Monday Watch

Earnings of Note
Company/Estimate
WAG/.31

Splits
AMWD 2-for-1
LM 3-for-2

Economic Data
New Home Sales for August estimated at 1155K versus 1134K in July.

Weekend Recommendations
Louis Rukeyser's Wall Street had guests that were positive on EK, INTC, DIA, PFE, BK and CMCSA. Wall St. Week w/Fortune had guests that were positive on CMCSA, NXTL, EBAY and EK. Bulls and Bears had guests that were positive on ERES, BAC, SLM, LDG, JBHT, CCL, AH, CL and mixed on KMRT, ORCL. Forbes on Fox had guests that were positive on INGR, QSTR, MSFT, WIT and MSO. Cashin' In had guests that were positive on FLIR, MMC, mixed on ISSX, KKD, ESPD, EDP and negative on MSO. Barron's had positive comments on BBI, F, TM, HMC, DCX and negative comments on VLKAY and GMAI. Goldman Sachs reiterated Outperform on EBAY. Goldman reiterated Attractive view on Gold stocks.

Weekend News
China may let its insurance companies buy stocks directly as early as next month, the 21st Century Business Herald said. Tesco Plc, Britain's biggest retailer, is testing RFID tags that will replace the bar code on products from bread to stereos, the Financial Times said. KarstadtQuelle AG, the largest German department store operator, plans to end its joint venture with Starbucks, Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung said. Iraq's Prime Minister Allawi and Secretary of State Colin Powell said they expected all Iraqis would participate in the election planned for January, the Washington Post reported. Semiconductor Manufacturing International has started making 12-inch wafers at its newest plant in Beijing, Xinhua news said. The world economy is at its best in five years, said IMF Managing Director Rodrigo Rato in an interview with El Pais. Senator Kerry, who supported extending a U.S. assault-weapons ban that expired two weeks ago, said that he owns a Chinese assault rifle, the NY Times reported. Viacom CEO Redstone said he will wait on a report by a panel investigating Dan Rather's use of questionable documents before deciding on the CBS News anchorman's future, Time magazine reported. Johnson & Johnson's may enter the hearing aid market and expand its over-the-counter drugs business in an effort to boost sales, the Financial Times said. France and Germany won't increase military aid to Iraq even if Senator Kerry wins the U.S. election, the Financial Times reported, citing French and German officials. Texas Instruments and Xilinx have cut chip orders at United Microelectronics after paring forecasts for their quarterly sales, the Commercial Times reported. Hewlett-Packard will stop making desktop computers based on Intel's Itanium chip, the Wall Street Journal reported. Asian traders said any declines in Fannie Mae debt, after regulators told the company to amend account ting procedures, are a buying opportunity, the Asian Wall Street Journal reported. U.S. oil inventories should make a quick recovery to normal levels after Hurricane Ivan disrupted supply to the U.S. Gulf of Mexico over the last two weeks, Qatar's oil minister said. Hurricane Jeanne, which slammed into Florida's Atlantic coast overnight, may cost insurers $6 billion to $14 billion, rivaling Hurricane Charley as the most expensive storm of the season, Bloomberg reported. Inco, the world's second-biggest nickel producer, and Falconbridge may spend $3.5 billion for the metal from Chinese stainless steel makers soars, Bloomberg said. The U.S. Army may reduce the length of time soldiers are required to spend in combat zones in Iraq and Afghanistan, the NY Times reported. Fannie Mae may have to sell assets or turn to investors to raise cash to meet its regulatory capital standards, the Wall Street Journal said.

Late-Night Trading
Asian indices are mixed, -.75% to +.25% on average.
S&P 500 indicated +.04%.
NASDAQ indicated +.04%

BOTTOM LINE: I expect U.S. stocks to open modestly lower in the morning on higher energy prices and greater-than-expected damage from Hurricane Jeanne. The Portfolio is market neutral heading into the week.