S&P 500 Touches All-Time Closing High, Boosted by Buyout Activity and Small-Caps

Indices
S&P 500 1,525.10 +.15%
DJIA 13,542.88 -.10%
NASDAQ 2,578.79 +.80%
Russell 2000 833.65 +1.21%
Wilshire 5000 15,337.08 +.32%
Russell 1000 Growth 598.91 +.25%
Russell 1000 Value 880.35 +.22%
Morgan Stanley Consumer 744.23 -.25%
Morgan Stanley Cyclical 1,063.67 -.15%
Morgan Stanley Technology 613.74 +.64%
Transports 5,202.94 -.21%
Utilities 535.72 +.44%
MSCI Emerging Markets 126.76 +.29%

Sentiment/Internals
Total Put/Call .93 -4.12%
NYSE Arms .90 +57.79%
Volatility(VIX) 13.30 +4.23%
ISE Sentiment 150.0 +16.28%

Futures Spot Prices
Crude Oil 66.22 +2.02%
Reformulated Gasoline 239.46 -.56%
Natural Gas 7.91 -.35%
Heating Oil 194.70 +1.66%
Gold 663.70 +.26%
Base Metals 270.05 +2.32%
Copper 340.15 +2.35%

Economy
10-year US Treasury Yield 4.78% -2 basis points
US Dollar 82.37 +.21%
CRB Index 316.49 +1.06%

Leading Sectors
Homebuilders +1.20%
Networking +.95%
Internet +.92%

Lagging Sectors
Drugs -.70%
Airlines -.70%
Road&Rail -.74%

Evening Review
Detailed Market Summary
Market Gauges
Daily ETF Performance
Style Performance
Market Wrap CNBC Video(bottom right)
S&P 500 Gallery View
Economic Calendar
Timely Economic Charts
GuruFocus.com
PM Market Call
After-hours Movers
Real-time/After-hours Stock Quote
In Play

Afternoon Recommendations
Bank of America:
- Rated (BDK) Sell.

Afternoon/Evening Headlines
Bloomberg:
- More than $40 billion of takeovers extended the stock market’s seven-week rally and helped the S&P 500 flirt with an all-time high.
- Kirk Kerkorian, the billionaire who owns 56% of MGM Mirage(MGM), is studying “alternatives” for his investment in the company and plans to start talks to buy its Bellagio Hotel & Casino and CityCenter complex in Las Vegas. MGM shares soared 16% in after-hours trading.
- The US corn crop is in better shape than a year ago when farmers produced the third-largest harvest on record. About 78% of the crop was in good or excellent condition as of yesterday, up from 66% a year ago.
- New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson officially announced his candidacy for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination, touting his “proven track record” with domestic and foreign policy issues.

AP:
- Congressional Democrats plan to draft a war-funding measure that drops a requirement for US troops to withdraw from Iraq. The new proposal would also omit billions of dollars in domestic spending opposed by the president. A minimum wage increase will be included in the legislation.
- Iran charged US scholar Haleh Esfandiari today with trying to topple the Iranian leadership, citing Iranian state television.

BOTTOM LINE: The Portfolio finished higher today on gains in my Computer longs, Networking longs and Retail longs. I did not trade in the final hour, thus leaving the Portfolio 100% net long. The tone of the market was positive today as the advance/decline line finished substantially, sector performance was mostly positive and volume was above average. Measures of investor anxiety were above average into the close. Today's overall market action was mildly bullish. Small-caps outperformed substantially today with the iShares Russell 2000 (IWM) rising 1.2%. Mid-caps also did well. The 10-year yield finished near session lows, despite the gain in stocks, falling 2 basis points. Looking at today's insider selling report, it remains very muted and nowhere near levels associated with meaningful market tops. As well, most investor sentiment gauges remain subdued despite the recent run. Serious investment manager performance anxiety is likely now a factor. Bloomberg reported today that an international veterinary body is saying that the avian flu virus may be nearing the end of its natural cycle. Three countries have reported initial outbreaks of the HGN1 strain of the virus in domestic fowl between late February and early April, vs. 38 countries reporting initial infections in the first seven months of last year. The bird flu has been one of the many sources of fear used to scare investors away from stocks over the last few years.