Russell slumps at closing; RBCN, EROC and LAB lead gainers
The market slipped to the lowest intraday and closing levels of the year and the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) is now down 9.2% for 2009, on target to eclipse January of 2008, which tumbled 6.8% and was the worst January in at least 15 years. Some of today’s small-cap gainers were Rubicon Technology (Nasdaq:RBCN), Eagle Rock Energy Partners (Nasdaq:EROC) and LaBranche (NYSE:LAB).
Other Market Watch highlights today included:
• The retail sales report came in at minus 2.7%, which was well below the projected decline of 1.2%.
• The troubling retail sales report this morning clearly sparked money flow away from stocks and into Treasury markets.
• Earlier this morning the import price series tumbled 4.2%, well below the forecast for a drop of 0.5%.
• Traders say that concerns over the appointment of Timothy Geithner to Treasury Secretary has played into the overall market malaise.
• There were no S&P sector groups up 1% on the day, but there were 10 groups with losses of 7% or more.
• Energy shares were off 4% today, while coal, metals and mining stocks were also clobbered.
• Investors took flight from riskier fare, plopping money down into Treasury markets accepting a yield in 10-year notes of only 2.2%.
Small Cap Gainers:
• Rubicon Technology Inc. rallied 15% as the electronics manufacturer rose to the highest close since Oct. 24. See (Nasdaq:RBCN).
• Eagle Rock Energy Partners, L.P. closed up 15% after announcing hedge transactions, intention to maintain current distribution level. See (Nasdaq:EROC).
• Goldman Sachs upgrades LaBranche; shares rise 16%. See (NYSE:LAB).
Small Cap Losers:
• FNB Corp. fell 23% as the lender announced preliminary quarterly results that included a loss stoked by bad loans and non-cash charges. See (NYSE:FNB).
• Modine Manufacturing Co. tumbled 19% as the maker of heating and cooling systems for tractors fell back below the 20-day moving average. See (NYSE:MOD).
• On Assignment Inc. fell 18% as the human resources firm gave back a huge chunk of recent gains from the December lows. See (Nasdaq:ASGN).
Lousy retail sales, slumping banks stoke sellers
Small-cap stocks got dragged through the mud again today, as renewed worries about the health of the international banking system came back to the forefront. Concerns about the financial and credit crisis clearly have spread into the consumer psyche as well, as retail sales posted a record plunge in December. The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) closed down 20.61, or 4.35%, at 453.17, generating the largest one-day drop of the New Year. The market slipped to the lowest intraday and closing levels of the year and the Russell is now down 9.2% for 2009, on target to eclipse January of 2008, which tumbled 6.8% and was the worst January in at least 15 years. The Dow is now off 6.5% for the year, while the S&P 500 is down 6.7%.
The market was already on the defensive this morning following a bout of bank selling in Europe overnight. Big players such as HSBC, Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank were all hit hard heading into the U.S. session, and Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) picked up the selling baton with fury, sinking 22% amid worries about debt writedowns into quarterly reports, sales of assets to raise cash and a bump up in the earnings release date. While Citigroup was the most obvious whipping boy of the batch, bank stocks in general were not coping well, with the KBW Banking Index down 5%.
And into that maelstrom came this morning’s retail sales report for December. We all knew it was a crummy month, individual stores already told us that; but the market was looking for a decline of 1.2% and got blindsided with a whopping decline of 2.7% in the headline figure and a record plunge in the ex-auto sales of 3.1%. The “glass half full” crowd will note that sales were exaggerated by a huge decline in gasoline prices, but even taking that into account, it was a troubling number for an economy that is dependent on ringing sales registers.
“Consumer spending is clearly in recession, driven by accumulating job losses, falling housing prices, the financial market turmoil, and the recent seizing up of the credit markets,” Steven Wood, chief economist with Insight Economics, said . . .
California First National Bancorp, Value Line and Eagle Rock Energy Partners lead small-cap percentage gainers
Also included among the results: Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina Inc. (Nasdaq:PEBK), Questcor Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq:QCOR), LaBranche & Co Inc. (Nasdaq:LAB), LNB Bancorp Inc. (Nasdaq:LNBB), Firstbank Corp. (Nasdaq:FBMI) and Capital Bank Corp. (Nasdaq:CBKN).
SVB Financial, Penns Woods Bancorp and Eagle Rock Energy Partners among 52-week lows
MAXXAM, Internet Initiative Japan Depository Receipt and Eagle Rock Energy Partners L P among 52-week lows
Also included among the results: WNS Holdings Ltd. (Nasdaq:WNS), US Global Investors Inc. (Nasdaq:GROW), Vantage Energy Services Inc. (Nasdaq:VTG), BreitBurn Energy Partners L.P (Nasdaq:BBEP), Shanghai Pechem Depository Receipt (Nasdaq:SHI) and Advent/Claymore Global Convertible Secs & Inc. Fund (Nasdaq:AGC).
Here are the new 52-week lows among small caps:
Kenexa, InterDigital and US Global Investors lead small-cap percentage losers
Also included among the results: Eagle Rock Energy Partners L.P (Nasdaq:EROC), Sunrise Senior Living Inc. (Nasdaq:SRZ), Internet Initiative Japan Depository Receipt (Nasdaq:IIJI), WNS Holdings Ltd. (Nasdaq:WNS), MAP Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq:MAPP) and MAXXAM Inc. (Nasdaq:MXM).
Here are the biggest percentage losers among small caps:
