CHICAGO, Aug. 4 /PRNewswire/ --
brokersXpress, LLC issues the following Morning Update at 8:30 AM EDT with new PriceWatch Alerts for key stocks.
Before the open... PriceWatch Alerts for GE, ALVR, SINA, OCR, and AOC, Market Overview, Today's Economic Calendar, and the Quote Of The Day.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
"The economy is strong, inflation is low and earnings are great. That is a perfect cocktail for a bull market."
-- Jim Awad, chairman, Awad Asset Management
New PriceWatch Alerts for GE, ALVR, SINA, OCR, and AOC...
PRICEWATCH ALERTS - HIGH RETURN COVERED CALL OPTIONS -----------
-- General Electric Co. (NYSE:GE)
Last Price 34.21 - DEC 35.00 CALL OPTION@ $0.90 -> 5.1 % Return assigned*
-- Alvarion Ltd. (NASDAQ:ALVR)
Last Price 8.21 - SEP 7.50 CALL OPTION@ $1.00 -> 4.0 % Return assigned*
-- SINA Corp. (NASDAQ:SINA)
Last Price 28.99 - DEC 25.00 CALL OPTION@ $5.70 -> 7.3 % Return assigned*
-- Omnicare Inc. (NYSE:OCR)
Last Price 51.69 - DEC 50.00 CALL OPTION@ $4.50 -> 6.0 % Return assigned*
-- Aon Corp. (NYSE:AOC)
Last Price 29.88 - OCT 30.00 CALL OPTION@ $1.20 -> 4.6 % Return assigned*
* To learn more about how to use these alerts and for our FREE report, "The 18 Warning Signs That Tell You When To Dump A Stock", go to: http://www.investorsobserver.com/mu18
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** FREE Access to the Market Intelligence Center where you will find the news, insight and intelligence that can make a difference in the way you invest, go to: http://www.investorsobserver.com/FreeMIC
NOTE: All stocks and options shown are examples only. These are not recommendations to buy or sell any security.
NEWS LEADERS AND LAGGARDS
So far today, Harrah's Entertainment, Sina Corp, and Big Lots lead the list of companies with the most news stories while Gillette and Alltel are showing a spike in news. Joseph A Bank Clothiers, Wal-Mart, and Claire's Stores have the highest srtIndex scores to top the list of companies with positive news while Sara Lee and Warner Music Group lead the list of companies with negative news reports. Costco Wholesale has popped up with a high positive news sraIndex score.
For the FREE article titled, "Earnings Season Decoded - An Essential 15 Point Checklist For Finding Winning Stocks." go to: http://www.wallstreetsecretsplus.com/go/freemu/
MARKET OVERVIEW
European markets edged lower ahead of an expected interest rate cut from the Bank of England. Well, the Bank of England didn't disappoint, cutting its key interest rate by a quarter point thanks to weakening retail sales and slowing economic growth. This is the first move in a year from England's central bank. The bank slashed rates from 4.75 percent to 4.5 percent, while stating that output was "subdued." Japanese stocks also finished the day lower as investors were nervous about placing bets ahead of a parliamentary vote on privatizing Japan's postal system. The proposal has met with strong opposition. Currently, three of the 15 foreign markets we track have been able to trek higher, the average return comes in at -0.315.
Today's economic data is confined mainly to jobless claims. Experts believe an increase of 5,000 to 315,000 claims last week. July retail results will also dominate the news landscape.
Be prepared for the investing week ahead with Bernie Schaeffer's FREE Monday Morning Outlook. For more details and to sign up, go to: http://www.investorsobserver.com/freemo
DYNAMIC MARKET OPPORTUNITIES
Is the Eurozone economic picture beginning to change? The region's manufacturing sector climbed in July for the first time in four months. According to the NTC Research survey of 3,000 purchasing managers, the index rose almost a point from June's 49.9 figure to 50.8. That thrust the sector into official "expansion" mode, courtesy of a drop in the euro that made Eurozone exports cheaper. The single currency has slipped around 10% against the US dollar since mid-March. After the manufacturing report, plus one that showed the latest NTC Research service sector index rising from June's 53.1 points to 53.5 points in July, some overly-excited economists boldly proclaimed that this marks a turnaround for the Eurozone. However, considering the manufacturing rise was the first in four months and higher oil prices are also squeezing profit margins and preventing much new hiring, the economy is going to need to see a more sustained period of positive data before a true rebound or recovery takes hold. Overall economic growth is expected to hit only 0.4% during the third quarter, following a dismal 0.3% second-quarter expansion. By contrast, the US economy posted quarterly GDP growth of 0.8%. In terms of Eurozone monetary policy, the European Central Bank has left interest rates unchanged at a six-decade low of 2% for over two years now, despite fierce pressure for an interest rate cut from national leaders such as Germany's Gerhard Schroder, his Finance Minister Hans Eichel and Labor Minister Wolfgang Clement and Italy's Silvio Berlusconi. The ECB will likely not make a move until well into 2006. But it now appears they have some support. Deutsche Bank and Bear Stearns believe cutting rates now would actually be counter-productive for the Eurozone. They contend that with Eurozone house prices having already risen 7.3% last year - the biggest increase since 1991 - and thus encouraging consumer spending and bolstering economic growth, a cut now would potentially propel housing upward too much in some markets. Prices have already climbed 10% or more in France, Spain and Ireland.
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TODAY'S ECONOMIC CALENDAR
8:30 AM Jul 30 Jobless Claims
10:00 AM Jul 23 DJ-BTM Business Barometer
3:00 AM July Treasury STRIPS
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All stocks and options shown are examples only. These are not recommendations to buy or sell any security and they do not represent in any way a positive or negative outlook for any security. Potential returns do not take into account your trade size, brokerage commissions or taxes which will affect actual investment returns. Stocks and options involve risk and are not suitable for all investors and investing in options carries substantial risk. Prior to buying or selling options, a person must receive a copy of Characteristics and Risks of Standardized Options available from Michael at 800-230-5570 or at http://www.cboe.com/Resources/Intro.asp. Privacy policy available upon request.
DATASOURCE: brokersXpress, LLC
CONTACT: Mike Lavelle of Mankus-Lavelle Group, +1-800-230-5570