Blue chips boost Wall St.
Investors go bargain hunting in technology stocks, lifting Nasdaq and Dow
April 17, 2000: 4:11 p.m. ET
NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Bargain hunters cleared the path for U.S. stock markets to soar Monday after a hefty sell-off cheapened technology issues.
Technology high flyers led the Nasdaq composite index higher and investor confidence in quality blue chip companies, led by strength in the financial sector, lifted the Dow Jones industrial average.
According to preliminary figures, the Nasdaq jumped 216.56 points to 3,537.86. That's up more than 6 percent, but still more than 29 percent below its March 10 highs, sitting deeply in what Wall Street defines as bear territory.
The Dow Jones industrial average soared 277.67 points to 10,583.44. The broader S&P 500 index gained 44.07 to 1,401.38.
Analysts said market breadth was a sign the selling was not finished. Decliners outpaced advancers on the New York Stock Exchange 1,741 to 1,271 as more than 1.1 billion shares changed hands. Losers beat winners on the Nasdaq 2,616 to 1,750 on volume of more than 2.5 billion shares.
The dollar was slightly stronger against the euro but weakened versus yen. Treasury securities edged lower.
Here's a look at market action just before 3:00 p.m.
Analysts await market broadening
Analysts caution the bottom has not been reached in either index as jittery market action and lack of follow-through on either side are keeping the market unsteady.
Both indexes were struggling to rally, led by the high-flying technology leaders but analysts warned that the firming was confined to a limited number of technology stocks while other segments were faltering under selling pressure.
Among the mid- and small-caps that suffered, Celera Genomics (CRA: Research, Estimates) fell 8 to 66, Ariba Inc. (ARBA: Research, Estimates) shed 7-3/4 to 54-1/2, and Infospace Inc. (INSP: Research, Estimates) dropped 8-1/2 to 40-1/4.
Among key technology issues helping keep stocks supported,
Cisco Systems (CSCO: Research, Estimates) rose 6-3/8 to 63-3/8, Intel Corp. (INTC: Research, Estimates) jumped 7-1/2 to 118, and Oracle (ORCL: Research, Estimates) gained 5-7/8 to 68-3/8.
Influential market strategist Abby Joseph Cohen, chairwoman of Goldman Sachs' investment policy committee, told clients Monday that the recent stock volatility has been driven more by market factors rather than a change in fundamentals.
"We continue to believe that a sharp upward move in inflation is unlikely," she wrote in a research note.
Cohen wasn't the only analyst issuing reports Monday. Seeing opportunity following the recent sell-off, Thomas Galvin, chief equity analyst at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette, upped the stock percentage in his firm's model portfolio to 90 percent stocks and 10 percent cash, eliminating the 15 percent in bonds.
"We continue to view most stocks (excluding dot.coms) as cheap, with an S&P 500 median (price-to-earnings ratio) of roughly 15 times 2000 estimates," Galvin wrote.
Earnings bode well for firming market
With first-quarter earnings meeting or beating expectations, analysts anticipate a resurgence of investor confidence.
Citigroup (C: Research, Estimates) rose 5/8 to 58-5/8 after reporting first-quarter earnings of $1.04 a share, beating analysts' expectations of 78 cents a share and the year-earlier 69 cents a share.
Merrill Lynch (MER: Research, Estimates) fell 1 to 89 after topping first-quarter earnings forecasts to reach $2.38 a share, up from the previous year's $1.44 a share and the anticipated $1.83 a share.
Ford Motor Co. (F: Research, Estimates) jumped 3-3/8 to 55-5/8 after posting strong first-quarter earnings of $1.70 a share, versus the forecast $1.58 per share and the prior year's $1.29 a share.
Dow component Eastman Kodak Co. (EK: Research, Estimates) gained 3/16 to 61-11/16 after surpassing analysts' first-quarter earnings estimates in posting a profit of 95 cents a share, up from the forecast 93 cents a share and the 80 cents a share earned a year earlier.
(click here for the latest news about the day's corporate earnings)
Vor allem der erste Abschnitt ist wichtig !!!
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