.84 points, or 4.63%, its largest increase this year, to 673.81. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) added 416.66 points, or 3.55%, to 12,156.81.

On a year-to-date basis, the Russell 2000 has declined 12.04%, while the Dow is down 8.35% and the S&P 500 has let go 10.06%.

Stocks soared out of the gate on news before the start of trading that the U.S. Federal Reserve and four other central banks will make expanded loans of cash and securities to financial institutions in an effort to ease the credit squeeze and keep the economy growing.

The Fed said it will lend up to $200 billion of Treasury securities to primary dealers for a term of 28 days. The U.S. central bank usually makes such loans overnight.

The Russell 2000 opened strong and bobbled in the green until halfway through the session, when it settled on an upward trajectory.

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) failed to hold mid-morning gains and slipped into negative territory, as investors’ concerns about weak job reports sent stocks plunging. Before the opening, the Labor Department reported that payrolls plunged a greater-than-expected 63,000 in February, heightening recession fears and causing gyrations early in the session.

The Russell 2000 shed 0.40%, or 2.67 points, to 660.11. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 1.22%, or 146.7 points, to 11,893.69.

Economists were forecasting an increase in payrolls of 25,000 for February. Today’s data come on the heels of a larger-than-anticipated decline in payrolls in January of 17,000.

The unemployment rate was essentially unchanged at 4.8%, compared with 4.9% in January. Economists were projecting the unemployment rate to edge up to 5%.

Average hourly earnings rose by $0.05, or 0.3%, over the month, according to the Labor Department.

The Federal Reserve’s statement this morning that it will increase the amount of loans it makes to banks failed to calm concerns and buoy the market. Specifically, the central bank augmented auctions of four-week funds to banks to $50 billion from its original $30 billion planned for March 10 and March 24. The Fed also said it will avail an additional $100 billion through repurchase agreements.

In a statement, Fed officials also stipulated that the central bank will continue auctions for at least six months, and would increase the size of such auctions further if needed.

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) fell hard today as the stain from the subprime mortgage meltdown spread. The small-cap index let go 20.96 points, or 3.07%, to 662.78. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) declined 214.60 points, or 1.75%, to 12,040.39.

On a year-to-date basis, the Russell 2000 is down 13.48%, while the Dow has retreated 9.23% and the S&P 500 has shed 11.17%.

The bears completely dominated trading today on news before the start of trading that investment company Carlyle Capital Corp. Ltd. had failed to meet a margin call and received a notice of default from one of the banks that helps finance its portfolio of mortgage securities.

Similarly, Santa Fe, N.M.-based residential mortgage lender Thornburg Mortgage Inc. (NYSE: TMA) announced after the close on Wednesday that it had failed to meet a margin call of about $28 million.

A “margin call” is when banks call in their loans to investors, who are in turn forced to sell off assets to raise cash, leading to a reduction in the price of those assets and more margin calls and losses.

Today’s news raised fears that the credit squeeze and the consequences of the housing downturn will continue plaguing the financial system.

Anworth Mortgage Asset Corp. (NYSE: ANH) shares plunged after investment bank Keefe Bruyette & Woods downgraded the Santa Monica, Calif.-based real estate investment trust to “market perform” from “outperform.” Keefe said the downgrade reflects concerns that Anworth will be forced to carry excess capital due to market uncertainty, which will hurt its growth potential.

In a note to investors, Keefe Bruyette said that widening spreads on agency mortgage-backed securities has made book values come down in 2008. In January, Anworth announced a plan to raise $90 million through a common stock offering of 11 million shares.

In afternoon trading, ANH shares are plummeting 25.2%, or $2.23, at $6.62. Over the last 52 weeks, shares have ranged from $3.05 to $10.29.

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) lost ground for the second day in a row as financial concerns extinguished an early rally. The small-cap index fell 4.12 points, or 0.59%, to 688.60. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) surrendered 171.44 points, or 1.38%, to 12,207.17.

On a year-to-date basis, the Russell 2000 has declined 10.02%, while the Dow has let go 7.97% and the S&P 500 has shed 9.38%.

Small-cap stocks began the day in the green but lost steam midway through the session as financial concerns spooked investors.

The bulls were poised to act following news after the close on Thursday that Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) reported better-than-expected fiscal second-quarter results.

The Redmond, Wash.-based software maker saw its profit jump 79% to $4.71 billion, or $0.50 per share, compared with $2.63 billion, or $0.26 per share, a year earlier. Analysts were calling for earnings of $0.46 per share.

Similarly, Peoria, Ill.-based Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) announced before the start of trading that its fourth-quarter earnings rose 11% to $975 million, or $1.50 per share, compared with a net income of $882 million, or $1.32 per share, a year earlier.

The maker of earth-moving equipment attributed the improvement to strong global economic growth, but warned that it expects domestic economic growth to be “anemic,” according to a statement by CEO Jim Owens.

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) managed just a modest win today despite a strong start on speculation of an imminent interest rate cut. The small-cap index added 1.71 points, or 0.22%, to 767.77. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) moved up 59.99 points, or 0.45%, to 13,371.72.

On a year-to-date basis, the Russell 2000 has lost 2.50%, while the Dow has advanced 7.19% and the S&P 500 is up 4.56%.

The day’s economic news was decidedly negative, with reports showing that Americans’ income and consumption growth slowed while spending on construction declined more than expected.

The U.S. Commerce Department reported that consumption increased 0.2% in October, below the projected 0.3%. Consumption increased 0.3% in September. That could be a sign that American consumers have decided to curtail spending due to higher energy prices, tighter credit and the ongoing slump in the housing sector.

October personal income added 0.2%, below economists’ expectations and half the 0.4% rise it booked in September.

The housing sector also contributed bleak news. The U.S. Census Bureau announced that construction spending for October fell a greater-than-expected 0.8%. Predictably, residential construction led the way down, dropping 2% from the level in September and 15.8% from the level a year ago.

On a year-to-date basis, construction spending has amounted to $977 billion, 2.8% below the $1,005.3 billion recorded during the first ten months of 2006.

Nevertheless, stocks opened in positive territory as investors speculated that U.S. Federal Reserve will cut its target interest rate when it meets on Dec. 11.

Anworth Mortgage Asset Corp. (NYSE: ANH) said this morning that it will offer $9 million shares of its common stock at $6.70 per share for gross proceeds of $60.3 million.

The small cap said it intends to use the proceeds to acquire agency mortgage-backed securities. After deducting underwriting discounts and estimated expenses, net proceeds from the offering are estimated to be approximately $57 million.

Additionally, Anworth granted its underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 1.35 million shares of common stock to cover over-allotments.

Anworth expects the offering to close on Dec. 5.

Shares of Anworth Mortgage (ANH) edged up 3.7%, or $0.25, to $7 ahead of the opening. Shares of Anworth Mortgage have been trading in the range of $3.05 to $10.06 for the past 52 weeks.

Shares of Anworth Mortgage Asset Corp. (NYSE: ANH) are sinking ahead of the opening bell this morning after the investor in mortgage-backed securities and residential mortgage loans reported late Wednesday that it received a default notice from a unit of Deutsche Bank.

This latest notice comes after previous default notices were issued to its Belvedere Trust Mortgage Corp unit from subsidiaries of Washington Mutual (NYSE: WM) and Barclays (NYSE: BCS), the company reported in a SEC filing.

Anworth Mortgage said the subsidiary owes the three lenders about $139 million.

Shares of Anworth Mortgage tumbled 16.92%, or $0.66, to $3.24 ahead of the bell, as credit jitters persist.