By Kate Gibson
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks nearly stalled Thursday as
jobless claims fell but an index of conditions in the Philadelphia
region and FedEx Corp.'s outlook both disappointed.
"The jobless claims were better but the Philly Fed was much
worse, but we've come to expect that the data is going to be
mixed," said Noman Ali, senior portfolio manager at MFC Global
Investment Management.
"We've moved up 8% from the bottom in a space of less than two
months, so some correction is due," he added.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) was up 7.88 points, or
less than 0.1%, to 10,580.61, with 16 of its 30 components pulling
up.
The Standard & Poor's 500 Index (SPX) fell 2.4 points, or
0.2%, to 1,122.67, with energy the largest decliner and technology
faring the best among the index's 10 industry groups.
The Nasdaq Composite Index (RIXF) declined 2.75 points, or 0.1%,
to 2,298.57.
Three stocks fell for every two on the rise on the New York
Stock Exchange, where just 518 million shares traded as of 3 p.m.
Eastern.
"Volume has been low, conviction has been low, there is still a
lot of uncertainty in the market, so it's hard to take a stance one
way or another," said Nate Peterson, senior derivatives analyst at
Charles Schwab.
Shares of FedEx Corp. (FDX) fell 4.3% after the shipping giant
reported its first-quarter profit more than doubled, but its
outlook for second-quarter and full 2010 earnings disappointed Wall
Street.
"The economy has weakened, so companies will be cautious in
terms of giving guidance, so that's going to be an overhang in
terms of stocks," said Ali.
That said, Ali has a bullish take on the equities market, at
least in looking at the next six to 12 months, given the relative
cheapness of equities, if one contrasts earnings yields on the
S&P 500 versus corporate bond yields.
There are many stable companies with stable cash flows and
dividend yields of 7% to 8%, yet at those same companies the
corporate bonds yield 3% to 4%.
The scenario has helped drive recent merger activity, said Ali,
pointing to Intel Corp.'s (INTC) recent deal for McAfee Inc. (MFE),
Sanofi-Aventis SA's (SNY) attempt to purchase biotech firm Genzyme
Corp. (GENZ) and BHP Billiton Ltd.'s proposed takeover of
fertilizer giant Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan Inc. (POT)
.
Basically companies are saying, "I could borrow at 3% on the
bond market and pick up these companies yielding 7% to 8%," said
Ali.
"That is going to be a catalyst for equities to improve," Ali
said.
The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia reported manufacturing
in the region contracted this month, defying expectations of a
rise.
Conversely, the government said new claims for jobless benefits
fell last week, with the more positive trend also unexpected.