Thursday Close

S&P 500 1,103.29 -.93%
NASDAQ 1,903.02 -.91%

Leading Sectors
Airlines +2.68%
Oil Service +1.82%
Energy +.95%

Lagging Sectors
Semis -3.22%
Disk Drives -4.75%
Insurance -6.50%

Other
Crude Oil 54.51 -.46%
Natural Gas 6.71 -1.34%
Gold 419.00 -.12%
Base Metals 112.89 -.48%
U.S. Dollar 87.62 -.30%
10-Yr. T-note Yield 4.02% -.90%
VIX 16.43 +6.55%
Put/Call 1.07 +.94%
NYSE Arms 1.64 +20.59%

After-hours Movers
JNPR -6.31% on profit-taking after beating 3Q estimates and raising 4Q guidance.
RMBS +4.62% after beating 3Q estimates.
MGAM -12.89% after cutting 4Q estimates.
PHTN -8.52% after cutting 4Q forecast.
SUNW +4.03% after beating 1Q estimates.
CVH +8.47% on rebound after sell-off related to FHCC acquisition.
CREE -4.02% after missing 1Q estimates and lowering 2Q guidance.
NFLX -34.14% after missing 3Q estimates substantially and saying AMZN will start video service.
CNET -11.99% after meeting 3Q estimates and lowering outlook.

Recommendations
Goldman reiterated Underperform on CNET and Outperform on SVU.

After-hours News
U.S. stocks finished lower today on concerns over lawsuits, energy prices and political worries. After the close, Todd Thomson, CFO of Citigroup, said he expects credit quality to stay strong, though he doesn't expect it to improve enough to warrant another large release of reserves, CNBC reported. President Bush and Senator Kerry's third tv debate last night drew 51.2 million viewers, Nielsen Media Research said. Google introduced software that lets users search for files from their own computers, as well as the Web, entering a new area of competition with Microsoft, Bloomberg reported. The U.S. budget deficit rose to $412.6 billion, below mid-year estimates of $445 billion, in the year ended Sept. 30 as tax receipts rose more than expected on faster U.S. economic growth, Bloomberg said. The budget deficit is now 3.75% of U.S. GDP, 36.2% lower than the all-time record set in 1983, Bloomberg reported. The U.S. Federal Communications Commission won't stop Sinclair Broadcasting from televising "Stolen Honor", a documentary critical of Senator Kerry's anti-war activities after returning home from the Vietnam War, Bloomberg reported. SunTrust Banks said the SEC started an informal inquiry into its recent announcement the bank would restate profit for this year's first two quarters, Bloomberg said.

BOTTOM LINE: The Portfolio finished slightly lower today as declines in my wireless and restaurant longs more than offset gains in my alternative energy and internet longs. I took profits in a few semiconductor longs in the afternoon as they hit stop-losses, leaving the Portfolio 75% net long. The tone of the market deteriorated further in the afternoon and the advance/decline line finished at its lows for the day. Investors appear to be worried over the mounting number of lawsuits plaguing corporate America, President Bush's recent decline in the Polls and continuing high energy prices. I still expect U.S. stocks to trade mixed-to-weaker over the near-term before embarking on a significant move higher in the latter part of the month.