You have viewed your allowance of free articles. If you wish to view more, click the button below.
Nasdaq stocks posting largest volume decreases - Yahoo Finance
NEW YORK (AP) -- A look at the 10 biggest volume decliners on Nasdaq at the close of trading:
American River Bankshares : Approximately 500 shares changed hands, a 94.7 decrease from its 65-day average volume. The shares rose $.01 or .1 percent to $7.08.
Beacon Federal Bancorp Inc. : Approximately 300 shares changed hands, a 97.2 decrease from its 65-day average volume. The shares rose $.12 or .9 percent to $13.50.
Central BanCorp. : Approximately 100 shares changed hands, a 96.3 decrease from its 65-day average volume. The shares fell $.05 or .2 percent to $30.48.
Citiz Cmty Bcp Wisc : Approximately 400 shares changed hands, a 96.1 decrease from its 65-day average volume. The shares rose $.04 or .7 percent to $6.05.
Escalade Inc. : Approximately 500 shares changed hands, a 95.5 decrease from its 65-day average volume. The shares rose $.02 or .4 percent to $5.67.
FedFirst Financial Corp. : Approximately 300 shares changed hands, a 95.1 decrease from its 65-day average volume. The shares fell $.04 or .3 percent to $14.06.
First City Financial Corp. : Approximately 400 shares changed hands, a 95.0 decrease from its 65-day average volume. The shares rose $.34 or 4.0 percent to $8.81.
North Central Bancshares Inc. : Approximately 100 shares changed hands, a 97.7 decrease from its 65-day average volume. The shares rose $.02 or .1 percent to $30.37.
North Valley Bancorp : Approximately 600 shares changed hands, a 96.4 decrease from its 65-day average volume. The shares fell $.17 or 1.3 percent to $12.77.
Versant Corp. : Approximately 100 shares changed hands, a 98.4 decrease from its 65-day average volume. The shares remained unchanged at $9.75.
New York Financial District Becomes Temporary Home To Kwikset Locks - Yahoo Finance
LAKE FOREST, Calif., May 18, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- At a time when homeowners are investing in highly flexible and usable spaces, Country Living features Kwikset® as a smart and convenient security solution throughout its 2012 House of the Year micro-cottage project. Open to the public today through May 23, Kwikset's sponsorship will extend smart security options to a kitchen, office and guest bedroom with Kwikset's Signature Series™ products. Kwikset's SmartKey® re-key technology and SmartCode™ keyless entry products are featured in each of the micro-cottages.
"Country Living is well-known for celebrating stylish interiors that reflect their readers' interests and personal journeys," said Tracy Haugh, senior brand manager, Kwikset. "By partnering with the House of the Year, we will showcase how Kwikset's smart, simple security solutions align with homeowners' unique lifestyles and style preferences."
"We're so glad to have Kwikset lend their support to the House of the Year project," says Sarah Gray Miller, editor in chief, Country Living. "Like with all homes, it was important to ensure the safety of Country Living's House of the Year, and Kwikset made that process seamless and easy."
Country Living's 2012 House of the Year building project, Room to Spare, consists of three separate single room micro-cottages approximately 250 square feet each. Separate from the main home, these cottages enable homeowners to add space without the hassle and inconvenience of major construction. The micro-cottages are displayed at The World Financial Center and open to the public for one week in May. Visitors have the opportunity to experience Kwikset's SmartKey re-key technology and SmartCode products and experience their functionality in a synergistic environment. Additionally, homeowners can tour the cottages in the September issue of Country Living and virtually on August 7, when the issue hits newsstands.
For more information about Kwikset's handleset, knob, lever and deadbolt product offerings, please visit www.kwiksetpresskit.com.
About Kwikset
Stanley Black & Decker, an S&P 500 company, is a diversified global provider of hand tools, power tools and related accessories, mechanical access solutions and electronic security solutions, engineered fastening systems, and more.
The Stanley Black & Decker Hardware and Home Improvement Group (HHI) is part of the company's Mechanical Access Solutions division. HHI develops, manufactures, markets and sells builders' hardware, residential and commercial door hardware, kitchen and bath faucets, shower systems and bath accessories under the Stanley®, National Hardware®, Kwikset®, Weiser®, Baldwin®, and Pfister® brands. Headquartered in Orange County, Calif., HHI has a global sales force and operates manufacturing and distribution facilities in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and Asia.
About Country Living
Country Living (www.countryliving.com) is a lifestyle magazine, focusing on a variety of topics including decorating, antiques, cooking, travel, remodeling and gardening. In addition to its U.S. flagship, Country Living publishes a United Kingdom edition. Country Living is published by Hearst Magazines, a unit of Hearst Corporation (www.hearst.com), the largest publisher of monthly magazines in the U.S. (ABC 2011) which reaches 87 million adults each month (Spring 2011 MRI). For the latest from Country Living, visit Country Living's Facebook page, Pinterest board and follow Country Living on Twitter at @CountryLiving.
Media Contacts:
IMRE
Abby Draper, abbyd@imre.com
Phone: 213.289.9190
Spanish stocks fall amid turmoil - Belfast Telegraph
Spain's main stock index recovered 1.34% from heavy losses on Thursday, thanks mainly to a bounce back in the shares of state-controlled lender Bankia, which had plummeted on reports of an increase in deposit withdrawals. They rose 22%, making up for a similar drop the previous day.
Banco Santander and Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria were up more than three points in mid-morning trading.
The level of bad loans on the books of Spain's banks has risen to an 18-year high, the country's central banker reported, increasing concern for the stability of Spain's financial sector and the country's place in the fragile eurozone economy.
The Bank of Spain reported that lenders' and savings banks' bad loan ratio had risen in March to 8.36% from 8.15% the previous month.
News of the increase followed a downgrading by credit ratings agency Moody's of the country's banking industry.
Spain is in the eye of the storm of the eurozone debt crisis amid worries that its banks are overexposed to an imploded property bubble and the government, fighting recession and a nearly 25 % jobless rate, could not afford to bail them out if it needed to.
By midday in Europe, stock exchanges managed to slightly reverse their earlier losing streaks with Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.5% to 5,311, Germany's DAX was up 0.4% to 6,333 and France's CAC-40 rose 0.6% to 3,030.
Worries over Spain were reignited by the prospect that Greece might leave the euro currency. Anti-bailout political parties made huge gains in general elections on May 6, though that ballot proved inconclusive. Another election will be held on June 17, and the radical left party Syriza, which rejects the international bailout, is forecast to make gains, possibly becoming the biggest party.
In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 tumbled 3% to close at 8,611.31, its lowest finish in four months as signs of weakness in the US, a critical export market for Japanese companies, battered some of the country's behemoth manufacturers. Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 1.3% to 18,951.85 and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 slid 2.7% to 4,046.50. South Korea's Kospi tumbled 3.4 % to 1,782.46. Benchmarks in Singapore, Taiwan and New Zealand also fell.
DEA Drug Tales: The Death of William Coyman and His Money - Opposing Views
Everyone knows how it’s supposed to go – the DEA or other policing agency catches the bad guys and seizes their stuff. The news reports about drug interdiction usually list the amount of cash taken in the arrest. It’s the norm for goods and money taken to then go to the agency involved to fund further anti-drug operations.
But what happens when there’s a counterclaim?
In what may turn out to be an important test case, the DEA seized $180,000 with the claim it was drug money and the purported owners are taking them to court to get it back.
This follows the heart attack death of William Coyman. He stepped off a train in NY and died on the platform. A search of the bag he had found $180,000 in cash. If that wasn’t suspicious enough, it turns out Mr. Coyman had previously been incarcerated for drug dealing and, at 75, was a retired union man – a union tied to organized crime.
But what is really at issue is just how the DEA determined it was drug money, since no drugs were found on the dead man. They used a drug dog who was alerted to the cash.
Further investigation found that Mr. Coyman was transporting the money for a production company in Boston. According to a report from MSNBC, the company, 180 Entertainment, is also under suspicion.
They quote Mr. Coyman’s son, speaking about his father, “The people connected to that money are probably not good people. My dad was a great man. But clearly he had a colorful history.”
The question is whether the dog’s testimony is enough to label the money as “illegal drug money” and subject to seizure. There have been no drug arrests, nor has any crime been alleged. And in 2009, CNN reported that 90% of US currency had traces of cocaine on it. How exactly does one tell, without other evidence, that money was used to purchase drugs?
How this plays out in court will be instructive. 180 Entertainment wants their money back. If they survive the assumed investigation into their activities, it will come down to a dog’s nose.
Tetragon Financial Group Limited (TFG) Announces Update on its Share Repurchase Program - Yahoo Finance
LONDON, May 18, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --
TFG today announces in furtherance of its share repurchase program announced on November 30, 2007, that for the period of May 14, 2012 through May 18, 2012 TFG purchased 115,511 of its shares for an average price of U.S. $7.60 per share.
About Tetragon:
Tetragon Financial Group Limited (TFG) is a Guernsey closed-ended investment company traded on Euronext Amsterdam by NYSE Euronext under the ticker symbol "TFG" that currently invests primarily through long-term funding vehicles such as collateralized loan obligations in selected securitized asset classes and aims to provide stable returns to investors across various credit, equity, interest rate and real estate cycles.
This release does not contain or constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to purchase securities in the United States or any other jurisdiction.
The securities of TFG have not been and will not be registered under the US Securities Act of 1933 (the "Securities Act"), as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States or to US persons unless they are registered under applicable law or exempt from registration.
TFG does not intend to register any portion of its securities in the United States or to conduct a public offer of securities in the United States.
In addition, TFG has not been and will not be registered under the US Investment Company Act of 1940, and investors will not be entitled to the benefits of such Act.
TFG is registered in the public register of the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets under Section 1:107 of the Financial Markets Supervision Act as a collective investment scheme from a designated country.
For further information, please contact:
TFG:
David Wishnow/Yuko Thomas
Investor Relations
ir@tetragoninv.com
Press Inquiries:
Brunswick Group
Gill Ackers/Pip Green
+44-(0)20-7404-5959
tetragon@brunswickgroup.com
Gordhan: SA financial sector resilient - Independent Online
Independent Newspapers
Pravin Gordhan, Minister of Finance. Photo: Matthew Jordaan.
South Africa's financial sector proved exceptionally resilient during the global financial crisis but risks remain, Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan said on Friday.
“However, we should not be complacent, especially since the crisis continues, as we see in Europe, where Spanish and Greek banks face great challenges,” he told the National Assembly during debate on his budget vote.
Reforms to further strengthen the regulatory system included shifting towards a twin-peaks approach to financial sector regulation.
“The twin-peaks approach emphasises two things; firstly, it establishes a prudential regulator in the 1/8SA 3/8 Reserve Bank to supervise and monitor the health and soundness of financial institutions, and importantly also transforms the Financial Services Board (FSB) into a dedicated market conduct regulator.”
In particular, this regulator would focus on improving transparency and disclosure, in the financial sector, particularly given opaque and high costs.
Overall, the new approach also gave the Reserve Bank the requisite powers to monitor and respond to systemic risks, wherever they arose.
National Treasury had been working with the Reserve Bank and FSB to give effect to these reform proposals.
“It is my hope that the policy proposals will be finalised this year for consultations with all the key stakeholders and that the legislation to establish the twin-peak regulators will be tabled next year.
“I should point out that in the meanwhile, steps have already been taken, like introducing stricter capital requirements, and setting up the necessary forums like the Financial Stability Oversight Council, to monitor financial stability overall,” Gordhan said.
In addition, Treasury would already be tabling four pieces of legislation this year, including the Financial Markets Bill, Credit Rating Services Bill, Banks Act Amendment Bill, and the Financial Services Laws General Amendment Bill.
These bills gave effect to South Africa's G-20 commitments on regulating derivative markets, and strengthened the fight again market abuse and manipulation.
Gordhan said the global turmoil of the past four years was a reminder, not just of the risks associated with credit-based booms and the importance of rigorous financial regulation, but also of the inter-connectedness of financial and fiscal systems.
The issues confronting Europe and other parts of the world were not just about the economy but more broadly about the political economy of policy making in complex and challenging times.
Much of Treasury's work was focused on understanding these dynamics and ensuring that “we don’t step over critical solvency and sustainability frontiers”.
“But financial and fiscal health is not enough. We also need a vigorous enterprise economy, we need prosperous mines and factories, we need our schools and hospitals to function well, and we need to enhance competitiveness and improve productivity, both in government services and in the private sector.
“These are not just outcomes of sound budgets and sustainable financing arrangements, they also depend on effective implementation of policies and programmes,” he said. - Sapa
Even Greek stocks may rally once Greece leaves the eurozone - Calgary Herald
The unrelenting and escalating sovereign debt crisis in Europe promises further losses ahead for the region’s already stressed equity markets, but a stock rebound could come sooner than many investors are expecting if Greece exits the eurozone, say analysts.
“The growing possibility of a Greek exit from the European Monetary Union suggests caution remains the watchword for now,” said John Higgins, an economist at Capital Economics. “But once the dust settles, stock markets could fare much better — even in Greece.”
Investors have redoubled their anxiety about eurozone economies that are drowning in government debt and struggling with severe austerity measures after taking a brief hiatus late last year through the early part of 2012.
The Euro Stoxx 50 index listing of the biggest stocks on the continent is down 17% since early February and regional benchmarks have posted even bigger losses. Spain’s IBEX 35 is down 26% over the same period and Greece’s ASE index is down 35%.
The only major European exchange that has made money for investors this year is Germany’s DAX, which, given its relatively superior economic performance, has become a refuge of sorts for investors.
Mr. Higgins said the sharp fall in equity prices has driven valuations down to attractive levels in many eurozone nations, both historically and relative to other countries.
While it’s too soon to expect eurozone stocks to recoup all of their lost ground, he thinks it wouldn’t be long before Greece’s stock market bounced back if the country leaves the single currency area. He said that’s because currency depreciation of a new Drachma would spur economic activity.
“Granted, it would probably be a rough ride in the short term as capital continued to flee the country and contagion fears prompted a world-wide increase in risk aversion,” Mr. Higgins said.
Mr. Higgins said stock markets of other weak countries that remained in the eurozone would also rebound after initially coming under further pressure. But gains would likely be less than those in Greek markets, because those countries would not benefit from significant currency depreciation.
Karen Olney, a strategist at UBS AG, said it is tempting to turn bullish on European equities, but doesn’t advise it at the moment.
In addition to Greece, she remains concerned about Spain’s banking sector — which remains undercapitalized despite additional provisions — and France’s change in leadership.
“[French President François] Hollande hasn’t announced any austerity measures,” she said. “If he does, someone suffers; if he doesn’t, the bond market could force it.”
Ms. Olney said the muted risk appetite of global investors also makes it hard for European stocks to rally, particularly when there’s not enough good news coming from the United States and China.
If and when confidence returns, she likes European value stocks, which have fared 40% worse than growth names since January 2011, and cyclicals that are down near their previous lows.
“Buy Europe over the United States given relative valuations look stretched,” she added. “Just not yet.”
Stocks: Global fear trumps Facebook debut - KSAT 12
U.S. investors resumed focus on the global issues plaguing world markets Friday, following a brief euphoric pop from Facebook's debut.
"People are talking about Facebook, but it's really a sideshow," said Win Thin, an emerging market strategist for Brown Brothers Harriman. "If Europe blows up, people will trade on that more than anything else."
The Dow Jones industrial average lost 42 points, or 0.3%, the S&P 500 slipped 6 point, or 0.5%, and the Nasdaq fell 23 points, or 0.8%.
Facebook, which priced its initial public offering at $38 a share after the closing bell Thursday, jumped 11% when it started trading mid-morning Friday. But by the afternoon, it had leveled off at about $41.
The European debt crisis loomed over global markets. Asian stocks sold off sharply, based partly on the slowdown in the Chinese economy. European markets were also under pressure, and borrowing costs for Spanish and Greek debt remain high.
Concerns are mounting about a potential Greek exit from the euro, and the implications that it could have for other fiscally troubled nations such as Spain and Italy. Rating agency Moody's downgraded 16 Spanish banks Thursday, including giants Banco Santander and BBVA, the latest sign of distress in Europe.
Greece, currently operating with a caretaker government, could leave the eurozone if anti-austerity parties triumph in elections next month.
A growing number of depositors are withdrawing their money from Greek banks amid worries that their savings could be converted to a devalued currency if Greece drops the euro. The rapid withdrawals are putting further strain on the country's struggling financial sector.
U.S. stocks closed lower Thursday. Investors fled stocks and made a rush toward the safety of U.S. Treasuries, sending the 10-year yield to a record low close.
Bonds: Worries about European sovereign debt continued to weigh on U.S. Treasuries. The yield rose to 1.75% from a record low close of 1.706% late Thursday. The 10-year hit an intraday record low of 1.671% on Sept. 23, 2011.
World markets: European stocks closed down. Britain's FTSE 100 fell 1.3%, the DAX in Germany dropped 0.6% and France's CAC 40 slipped by 0.1%.
Asian markets ended sharply lower on worries about Europe, a major market for Asian exports. The Shanghai Composite lost 1.4% on the day, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong tumbled 1.3% and Japan's Nikkei plunged nearly 3%.
Companies: Shares of Yahoo rose early Friday following a report that the Internet portal may have reached a deal with Alibaba that would put an end to a contentious relationship.
Other social media stocks fell, including Groupon, LinkedIn and Zynga, which saw its shares plunge more than 10%. Trading of Zynga's stock was halted two separate times.
Apparel retailer Foot Locker reported better-than-expected earnings.
Shares of Salesforce.com rose sharply after company reported better-than-expected earnings late Thursday.
Shares of Chinese solar energy producers Yingli Green Energy, Trina Solar and Suntech Power declined early Friday, a day after the U.S. government announced new tariffs on Chinese solar panels. Shares of U.S. panel makers First Solar and SunPower also fell on Friday.
Currencies and commodities: The dollar was lower against the euro, the British pound and the Japanese yen.
Oil for June delivery slipped 46 cents to $92.10 a barrel.
Gold futures for June delivery rose $16.80 to $1,591.70 an ounce.
Social media stocks hammered as Facebook debuts - msnbc.com
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Social media stocks, led by Zynga Inc
Facebook shares rose to a high of $45 in early trade but lost steam and was at $38.15 in afternoon trade. Analysts blamed the poorer-than-expected first-day showing on the vast number of shares floated, a rich valuation and market weakness.
"This starlet tripped on the red carpet," said Max Wolff, a senior analyst at GreenCrest Capital. "They started out with a fairly aggressive price range, then jacked it up and threw a lot more shares into the hopper. You either juice the number of shares or the price, you don't usually do both."
Shares of Zynga, the leading social gaming company which gets much of its revenue from Facebook, fell about 20 percent at one point, and were halted twice. Zynga was down 15 percent at $7.03 in late afternoon trading, having earlier hit a low of $6.63, which triggered an automatic halt due to the fluctuation in its price.
Other social media stocks, including LinkedIn and Yelp GSV Capital Some traders who cannot short Facebook shares early may be betting against other social media stocks instead, according to Wolff and others. < l1e8gi8wz=""/> Zynga accounts for more than 10 percent of Facebook revenue, so traders may be focusing mostly on Zynga shares and options as an alternative to Facebook. "Somebody obviously tried to blow that thing out of the water using it as an inorganic hedge against Facebook," Wolff said. "There's nothing going on that was released -- no Zynga-specific news," he added. "There are no senior personnel talking, no new numbers that would explain a movement, let alone a movement of that size." A Zynga spokesman declined to comment. Zynga options have high "skew," which refers to the pricing difference between out-of-the-money puts and out-of-the-money calls, according to Ralph Edwards, director, derivatives strategy at ITG. "This typically means people are looking for Facebook to kind of spill over to Zynga," Edwards said. "If Facebook catches a cold, then Zynga gets pneumonia." Cowen and Company analyst Doug Creutz said some investors may have owned Zynga and other social media shares as a proxy for Facebook before Friday's IPO. "Now they can own Facebook directly," he said. "You may simply be seeing people sell Zynga to buy Facebook." (Editing by Bernadette Baum and Bernard Orr) (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2012. Check for restrictions at: http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
No comments:
Post a Comment