Mid-day Update

S&P 500 1,100.56 +.48%
NASDAQ 1,934.78 +.63%

Leading Sectors
Homebuilders +3.26%
Airlines +2.10%
Nanotechnology +1.84%

Lagging Sectors
Telecom -.79%
Fashion -.80%
I-Banks -1.08%

Other
Crude Oil 41.04 -1.61%
Natural Gas 6.58 -1.86%
Gold 388.30 +.67%
Base Metals 105.56 -.68%
U.S. Dollar 89.89 -.73%
10-Yr. T-note Yield 4.72% -.38%
VIX 16.73 -7.47%
Put/Call 1.13 +48.68%
NYSE Arms 1.00 -15.25%

Market Movers
IPIX +20.7% after announcing a new patent and reseller agreement with JCS Digital.
BSX +4.7% after announcing positive results from it Taxus VI stent clinical trial.
DYAX -34.7% after reporting that the FDA has advised the company that INDs for its recombinant protein DX-88 have been placed on clinical hold.
SWFT +16.0% after raising 2Q guidance substantially, announcing $40M stock buyback and Legg Mason upgrade to Buy.
TEN +16.85% after withdrawing secondary offering.
OCR +6.0% after multiple positive comments from analysts on NeighborCare acquisition.
BOBE -10.0% after lowering 1Q/05 guidance and downgrade to Underperform by Whitaker Securities.
IPMT -7.9% after multiple analyst downgrades.

Economic Data
Existing Home Sales for May came in at 6.64M versus expectations of 6.46M and 6.48M in April.
Consumer Confidence for May 93.2 versus expectations of 94.0 and 93.0 in April.

Recommendations
PFG cut to Underperform at JP Morgan. CVX raised to Buy at Deutsche Bank, target $99. ADP raised to Overweight at Morgan Stanley, target $61. EFX cut to Underweight at Morgan Stanley. MANH rated Outperform at CSFB, target $33. OCR raised to Outperform at Schwab SoundView, target $50. LMT rated Buy at Legg Mason, target $64. RTN rated Buy at Legg Mason, target $42. Goldman Sachs reiterated Outperform on MDT. Goldman downgraded CVH to Underperform. Citi SmithBarney said it favors GE over 3M. Citi said to Buy MO and RJR on weakness. Citi reiterated Buy on MAR, target $58. Citi said recent US semiconductor purchasing manager's survey is positive for LLTC, ADI, TXN and MXIM. Citi also likes INTC and CY at current levels. Citi reiterated Buy on UNM, target $20. Citi reiterated Buy on MDT, target $59. Goldman reiterated Outperform on DELL, target $42.

Mid-day News
U.S. stocks are higher mid-day led by homebuilders and airlines as energy prices and interest rates fall. Russia will enter the World Trade Organization in 2007, the Itar-Tass news service reported. Linux users are adopting a way to track contributions to the operating system, a process that may head off future disputes about who added what, the Wall Street Journal reported. Ford may cut production of sport-utility vehicles during the third quarter because of slow sales, Dow Jones Newswires reported. Cisco introduced a faster router to help retake market share from Juniper, Reuters reported. Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts is expected to make a $73.1M interest payment that was due May 1 to avoid default, the Star-Ledger reported. Harvard University's student-run sex magazine, H Bomb, made its debut this morning to students and newsstands around the Cambridge, Mass. campus, the Boston Globe reported. Russia will seek to increase oil exports amid higher prices, Interfax news service reported. TV political ads in the 2004 presidential election campaign have been filled with exaggerations, leaving voters with distorted impressions of both President Bush and Senator Kerry, the NY Times reported. The world's seven most industrialized nations and Russia expect the world economy to growth at a strong pace next year, the Financial Times reported. A multinational force will be needed in Iraq "for months, rather than years," as the country develops its own military to maintain security, Iraqi Defense Minister Allawi said today. SBC Communications and the Communications Workers of America agreed on a five-year contract that guarantees the jobs of 100,000 employees, Bloomberg reported.

BOTTOM LINE: The Portfolio is having another good day today as a few of my biotech, basic material and semi-equipment longs post solid gains. I took profits this morning in one of my basic material longs and bought PETS. I am using a $6.50 stop-loss on the position. The Portfolio is still 125% net long. A high put/call ratio, falling interest rates/energy prices and significant outperformance by small-caps leads me to believe today's rally is sustainable and may improve this afternoon.

Tuesday Watch

Earnings of Note
Company/Estimate
KKD/.23
HNZ/.58
CA/.17
SEAC/.08
SMTC/.18
TSA/.34
WSM/.16

Splits
RCI 3-for-2

Economic Data
Existing Home Sales for April estimated at 6.45M versus 6.48M in March.
Consumer Confidence for May estimates at 94.0 versus 92.9 in April.

Recommendations
Goldman Sachs reiterated Outperform on AA. Goldman reiterated Underperform on VRSN.

Late-Night News
Asian indices are mostly lower tonight on weakness related to rising crude oil prices. Wal-Mart wants stores in every European country via its Asda Group, the Financial Times said. Microsoft is working on a new version of its Windows operating system that will allow multiple personal computers to be linked together to mimic a high-powered supercomputer, according to News.com. Deutshe Telekom bought Cingular's California and Nevada mobile networks, Bloomberg reported. The yen erased losses against the dollar in Asia after S&P said it may raise the credit ratings of major Japanese banks because of progress in cutting bad loans and improving earnings, Bloomberg reported. President Bush said Iraq's interim government will be named this week as a prelude to a five-step process that begins with the June 30 transfer of sovereignty and ends with elections next year, Bloomberg reported.

Late-Night Trading
Asian Indices -2.0% to unch. on average.
S&P 500 indicated -.20%.
NASDAQ indicated -.18%.

BOTTOM LINE: I expect U.S. stocks to open modestly lower in the morning on weakness in Asia and a likely weaker-than-expected Consumer Confidence number. However, this should result in falling interest rates which could bolster shares later in the day. The Portfolio is 125% net long heading into tomorrow.

Monday Close

S&P 500 1,095.34 +.16%
NASDAQ 1,922.98 +.57%

Leading Sectors
Oil Service +4.38%
Homebuilders +3.08%
Disk Drives +2.27%

Lagging Sectors
Drugs -.78%
Telecom -.90%
Tobacco -3.60%

Other
Crude Oil 41.68 -.10%
Natural Gas 6.69 -.07%
Gold 385.60 -.03%
Base Metals 106.28 +1.23%
U.S. Dollar 90.50 +.01%
10-Yr. T-note Yield 4.73 -.46%
VIX 18.08 -2.22%
Put/Call .76 -37.70%
NYSE Arms 1.18 +22.92%

After-hours Movers
NOVL -7.72% on profit-taking after meeting 2Q estimates.
CHTR +5.2% after S&P revised outlook to positive.

Recommendations
Doug Kass, hedge fund manager and writer for TheStreet.com, says the market looks headed for a pretty good year.

After-hours News
U.S. stocks finished mostly higher today led by homebuilders and energy-related stocks as oil rose and interest rates fell. After the close, Virgin USA said it expects to choose between San Francisco and New York when selecting a U.S. location to house the national headquarters for the company's low-cost domestic carrier, CNN reported. Medtronic, the world's largest maker of devices that regulate heartbeats, said 4th quarter revenue rose 24%, beating expectations. Crude oil and gasoline futures in New York surged today on concern Saudi Arabia's promised production rise and any increase in OPEC quotas at a meeting next week won't satisfy expanding demand, Bloomberg reported. New York City had a 5.18% drop in crime in 2003, making it the safest of the nation's 10 largest cities, according to FBI statistics.

BOTTOM LINE: The Portfolio had a very good day today as my internet and basic materials longs rose substantially. I took profits in a couple of airline longs and added a couple of internet longs, leaving the Portfolio with 125% net long market exposure. I added AMZN in the afternoon and will use a $40.50 stop-loss on the position. The advance/decline line continues to improve and small-caps are outperforming again. The fact that most stocks rose today with oil rising substantially is a very good sign for the Bulls. As well, the stabilization of interest rates is a big positive.

Mid-day Update

There will not be a mid-day update today as I have a scheduling conflict. However, I will publish the Monday Close at its regular time. This is an interesting article titled "The Comprehensive Impact of Offshore IT Software and Services Outsourcing on the U.S. Economy and the IT Industry" from GlobalInsight. There is a conclusion on page 10 if you are short on time.

Monday Watch

Earnings of Note
Company/Estimate
CHP/.08
CPB/.31
DY/.23
MDT/.46
NOVL/.03

Splits
SONC 3-for-2

Economic Data
None of note.

Weekend Recommendations
Forbes on Fox had guests that were positive on GE, AA and mixed on BBBY, TIF, VRTSE and HOV. Bulls and Bears had guests that were positive on GRMN, KKD, ADP and mixed on NEM, SLR, PNRA, NSM, MSO, TWX, INTC and DNA. Cashin' In had guests that were positive on LDG and mixed on ZNT, TOL and NOVL. Louis Rukeyser's Wall Street had guests that were positive on FCX, GPC, FLR, HAR, RL, BIIB, JPM, ABT, RDA, CCH, SNN and CAT. Wall St. Week w/Fortune had guests that were positive on C, MER, ATVI, ERTS, ZIXI and negative on TTWO, LF, NLS and SFP. Barron's had positive columns on BZH, CMCSA, ATK, ABMD and a negative column on SYMC. Goldman Sachs reiterated Outperform on ACN, EBAY. Business Week has a positive article on JNPR.

Weekend News
New York City has spent about $100 million to reinforce security at its reservoirs elsewhere in New York state to prevent terrorists from poisoning drinking water, the New York Post reported. Ford Motor Co.'s Escape, a sport-utility vehicle that gets about 23 miles to the gallon, and similar rivals are being snapped up as gas prices rise, the New York Times reported. International inspectors have found evidence that North Korea sold Libya two tons of weapons-grade uranium in 2001, the NY Times said. HSBC may bid for New York Community Bancorp, the Independent newspaper reported. Saudi Arabia is ready to increase oil production by more than 15% if needed to help lower prices, Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi said. Amec has agreed to help Korea National Oil Co. develop oil projects in Iraq, the Observer reported. U.S. military commanders said Iraqi militants loyal to al-Sadr seem to have abandoned their effort to control Karbala, the New York Times reported. Lloyds TSB Group Plc, the UK's no.5 bank, is in talks with IBM over a $1.8 billion technology contract, the Mail on Sunday said. Spending on Internet advertising reached $7.3 billion in 2003, a 21% increase, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. Halliburton's CEO said his company has never overcharged the U.S. Army for work in Iraq, the NY Times reported. Pakistan's President and India's new Prime Minister discussed peace moves between the countries and pledged to continue the process, Agence France-Presse reported. Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Chairman Sternlicht said he is "seeing group bookings making a significant comeback" and that the U.S. economy is "definitely getting legs under it," Bloomberg reported. Hewlett-Packard will offer its first mobile phone that combines the functions of a hand-held computer during the second half of this year, the Commercial Times reported. Vodafone may raise its dividend 20% this week, Bloomberg reported. Wells Fargo may buy Strong Capital Management, which settle lawsuits last week over allegations of engaging in improper mutual fund trading, Bloomberg reported.

Late-Night Trading
Asian indices are mostly higher, -.25% to +2.0% on average.
S&P 500 indicated +.38%.
NASDAQ indicated +.39%.

BOTTOM LINE: I expect U.S. stocks to open modestly higher in the morning on strength in Asia and falling oil prices. I have had some huge winners in the last couple of weeks and may rotate out of a few of these tomorrow. The Portfolio is 125% net long.

Weekly Outlook

There are a number of important economic reports and a few significant corporate earnings reports scheduled for release this week. Economic reports this week include Consumer Confidence, Existing Home Sales, Durable Goods Orders, New Home sales, Preliminary GDP, Initial Jobless Claims, Personal Income, Personal Spending, PCE Deflator, Univ. of Mich. Consumer Confidence and the Chicago Purchasing Manager report. Consumer Confidence readings, Durable Goods Orders, PCE Deflator and the Chicago Purchasing Manager report all have market-moving potential.

Novell(NOVL), Medtronic(MDT), Computer Associates(CA), Williams-Sonoma(WSM), Sports Authority(TSA), Toll Brothers(TOL), Vodafone(VOD), Krispy Kreme(KKD), Autozone(AZ), Costco(COST) and Vivendi Universal(V) are some of the more important companies that release quarterly earnings this week. There are also a few other events that have market-moving potential. The CSFB Semiconductor & Equipment Conference, UBS Software and Services Conference and the CSFB Small-cap Conference could all impact trading this week.

Bottom Line: I expect U.S. stocks to rise modestly throughout the week as oil and interest rates decline. As well, continued positive news on the earnings front and from several conferences should push stocks higher. While the major indices were mostly flat last week, breadth improved as many stocks posted significant gains. Recent Put/Call and Arms Index readings are also consistent with a rise this week. I expect basic materials stocks will continue their outperformance, while energy-related stocks should remain laggards. I took a long position in NKTR on Friday afternoon and I am using a $17 stop-loss on the position. The Portfolio is 125% net long heading into the week.